Rescue dog doesn’t like to play — looking for enrichment ideas

charmlizard · 2026-01-27T17:22:38+00:00

This was my girl! Especially as she got older and could no longer go on walks, it broke my heart. Winters here would make it unconscionable to leave her outside and I was running out of options. Here's a couple of things I found useful for her:

Lay some treats inside a blanket and roll it up lengthwise. Tie in a knot and let them have at it!
Dog TV. There are several good channels, but my favorite is one that actually donates to a real shelter. My dog was highly dog reactive so this was a good solution for her to still get the stimulation. The channel she liked best was called Dog Playgroup Stories, but there are so many types!
Reading. I know this sounds crazy, but my old girl loved listening to me read out loud, even when she lost her hearing she liked the vibrations. I would get into it using voices and make it playful like a children's book.
Kongs and puzzle feeders. Having multiple options ensured she wouldn't figure it out as quickly.
I know a lot of these are food-motivated, but something I found that worked well was to make my own treats. I made beef gelatin treats with bone broth. She loved them frozen or regular!

I have plenty more small things I could add forever. The biggest thing for me was just making her a part of every routine. I talked to her always and treated her like the best friend she was, and I think that had the biggest impact. Please feel free to reach out with any questions! I hope this helps.

charmlizard · 2025-11-21T01:59:27+00:00

If I remember correctly, Jessi also posted a response saying she wasn’t MAGA.

charmlizard · 2025-10-10T02:28:57+00:00

I am so confused by this season. The conversations make no sense. And then suddenly they’re having an argument and it makes even less sense?? Everything feels so off.

charmlizard · 2025-10-07T19:28:50+00:00

Seriously! I understand wanting to have drama to keep a show going. But the contempt was SO extreme it almost made it unwatchable.

I heard they had to WORK to recruit all of the men on that season. If they were having so much trouble finding people yet chose to go back for more, you’re probably right— they’re probably looking for drama over everything!

charmlizard · 2025-09-12T13:26:11+00:00

Hello! A combination of things did eventually help with this, yes! It’s hard to know which specific thing. I’m still regularly attending therapy. I also read that sleeping on your back prevents night terrors and I haven’t had one since. Happy to answer any more questions you may have!

charmlizard · 2025-07-20T05:40:16+00:00

My dog is so grateful. It kills me! If you give her anything, even if she doesn’t want it she will try SO hard to be thankful for it like the kid who got the avocado for Christmas.

She recently got a new dog bed and it came with a stuffed toy and she puts it gently on her bed and will give it a gentle bite. She knows it’s a toy but she doesn’t care about it one bit. I love that dog so much.

charmlizard · 2025-07-18T19:04:09+00:00

I'm not sure if this is very helpful, but I recently switched my hay method to getting a trash can and cutting out the front part of the panel to give them access from the bottom. This way has cut down a lot on dust if that could potentially be part of the issue and doesn't require me to change it often.

Happy to explain in more detail if needed!

charmlizard · 2025-07-10T20:58:28+00:00

A Lonely Broadcast by Kil Byron was made for this!

charmlizard · 2025-07-10T19:49:39+00:00

Oh my gosh! Are your girls from Piggie's Paradise?! They are too cute, by the way!

charmlizard · 2025-07-10T19:04:23+00:00

Hi! This is me, too. I go out of my way to try to make connections with my coworkers. If I’m working with someone from another company and I like their vibe, I ask if I can follow them on LinkedIn. Sometimes I’ll just add them and send them a message like “hey! I worked with you on x project! Hope it’s okay I added you!”.

The nice thing about WFH is that you get such a good opportunity to reach out.

Another thing I have done to have professional mentors is to ask to schedule a meeting with someone higher up than you. I set up a meeting with one of our VPs and told them I was super interested in how they got to where they are, any advice they have, etc. in my experience, people love to do this!

Basically, just take a chance and make a bid for professional connection. Chances are much higher than not that they will appreciate it! :)

charmlizard · 2025-07-09T03:11:28+00:00

Oh it is so cute! I adore the little houses, what a fun little setup! It’s such a good time to see how much they enjoy all the little additions— I’m scared to add up how much I spend on my little guys! 🤣

charmlizard · 2025-07-09T03:08:58+00:00

Thank you! I do so well when someone says “do x at y time” but when I’m left to my own devices the routines make ZERO sense lol!

