Have you ever played the Find It Game with your dog? Some people see it as something fun to do with your dog. Others see it as a way to distract your dog from other things. And it can be both of those.

But if you don't know how to utilize it as a useful tool in your dog behavior modification toolbox, then you are missing something big.

What is the Find It Game? It might be something else for you, but for us here at The Light of Dog, this is the game:

For starters, you need some really good tasty smelly soft treats. Dog biscuits and kibble work well for some dogs, but they are not the best option for many dogs or in more distracting environments. We prefer something that has a nice strong smell.

In a low distraction area either indoors or outdoors, say Find It just as you toss a tasty treat on the ground right in front of your dog.

Your dog should see it hit the floor and easily gobble it up. Hopefully, your dog turns right back to you in case you want to do that again.

Same thing. Take another treat, say Find It. Then immediately toss another tasty treat on the ground close to your dog.

Once your dog begins to understand that Find It is your cue that you are about to toss a treat on the ground, your dog hopefully starts to watch for the treat to drop. Or immediately starts looking for it if they didn't see it drop.

Once your dog knows the game a bit better, you can toss the treat a bit farther.

Then you can toss it somewhere a bit harder to find. At first, you might toss it on the hardwood or tile floor. Then you might try the rug or the sidewalk or a patch of dirt. Then you might try in the short grass. Later, try it in longer grass.

Then you can start to toss multiple treats.

Or you can toss a treat or treats that your dog did not see.

The goal is to get your dog to engage that high-powered nose and put it to work finding those treats.

Once your dog understands the game, you can begin to use it in the backyard. On walks. When there are other things going on that your dog has trouble handling. Or gets just a bit too overstimulated about.

The goal is NOT to distract your dog, however. This is a common misconception. Well, either that or it's not being used correctly. You CAN use it to distract. But that's not our goal when we use it.

The goal is to learn to engage the nose and search out treats WHEN something else begins that is difficult to handle.

Here's an example of how we utilize it when we have dogs who are dog-reactive when out on walks.

You are out on a walk with your dog-reactive dog. Up until now, your dog spots the other dog and acts in a way that embarrasses you in front of your neighbors. Barking. Pulling on leash. Lunging at the other dog. You get the idea.

In this case, you spot the dog from a good safe distance. As soon as you notice that your dog has spotted the other dog, you say Find It and toss your treats off to the side of the trail or sidewalk.

It is critical that your dog NOTICE THE OTHER DOG FIRST before you start your Find It Game. If you try to start the game before your dog notices the other dog, then you are using it as a distraction and not a useful alternative behavior to reacting to the other dog.

That is not our goal. Our goal is for the dog to notice the other dog AND THEN engage in a completely different / alternative behavior instead of reacting to the other dog.

We are helping your dog learn to engage in a different behavior when noticing other dogs so that we create a new pattern of behavior.

The Find It Game is just one thing that we use for these types of issues. If we start it when the dog is far enough away, we help the dog to know the dog is there but not react to it other than noticing it.

We have lots of other things we can do as well, but the Find It Game is an easy one to start with. It does not take direct focus on you. It does not take a lot of brainwork/thought on your dog's part. It merely engages the nose. And that nose is pretty powerful.

Once you know HOW to utilize the Find It Game properly, it can become a very useful tool in your toolkit.