Scent Enrichment & Nosework Play at Home 👃🌿

Pets explore the world primarily through scent. Engaging their nose stimulates the brain, reduces stress, and provides meaningful enrichment — even inside the home.

Why Nosework Helps

Sniffing naturally activates problem-solving and calms the nervous system. Just 10 minutes of nosework can tire a pet out more effectively than 30 minutes of physical play.

Easy Nosework Activities You Can Start Today

• Snuffle Mat: Hide small treats in the fabric layers and let your pet forage.
• Towel Roll Game: Wrap treats in a towel and let them work to uncover them.
• Scatter Feeding: Sprinkle kibble in a safe area and allow natural seeking behaviors.
• Scent Trail Walks: Let your pet sniff freely on walks rather than walking straight lines.

Choosing Safe Scents

Use only pet-safe herbs or scent items:

• Catnip and silvervine (cats)
• Dried rosemary or chamomile sachets (dogs)

How Often?

Short, frequent sessions work best — 5 to 15 minutes daily is enough to see benefits.

UrbanTail Tip

Sniffing isn’t “distracted behavior” — it’s healthy processing. Allowing time to explore scent leads to calmer behavior at home.

When pets sniff, they think — and thinking pets are happy pets. 🌿