National Dog Day Ideas: Eight Things to Do With Your Dog

National Dog Day is August 26, and the dog gets to pick how it goes. Below are eight things to do on the day, each one small enough to fit around a work schedule.

We are Sniff and Shift. We make single ingredient freeze-dried treats in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and we bring a dog or two to car shows. A few of the ideas use our treats or our bandana, and we say so when they do. Most of them need nothing but the dog and an hour.

National Dog Day at a glance

• The long walk, on the dog's route.
• A new trail or a short drive.
• A treat hunt in the yard.
• The photo, in the bandana.
• Five minutes on one new trick.
• Time or supplies for a local shelter.
• A treat the dog has not tried.
• A gift that keeps coming, for a dog you know.

Let the dog pick the walk

Start with the usual walk, then hand over the decisions. Take the dog's route, not yours. If the dog wants to turn left at the corner where you always turn right, turn left. Stop where the dog stops, and stay as long as the dog likes at each stop.

Leave the phone in your pocket for most of it. The point is to follow along for once, and the walk ends when the dog says it does.

A new trail or a short drive

Pick somewhere you have never taken the dog. A trail on the other side of the county works, and so does a park in the next town. A new place gives the dog new ground to sniff, and it gives you a reason to get out of the usual loop.

Bring water, a bowl and bags. Beef liver from our kitchen is lightweight and non-greasy, which makes it easy to pack for car trips, so a small pouch in your pocket covers the rewards. Our Explore page is a good place to start looking for where to go.

A treat hunt in the yard

This one takes ten minutes and a handful of treats. While the dog is inside, scatter small pieces of freeze-dried beef liver around the yard. Our liver is freeze-dried raw in small batches, and it breaks into bite-sized pieces.

Start easy, with pieces in plain sight on the grass. Then move to the base of a tree, then under a leaf. Let the dog out and let the nose do the work. Wash your hands after handling it, which is what the label says to do with liver.

The photo, in the bandana

The Sniff and Shift Circle-Logo Dog Bandana carries our 3-inch circle logo on the front panel, centered, so it reads whether the dog is sitting or standing. It is a soft cotton blend with a classic tie-on fit, no snaps and no velcro. The listing sells it in White for daylight and Black for night drives.

It is one size. The folded triangle measures roughly 21 inches across the long edge, and the listing says a double-wrap handles a smaller neck. Take the picture at the dog's eye level, outside, and take plenty of them. Machine wash it cold and hang it dry afterward to keep the print sharp.

Five minutes on a new trick

Pick one trick. Shake, spin, back up, touch your hand with a nose. Work on it for five minutes and stop, so the session ends before it gets old.

You will want small rewards. Our freeze-dried beef heart is firm and snaps into small pieces, which is what a five minute session runs on. The only ingredient is beef heart.

Time or supplies for a local shelter

The day also works as a reason to give something back. Call a local shelter before you go and ask what it needs. Some want supplies, some want people to walk dogs, and some want neither this week. Asking first means what you bring is useful.

An hour of a volunteer's time, or a bag of what they asked for, is a good use of the day.

A treat the dog has not tried

If the dog has had liver, try heart. Our heart treat is milder than liver. If the dog has had both, try the freeze-dried cheddar cheese bites. Freeze-drying makes the cheese crunchy and non-greasy rather than soft, and the pieces are small. It contains dairy, so it is not suited to dogs with dairy sensitivities.

The heart and the liver each come in 1.5 ounce, 3 ounce and 6 ounce bags. The cheddar comes in one 8 ounce bag. Each has a single ingredient, with nothing else added, and each is freeze-dried in small batches in Malvern. The rest of the line is in our freeze-dried treats collection.

Give a new treat in small pieces, one at a time. If the dog is on a special diet, ask your veterinarian before a new treat goes in the bowl.

A gift that keeps coming

Modified Monthly is our custom monthly treat box for dogs and cats. Each month has a new theme and a handpicked assortment, so the box that shows up in September is not the box that shows up in October. Favorites come back, and the lineup around them changes.

Dogs get the Gas Division lineup and cats get the Electric Division. Tell us about the dog and the ingredients to steer around, and we work with you on the selection. It is a subscription, not a one-time box, so read how it renews before you order it for someone else.

Questions

What date is the day?

August 26. It is the same date every year, so you can plan around it.

Do I need to buy anything?

No. The walk, the new place, the trick and the shelter visit need only the dog and some time. The treats, the bandana and the box are extras.

What if it is too hot for a long walk?

Do the trick session and the treat hunt indoors, and keep the walk short. Save the longer outing for a cooler part of the day, or for the next morning.

Which treat should the dog try first?

If the dog already eats liver, heart is the milder step. Cheddar is the small crunchy one, and it contains dairy, so skip it for a dog with a dairy sensitivity.

Does the bandana fit a big dog?

It is one size with a tie-on fit. The folded triangle measures roughly 21 inches across the long edge with generous tails, and the listing says it fits small breeds through large.

Is Modified Monthly a one-time gift?

No, it is a subscription. The page explains how it renews, and says standard plans can be paused, skipped or canceled before the next billing date.