The five pillars of animal enrichment (and why they matter more than ever)
Every pet has a telos — an essential nature, a “beingness” — and that idea shapes how I work with them and their families. Being able to express themselves in ways aligned with their species, their telos, is essential to their well-being.
Their well-being has always mattered to me and the families I’ve worked with over the last two decades. But over the last several years, one piece of that puzzle has risen to sit right alongside their physical health: enrichment.
Enrichment is more than a game of fetch (or keep-away, if you know what I mean), a walk around the block, an occasional chew bone, or hanging out with trusted humans and other pets. It’s a whole framework — five pillars, in fact — and the pet guardians I partner with have embraced it enthusiastically, especially during the times their pets need it most: recovering from illness or injury, or on crate rest after surgery.
Enrichment can bridge the gap when a pet has to forgo their normal activity. And once guardians see what it can do during recovery, they often get curious about how to use it all the time — including into their pet’s senior and geriatric years, when mobility, vision, hearing, and even cognition start to shift.
Helping aging pets and their families live better lives is my jam, and making sure these pets can still enjoy life fully is a top priority. What we see, again and again, is that boredom, isolation, and loneliness take a real toll on pets at this stage of life. The good news: all three are preventable. No pet needs to miss out.
So let’s walk through this primer on the five pillars of animal enrichment — what they look like on their own and how they work together to give pets a full, varied life. As you read through each one, you’ll probably start thinking about what your own pets already gravitate toward.
1. Nutritional Enrichment
This pillar flips how food is offered on its head, encouraging natural hunting, foraging, and scavenging behaviors instead of just filling a bowl. Puzzle toys, scatter-feeding, snuffle mats, and frozen treats are all great ways to stretch out mealtime.
One trick I love for dogs: prep meals ahead of time by loading Kongs, lick mats, or slow feeders with their regular food (ideally with a little wet food or soaked kibble mixed in, even if they mostly eat dry). Pop them in the freezer until mealtime, then let your dog work at them. In multi-pet households, it’s best to separate pets during these sessions — especially if resource guarding is a concern.
2. Occupational Enrichment
Occupational enrichment gives animals a sense of purpose by engaging them physically, mentally, and emotionally in activities that reflect natural or learned behaviors — predatory sequences like hunting, tearing things apart, foraging, even burying toys and objects. Positive reinforcement training, short learning sessions, and obstacle courses all fall under this umbrella. It fosters creative thinking and problem-solving. And snuffle mats? They’re the unsung hero here, even for cats.
3. Physical Enrichment
Physical enrichment is about how pets interact with their environment — indoors or out — in ways that support natural movement: burrowing, climbing, digging, even swimming. For cats, this often means cat trees for climbing and stretching, plus scratching posts, which do double duty: they let cats shed the outer sheaths of their claws while stretching their back and shoulder muscles, relieving stress, and marking territory through the scent glands in their paws.
For both dogs and cats, toys and scavenger hunts can enhance the environment further — recycled cardboard boxes, wrapping paper tubes, craft paper to forage through and tear up, tunnels, and even recycled yogurt containers all work well.
4. Sensory Enrichment
This pillar appeals to a pet’s five senses to create a stimulating environment. Sight and hearing can be engaged with a window to look out of — bird-watching or people-watching is often a favorite activity, unless it causes agitation. Classical music, audiobooks, or lo-fi playlists can promote a sense of calm.
Sensory enrichment is tactile, too. For cats, having something to scratch isn’t optional — cat trees and scratch pads made from wood, carpet, cardboard, or sisal all work well. Texture matters for dogs as well, so think about the materials in their toys: crinkle, rubber, plush, canvas, cardboard, paper, and more. Lick mats, foraging toys (store-bought or homemade from recycled items), tug toys, and snuffle mats all fit into a sensory enrichment space you can build at home.
Scent ties everything together — it’s how animals explore the world, and for aging pets whose other senses may be fading, it becomes essential. Introduce scents known to soothe them, along with novel ones: other animals or humans (though these can trigger agitation in some pets, so skip it if that’s a known issue for yours), natural items from outside like leaves, feathers, or pinecones, pet-safe hydrosols, and food. Don’t discount the power of sniffing and exploring on walks.
5. Social Enrichment
Dogs are a deeply social species, so if they have buddies — fellow dogs or trusted humans — creating opportunities to connect matters a lot. It helps stave off the boredom, isolation, and loneliness mentioned earlier, both of which significantly affect a pet’s well-being. For pets whose mobility has limited how often they can socialize, leaning on scent can help — items that smell like a familiar friend can go a long way.
Cats don’t typically have playdates the way dogs do, but it’s not out of the question, and many cats form meaningful bonds with other species, including humans. Supporting those relationships matters too. Any opportunity for healthy, positive interaction — tailored to the animal’s physical and emotional needs and comfort level — is worthwhile, including grooming, play, and short, fun training sessions with their humans.
Each of these pillars stands on its own, but they’re even more powerful combined. Mix and match them based on your pet’s needs, mood, and stage of life — and you’ll give them a richer, fuller experience than any single activity could offer alone.
With over 20 years of experience in pet care and the past 12 of those focused on animal hospice, Lorrie Shaw is a Certified Animal Hospice Practitioner, Certified Hospice Palliative Care Advocate, and pet loss & grief companioning certified professional. She is founder of Telos Companion Animal Services, LLC & can be found at lorrieshaw.com.
