The PetHQ Newsletter

Training & Behaviour

Enrichment and Puzzle Feeders: What Actually Reduces Problem Behaviour

Updated July 30, 2026

A small black-and-white puppy holds a red honeycomb-patterned treat-dispensing ball toy in its mouth.
Damir K . / Pexels

By Morgan Reyes

The Short Answer

This is one of the few pieces of pet-behavior advice where the dog evidence and the cat evidence genuinely point in different directions, and treating them as one uniform "enrichment helps" claim misses the actual finding.

DogsCats
Study typeRandomized controlled shelter trialActivity-tracked pilot study + owner survey
FindingReal, measured behavioral improvementNo activity increase found from food puzzles specifically
Adoption/usageNo significant adoption-rate difference~30% of owners currently use them; 18% tried and stopped

The dog evidence: real, measured, and specific

A randomized controlled study in a shelter setting found genuine behavioral improvement from food-toy enrichment, not just a general impression that it helps. Twenty-six dogs received a Kong-style toy stuffed with food alongside cage-behavior training (positive reinforcement for approaching the front of the cage, sitting or lying calmly, and staying quiet when approached); 32 control dogs did not. A blinded observer recorded behavior on day 0 and again on day 3.

The results, in exact figures:

  • Sitting or lying calmly: 65% of enrichment dogs showed an increase, versus 22% of control dogs.
  • Being quiet: 35% of enrichment dogs improved, versus 13% of control dogs.
  • Jumping (undesirable): 57% of enrichment dogs showed a decrease, versus just 9% of control dogs.

One honest caveat worth stating plainly: adoption rates themselves were not significantly different between the two groups. The enrichment improved measured welfare and behavior, calmer, quieter dogs that jumped less, without necessarily speeding up how fast any individual dog got adopted. That's still a real, meaningful welfare finding; it's just a narrower claim than "enrichment gets dogs adopted faster," which this study doesn't actually support.

The cat evidence: genuinely mixed, and worth saying so

Here's the finding most enrichment content glosses over: a specifically-designed pilot study using activity-tracking collars found no difference in activity level between cats eating from a bowl and cats eating from a food puzzle, and no effect of puzzle type either. The only variable that actually mattered was age: older cats were less active generally, regardless of how they were fed.

That doesn't mean food puzzles are useless for cats. It means the specific claim "food puzzles increase activity" doesn't hold up in this particular measured test, which is a different, narrower finding than "enrichment doesn't help cats at all." Cats may still benefit from food puzzles in other ways (mental engagement, slower eating, natural foraging behavior) that this particular activity-level study wasn't designed to measure.

Real-world adoption reflects some of this uncertainty. A direct owner survey found about 30% of cat owners currently use food puzzles, 18% tried and stopped, and 52% never used one. Among owners who stopped, the most common reason given was that they saw no benefit, and owners with outdoor-access or hunting-opportunity cats were especially likely to consider puzzles unnecessary. Interestingly, owners who stopped using puzzles were also more likely to describe their own cat as "too lazy," a perception shift that may say as much about the disappointing experience as about the cat itself.

Worth saying plainly

Food-toy enrichment for dogs has real, randomized-trial support: calmer, quieter dogs that jump less, measured directly in a shelter study. The equivalent claim for cats, specifically that food puzzles increase activity, doesn't hold up in the one study designed to test it directly. That's not a reason to write off cat enrichment entirely, but it is a reason not to assume "enrichment works" means the same thing, with the same strength of evidence, across both species.

Bottom line: food-toy enrichment for dogs has real randomized controlled trial support, measurably increasing calm, quiet behavior and reducing jumping in a shelter setting, though without a measurable effect on adoption speed itself. For cats, the specific claim that food puzzles increase activity level doesn't hold up in a dedicated pilot study using activity-tracking collars, and real-world adoption reflects genuine owner skepticism, with 18% of those who've tried puzzles already stopping. The honest takeaway is a real species asymmetry, not a uniform "enrichment helps" claim.

FAQ

Do puzzle feeders actually reduce problem behavior in dogs?

Yes, with randomized controlled trial support: significantly more calm, quiet behavior and less jumping in a shelter study. See the exact figures above.

Do food puzzles actually help cats?

The evidence is genuinely mixed. A dedicated activity-tracking study found no increase in activity level from food puzzles specifically. See the full findings above.

How many cat owners actually use food puzzles?

About 30% currently, 18% tried and stopped (most commonly citing no observed benefit), and 52% never used one.

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A Note on Scope

This guide summarizes published research on enrichment and food-puzzle feeding. It is not veterinary or behavioral advice for an individual animal.

Sources

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