A New Sensory Garden at All Creatures Doggie Day Care 🌿🐾

At All Creatures, we’re always looking for new ways to make our day care environment

sensory garden using recycled tyres and a mixture of dog-friendly plants, herbs, and flowers.

But the sensory garden is just one part of the wider enrichment environment we’ve been building at the field to give the dogs more opportunities to explore, play, learn, and relax naturally throughout the day.

A selection of mint, lavendar, Rosemary and Thyme.

Vibrant Calendula, aromatic fennel, boston fern and lush mint.

Megan, Yogi and Tia enjoying exploring the sensory garden

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Why Enrichment Matters for Dogs

Dogs don’t just need physical exercise — they also benefit hugely from mental stimulation, confidence-building activities, problem solving, and opportunities to interact with their environment using all their senses.

Enrichment helps:

• Reduce boredom and stress

• Build confidence

• Encourage natural behaviours

• Improve social interaction

• Provide mental stimulation alongside exercise

• Create calmer, happier dogs

Every dog enjoys enrichment differently. Some love climbing and exploring (Luna, Henry and Bella), some enjoy sniffing and foraging (Yogi, Tia and Megan), while others prefer quiet sheltered spaces to relax and observe the world around them (Alfie!).

Our Sensory Garden 🌱

The sensory garden was designed to encourage calm exploration through scent, texture, and natural planting. We carefully chose dog-safe plants and herbs that provide a variety of smells and textures for the dogs to investigate.

Our garden currently includes:

• Mint - 2 different varieties

• Lavender

• Rosemary

• Thyme

• Ferns

• Calendula flowers

• Marigolds

• Fennel

Many of the planters were created using recycled tyres, giving old materials a new purpose while adding a bit of colour and character to the field.

Some dogs are already obsessed with sniffing every plant pot thoroughly… usually in the hope there may be snacks hidden somewhere nearby.

Different Surfaces & Textures

We’ve also created a variety of walking surfaces around the field including:

• Grass

• Hardstanding areas

• Rubber matting

• Gravel and natural ground textures

Walking across different surfaces helps provide sensory stimulation and encourages dogs to think more about how they move through their environment. It also adds variety to their play and exploration throughout the day.

Climbing, Exploring & Confidence Building 🐕

For dogs that enjoy being active and adventurous, we’ve added:

• Pallets to climb on and run around

• Tunnels to explore

• Dens and sheltered areas for shade and quiet time

• A small slide which has quickly become a favourite with some of our more confident dogs!

These features encourage:

• Problem solving

• Confidence building

• Coordination and balance

• Positive social interaction

• Independent exploration

Not every dog wants to charge around all day, so having different enrichment options allows each dog to engage in activities that suit their personality and energy level.

Max finding a comfy spot for a snooze.

Frankie, Yogi and Tia keeping an eye on every one from their raised platform.

Megan hiding in the tunnel.

Creating a Calm & Natural Environment

One thing we’ve always believed at All Creatures is that dogs benefit from having choice. Some days they want to run, play, sniff, climb, socialise, or simply relax in a shaded den watching the world go by.

By continuing to improve the field with enrichment areas, sensory planting, varied textures, and exploration spaces, we hope to create an environment that supports both physical exercise and emotional wellbeing.

The dogs have certainly been enjoying testing everything out so far — usually at full speed!

Thank you, as always, for supporting All Creatures and trusting us with your dogs. We love being able to keep improving their environment and making day care as enriching, stimulating, and enjoyable as possible. 🐾