Project Occupy Puppy | Make a Snuffle Mat

Our Glory can be a fast eater.

VERY fast.

We’ve taken to playing games with her while she eats, teaching her proximity and good behaviors while she eats and plays. That works wonderfully. But there are times I need to get things done instead of serving as a kibble dispensary.

Enter: A snuffle mat.

This is essentially a device to slow your dog (or cat) down. Food is tucked into the mat. By sniffing, your pet finds their food and enjoys it. This, I have learned, is called “nose work.”

To make Glory’s snuffle mat, I needed these supplies:

• Sink mat (like this one)
• 1-and-1/2 yards of fleece (use coupons from your favorite fabric store or buy remnants like I did)
• Time

Start by cutting the fleece into 6-7 inch long strips that are approximately 1 to 1-1/2 inch wide.

Next, thread the strip through a hole in the rubber mat, then take the other end of the strip and push it through the hole next to the first one. Flip the rubber mat over and tie the ends with a single knot. Take a second strip, thread it through the second hole alongside the strip already in place. Take the end of the new strip, push it through the third hole. Turn mat over, knot the new strip in place.

Continue this process until the mat is completed. Flip it over and examine the bottom to see if there are any empty holes. Fill in any gaps, turn mat over, loose strip side up and fluff strips until they are standing up.

It’s super easy to teach your dog to use this – honestly I haven’t tried with the cats. The first time, I just dropped the food on top and told her “release,” which is her key word that it’s fair game to go for the food. After the first time of seeing and eating off the snuffle mat, the next time we used it I pushed the food down in between the strips so she had to hunt to eat.

One word of warning! Do not leave this unsupervised with your dog. It’s highly likely that a bored dog – or a snuffle mat that’s starting to smell a little food-like – will become a chew toy.