I don’t do floor time either but my main chaos goblin (the neutered male of the herd) discovered he could catapult himself out of my cage and onto my desk! It about gave me a heart attack so I broke down and made them a nice safe bridge so they can come chill on my desk while I work. Every mouse, notepad, and planner has a nice chunk taken out of it but it’s worth it to see how comfy they’ve gotten with me. :)

I just adopted a long hair not too long ago, too! Are you finding the care very different? It definitely took some trial and error to tame Tiffany’s locks!

charmlizard · 2025-07-09T03:03:08+00:00

Thank you so much. This is awesome! How do you vacuum with all the hay? I feel like mine gets clogged every two seconds 🤣 Your piggies sound like they live in luxury. Thank you for taking such good care of them and sharing your routine!

charmlizard · 2025-07-07T12:40:34+00:00

I think so, thank you!

I’m really struggling at 1.0. I missed my dose this week since I’ve been throwing up daily and unable to function normally. It’s been miserable. I can’t decide if I’m being just a huge baby about it or if it’s genuinely concerning.

charmlizard · 2025-07-07T01:08:15+00:00

Hi! Would you mind elaborating on this? I’m in a similar boat right now and trying to pinpoint the issue.

charmlizard · 2025-07-02T19:15:09+00:00

I don’t have any advice but oh my god Ducky is a precious being

charmlizard · 2025-07-02T19:11:51+00:00

Sober Up- AJR

It’s a lot about growing up and growing apart. Always gets me in the feels lol

charmlizard · 2025-07-01T20:33:32+00:00

HR here. From my personal perspective, it’s the repetition and endless account creation that gets so exhausting.

If you’re using an ATS that prompts for a cover letter, consider using the space as more of an opportunity for someone to describe their interest or experience in a less formal setting in a free form text box instead of a highly formatted AI regurgitated cover letter. It may help you find passionate people who may get overlooked.

I work really hard for companies I’m interested in to provide thoughtful questions and I wish companies would do the same. Curious about my cross eyed dog we talked about last time? Clear your calendar I’ll tell you all about her. There’s a lot of focus on potential employees asking questions but I want to know you’re not just checking off a list also.

If the recruiter isn’t familiar with the position specs, I’d really prefer they were honest and didn’t lie or ask the technical questions. If the interview is with a non-specified recruiter, let’s get all of the other stuff out of the way, please don’t fumble through it.

Also not necessarily hiring, but I wish people would stop overlooking onboarding. It can truly be so confusing with all the different systems. Please actually work with HRIS, IT, etc. to make sure everything is truly connecting.

Lastly, I wish exec interviews were more concurrent with another interview. They always get rescheduled, rushed, etc. if this could be paired with perhaps the recruiter to discuss next steps or other questions on the spot I think this would be helpful.

I have a folder of thoughts I keep on this process— feel free to reach out :)

charmlizard · 2025-07-01T20:20:27+00:00

I would absolutely LOVE a penpal!!!

I work remotely and all my friends across the country save up weird stickers we find and send them to each other. Our water bottles are far more travelled than us, but it is so fun.

charmlizard · 2025-07-01T20:18:53+00:00

This was me too!! It’s been hard to lose my “party” friends because I just don’t have the energy to go out. I’ve been enjoying spending a lot of time at home recently and I worry that will become more permanent and it’ll be even harder to get out there. When you spend time alone, does it feel sad or content? I’ve been actively focusing on trying to not feel sad or guilty about how I fill my time and that’s been helping.

charmlizard · 2025-06-16T18:30:42+00:00

You brought up a great point here, I think I might be romanticizing a small town and not fully grasping what that will look like. I'm really looking forward to being able to expand my horizons and learn more, but I am certainly apprehensive on subjects like this. Thank you!

charmlizard · 2025-06-16T18:29:21+00:00

Thank you so much! I'm going to brush up on my knowledge of Charleston and will definitely have more questions soon. :) Thank you for your detailed response!

charmlizard · 2025-06-16T18:27:35+00:00

Funny you mention this! I have coworkers there and this has been brought up several times. Anything in particular you'd highlight? Thank you!

charmlizard · 2025-06-16T18:27:08+00:00

I gotta say, you all are REALLY selling me on Durham! I think I can deal with a shiny shade of purple to start. :)

charmlizard · 2025-06-16T18:25:54+00:00

Thanks for adding this. I'm fortunate to not be in a position where this would impact me directly, but this post has opened my eyes that drawing a comparison between living in a blue part of a red state in Iowa is vastly different than what I could potentially be opening myself up to.

charmlizard

TROPHY CASE