Reddit mentions of Nina Ottosson by Outward Hound Maze Treat Dispensing Dog Toy Brain and Exercise Game for Dogs, Green, Level 2 (Intermediate) (67575)

Warning- my suggestions are QUITE LENGTHY! I really love ACD's and have kept a list of what works with them, so here goes:

All of these can be done indoors or in a fenced in yard:

For 'settling down', impulse control and training an off switch, I found Protocol for Relaxation to be invaluable for my blue heeler. I would start that ASAP.

Kikopup is, in my opinion, phenomenal- find her videos on youtube on tons of topics (she's never steered me wrong)

Loose leash walking is something you have to commit to. Be prepared to walk circles in front of your house/building until your dog understands that you WILL NOT be moving forward with a tight leash. Lots of treats/clicker training will be extremely useful. Start doing this indoors/in your backyard so that when you're allowed in public again, you can transition the skills to the sidewalk/park, etc.

These videos were extremely valuable to me in training loose leash walking. Stopping/going the other direction seriously frustrated my heeler to the point he would attack the leash, so I needed something different.

Shaping Loose Leash Walking With a High Rate of Reinforcement Part 1, Part 2and Part 3 by Helix Fairweather and Lynn Martin. (Read the text below the videos too!)

Formal obedience classes are going to be something you want to invest in with this dog. My 11 month old heeler and I are currently in Obedience 3 (advanced level pre-CGC class) and it has made life so much easier. It also knocks him out the entire next day because his brain is so exhausted. Having access to resources like expert trainers and behaviorists has been great as well. (you mention you're starting this soon- this is great! I've found my ACD really responds well to positive reinforcement-based training).

**Mental stimulation is just as important (if not more so) than physical stimulation. Unless you are actually working your dog, you're definitely not going to hit their physical limits.

What we do:

Formal obedience training (tires them out and provides building blocks for bonding and future fun!)

Protocol for Relaxation (mentioned above)

Sniff walks (roam around letting the dog choose where to go and let them sniff all over the place. Only rule, no pulling- if you pull we stop and stand still until you release the pressure on the leash and then we continue)* to do after you're allowed back out

Nosework (we hide easter eggs filled with smelly treats around the house and let my ACD find them)

Puzzle Toys (our exclusively eats as a reward for loose leash walking, obedience/commands or out of puzzle toys/kongs- no free feeding)

Kong Wobbler

IQ Ball

Buster Cube

Bone Flipper Puzzle

Maze Puzzle Toy

If your dog isn't familiar with puzzle toys, I would start with the Kong Wobbler. It's still my dog's favorite - mostly because it's the easiest! hahha

our own version of fetch (our ACD doesn't bring the ball back)

Tug (LOTS of tug, with rules- no snatching it out of my hand, sit to start, etc).

Bones/chew toys

Frozen Kongs for mandatory settle down crate time

Mat training (surprisingly difficult and mentally draining for ours)

Find it (throw kibble into tall grass and let him find it)

Hide and Seek (self explanatory)

Water play (mine LOVES rivers/shallow water but not actual swimming) *maybe get a cheap plastic wading pool?

Bubbles

Flirt pole (15 minutes max 2 or so times a week) with rules- must be in a down, must wait until I tell him to get it, must drop it when I tell him to, and go back into a down to wait for his next turn, etc.

Hope this helps!

I’ve been feeding my dog using only puzzle toys. I bought this puzzle toy and he’s super into it. There are sooo many of these puzzle food dispensers. Maybe she’d be into playing with something that dispenses her food :)