Yes—a towel and your dog’s regular kibble can make a simple foraging activity. Scatter food across a towel, roll it loosely, and let your dog sniff out the pieces by unrolling it. Keep the game supervised, make the first roll easy, and stop if your dog chews or swallows the fabric.
How to make a towel-roll food puzzle
- Lay a clean towel flat and scatter some of your dog’s dry kibble across it.
- Roll the towel loosely, leaving the food tucked between the folds. An easy roll lets your dog find the pieces without getting frustrated.
- Set it down and supervise while your dog sniffs and unrolls it. VCA describes tying the towel as a way to make the activity more challenging, but start without a knot.
- When the food is gone, take the towel away.
VCA’s food-enrichment guidance describes the towel activity and recommends supervision. The AVSAB guide advises introducing food puzzles gradually and increasing difficulty as the dog gets comfortable. Adjust the roll to your dog’s interest and ability rather than making the puzzle difficult for its own sake.
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Choose food that fits your dog
Using part of your dog’s regular meal can make the game fit more easily into its usual feeding plan. If you add treats or have questions about suitable foods, portions, dietary sensitivities, or calorie needs, ask your veterinarian. VCA’s food-enrichment advice recommends considering the individual pet’s diet and caloric intake.
Watch for chewing, not just searching
This activity is for sniffing and unrolling—not eating the towel. Stay nearby, especially while your dog is learning the game. If it starts chewing off or swallowing fabric, end the activity and remove the towel. VCA’s toy guidance says to monitor pets with toys, at least initially, and does not recommend toys for pets that chew pieces off them. A towel game is not suitable for every dog.
#1 Best Overall
- ★ Dog Training Toys: It is a unique dog training mat that allows your dog to find snacks or small toys hidden in the mat. It helps to train your dog's smell, consume your dog's energy and lose weight. Keep your dog occupied and avoid your dog being bored and engaged in destructive behavior.
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What enrichment can—and cannot—promise
Food puzzles give dogs a way to search for food and can make a meal more engaging; puzzle feeding may also slow eating. But the available guidance does not quantify the effects of this particular towel game, so it is not possible to promise a specific behavioral or health result. Treat it as an activity, not a treatment for anxiety, aggression, or other behavior problems.
When a snuffle mat may suit better
A snuffle mat is an optional reusable foraging alternative, not a requirement. AAHA describes hiding treats in a folded towel or blanket as a do-it-yourself version of a snuffle mat, while VCA lists both snuffle mats and towel hides among food-foraging options. If you try a purchased mat or another food puzzle, supervise your dog and consider whether it searches for food or chews the material. The towel uses a household item; a mat is a separate item to clean and store. Neither format removes the need to match the challenge and food to your dog.
Rank #2
- Mental Stimulation & Enrichment: Keeps dogs engaged and mentally active, encouraging natural foraging instincts and reducing boredom and destructive behaviors by hiding treats for your pup to sniff out
- Slow Feeding & Better Digestion: Promotes healthy eating habits with a textured design that slows down fast eaters, preventing bloating and improving digestion for dogs that gobble their food too quickly
- Durable & Easy to Clean: Built to last with high quality materials, this snuffle mat is machine washable or hand-washable for hassle-free cleaning, ensuring long-lasting use
- Stress & Anxiety Relief: Calms anxious dogs by providing a soothing activity where sniffing and searching for treats releases endorphins, offering a relaxing experience for your pet
- Non-Slip & Portable Design: Non-slip backing keeps the mat firmly in place even during excited foraging, lightweight and foldable at 19.7 x 19.7 inches for indoor use, lawns, parks, and travel
Sources: VCA, “Enriching Your Pet’s Environment with Their Food”; VCA, “Behavior Management: Enrichment and Activity Toys”; AAHA, “Boredom Busters: Indoor Enrichment for Dogs”; AVSAB, “A Guide to Using Food Puzzle Toys with Your Dog”.
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Best Value
- Engaging Dog Sniffing Mat Design: the dog activity mat features a variety of puzzles and different fabric textures, making the foraging process exciting for your furry friend, and keeping them busy
- Various Levels of Dog Enrichment and Mental stimulation: The dog foraging mat provides a range of puzzles with different levels of difficulty, suitable for dogs of various dog games experience
- Slows Down Fast Eating to Avoid Digestion Problems: Our dog sniffing mat encourages fast eaters to use their sense of smell, reduce anxiety and burn energy. No small plastic details
- Wider Dog Puzzle Sizes: This dog digging toy fits most dog muzzles. The dog treat mat is 39.4''x23.6'', has a non-slip bottom. It is made of soft material for pet comfort and safety. Machine washable
- Reduces Destructive and Anxious Behavior: Fights boredom by training your dog's brain, keeping them busy from exhibiting behaviors like chewing, digging, and excessive barking
Rank #4
- TRAIN YOUR DOG’S SMELL TO HUNT: Boost your pet’s mental stimulation with a snuffle mat! Perfect enrichment toys for dogs and cats, hiding treats in messy grass for fun, scent-focused play.
- DIGESTION & MENTAL HEALTH IMPROVEMENT: The dog snuffle mat acts as a puzzle feeder dog, slowing eating and boosting digestion. These mentally stimulating toys for dogs aid in weight loss and reduce anxiety.
- SNUFFLE MAT AND FEEDING BOWL: This food puzzle for dogs doubles as a sniff mat for dogs and a feeding bowl. With size-adjustable PP belt, it's a convenient, stimulating dog toy for mental stimulation and puppy enrichment.
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- NON-SLIP & PORTABLE DESIGN: This dog puzzle toy features a non-slip base and a portable, shrinkable design. Ideal as puppy puzzle toys and dog stimulation toys to keep your pet engaged.
Rank #3
- SUITABLE FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM DOGS, CATS - The size of this snuffle mat is 26 x 16.5 inches, which is perfect for small dogs, medium dogs, cats and rabbits. It makes a wonderful gift for pet owners! NOT recommended for extra large and aggressive chewers dogs who could tear it up
- INTERACTIVE ACTIVITY MAT- If your dog always eat too fast, we recommend you try our enrichment training feeding mat. Dog snuffle mat simulate an environment for your dog to forage naturally, effectively slow down eating and prevent digestive problems
- 8 DIFFERENT PLACES TO HIDE TREATS - This sniff mat for dogs contains 8 different places to hide food or treats, increase the fun, challenge and training intensity of foraging. It allows you to enjoy the happy time of interacting with your dogs and avoid your dog destroys the furniture due to boredom
- SAFETY MATERIALS - The main material of the foraging mat is felt cloth, which is safety but not chewproof. When you receive this felt snuffle mat, machine wash it once to make the shape as good as the picture
- WASHABLE AND PORTABLE DESIGN - Easy to clean, hand wash and machine wash available. Two additional elastic straps can be fastened and easily wrapped around for storage
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