by Team WellJoy
Cats and dogs are complex emotional beings, just like us, and their mental wellbeing is as important as their physical state.
As your cat or dog moves into their adult life, they’ve probably got the basics down. Now is the time to get to know what their breed and personality tells you about the kind of play and learning they’ll benefit the most from.
When they’re safe and calm, feel-good hormones help them rest, digest and recover. On the flipside, feelings of stress, fear or overstimulation create cortisol and adrenaline, which increase heart rate and alertness, and slows digestion and immune function. Over time, that stress can cause tummy problems, skin flare-ups, poor sleep and behavioral changes.
Essentially: Emotion → brain → hormones → whole-body wellbeing
Giving your pet predictable routines, calm environments and positive experiences is a major part of their long-term health.
What’s going on
At this stage, your pet has almost certainly learned a lot of what they need to (although adolescence might be sending this temporarily sideways).
Now that those basics are down, this is the age to start uncovering what kind of puzzles, pursuits and games keep their brains engaged and learning. And by the way, giving your pet ongoing mental stimulation, that they enjoy, has major implications for their long-term wellbeing and behavior.
A guide to breed-specific behavior, for Dog Loyalists
Different breeds get satisfaction from different activities, and the most effective mental enrichment will match how your dog is naturally wired. There’s a lot we could write about this, but in short:
- Herding breeds (Border Collies, Australian Shepherds, Cattle Dogs): prefer games that involve learning patterns, responding to cues, targeting objects or solving scent-based problems. Keep their brains busy with things that satisfy their instincts without pushing them into high-energy mode. The key is to focus on thinking tasks, rather than endless walks.
- Sporting and retriever breeds (Labradors, Golden Retrievers, Spaniels): prefer games that let them do a job with their human. That means structured retrieval games, scent-based searches and food puzzles that require persistence. They do best with activities that use their bodies and nose, particularly if they get a chance to carry items.
- Working breeds (German Shepherds, Hounds, Dobermans, Boxers): love task-oriented mental stimulation. Focus on place training, structured obedience games, and scent work with increasing difficulty, as well as calm, confidence-building exercises. Snuffle mats can also work very well for these kinds of ‘nosy’ breeds. These dogs can be sensitive to their environment, and thrive on structured, consistent enrichment rather than anything chaotic or overly novel.
- Terrier breeds (Jack Russell Terries, Westies): the problem-solving dogs of the world. They want to investigate, dig, shred or work things out independently, like puzzle toys. Playing hide-and-seek games or making safe digging boxes can be very satisfying for them, and also help prevent destructive behaviors around the house, like those favorite slippers.
- Companion and toy breeds (Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Shih Tzus, Maltese): enjoy more gentle mental stimulation. They benefit from short training sessions, simple trick learning, snuffle mats and other calm enrichment activities - which suit their people-focused and sometimes sensitive nature. Focus on low-pressure activities that reinforce routine and closeness, rather than prolonged stimulation.
- Sighthounds (Greyhounds, Whippets): love a quick burst of mental engagement (and then a loooooong lazy nap to recover). Explore simple scent activities, visual tracking games and choice-based enrichment rather than anything repetitive or demanding. These dogs do need a lot of downtime, so any mental stimulation should be respectful of that.
Whatever kind of dog you have, the goal isn’t to exhaust them, but leave them calm, confident and ready to snooze.
A guide to feline personalities, for Cat Loyalists
Cats are a slightly different ballgame. Instead of focusing on what breeds want, it can be more valuable to understand their personality type. So, ask yourself: is your pet a hunter? A window cat? A thinker? A cuddler?
- The hunter: These cats are bold and curious, and easily bored or even mischievous as a result. Keeping their brains busy means games that replicate the stalk-chase-pounce pattern, maybe by using wand toys, feather teasers or anything else that drags along the floor. Finishing game-time with a treat or small meals can really satisfy those natural hunter urges and bring them peace.
- The window watcher: Does your pet spend all day observing the world going by? They might be the kind that likes entertainment from a distance. Window perches, outside bird feeders and puzzle feeders can all tickle their brain, as does gentle play that lets them connect without pressure.
- The thinker: If your cat is easily bored by toys, you might want to add in some more variable activity to keep their minds busy. Try food puzzles and treat toys as well as clicker and target training to teach them simple behaviors. For these kinds of cats, novelty and variety is what keeps their brain happy.
- The cuddler: Some cats are happier curled up in your lap than stalking down a toy. If you’ve got a cat that loves a lot of affection, and is more of a gentle soul, they’ll benefit from snuffle mats, lickable treats, and overall calm play that keeps their brains busy without overstimulating them.
- The hider: More cautious cats need mental stimulation that helps them build confidence. These cats tend to prefer toys they can enjoy independently or games that let them participate from a safe distance – for example wand toys that move away from the cat, rather than towards them. If they’re very attached to their hiding spots, you can place a food puzzle nearby.
- The independent solo player: Certain cats just prefer to do their own thing, and don’t want humans ruining all the fun. If this is your pet, invest in solo play with motorized toys, balls that deliver treats, or other objects that they can bat and chase without your help. To prevent boredom, rotate those toys every few days.
Seeing your cat or dog blossom into an adult isn’t just a testament to all that hard work and training you did when they were tiny, it’s also an exciting new stage in your relationship. This is a chance to really understand what makes your pet tick, what keeps their brains busy, and what supports their overall daily mental wellbeing. Did we mention it’s also a lot of fun?
We’re proud to say that all of WellJoy’s content is fact-checked and verified by a Pet Loyalist team, including a veterinarian trained in companion animal nutrition and a PhD board-certified companion animal nutritionist.