Enrichment toys for two Springer Spaniels

Two Springers in the same house — brilliant, but I can absolutely see why resource guarding around enrichment toys would be on your radar. Mental stimulation matters just as much as all those off-lead runs for a breed this switched-on, and getting the setup right for a multi-dog household is genuinely its own puzzle. To point you in the right direction: are both dogs guarding from each other equally, or is it mainly one directing it at the other? And are you looking for something they work on simultaneously in separate spots, or toys they use at completely different times?

That's a classic younger-dog pattern — the 3-year-old is still at peak resource-sensitivity and the older Springer has probably learned to just back off, which isn't ideal either. The good news is this is very manageable with the right approach. Have you tried identical food toys before, or has it always been one toy between them? And what are you currently stuffing or filling — kibble, wet food, something like peanut butter?

That tells me everything — Licki Mats are too fast for the younger dog, so he's done before she is and suddenly her mat looks like the better option. You need a toy that holds his attention for long enough that both dogs are still occupied at the same time. My clear recommendation here is the Kong Classic — buy two identical size Larges, stuff them with the same wet food and peanut butter mix, and freeze them overnight. A frozen Kong takes a Springer 20 to 30 minutes to work through, which is a completely different league to a Licki Mat. Because they're identical and equally rewarding, the younger dog has no logical reason to leave his. Place them at opposite ends of the room to start, and over a few weeks you can gradually reduce the distance as his impulse control improves. The Kong Classic Large is around £10–12 on Amazon UK and is genuinely the workhorse of food enrichment for exactly this reason.

The Kongs will do most of the heavy lifting, but a couple of small things will speed things up. Feed them the Kongs after their walk when they're already a bit tired — arousal level makes a real difference to how quickly the younger one escalates. And for the first few sessions, stay in the room and calmly interrupt any approach toward the other dog's Kong before it becomes an incident — a quiet 'leave it' and redirect back to his own is enough. You're not punishing, just preventing the rehearsal of the behaviour. Once he's reliably staying with his own Kong for full sessions, you can relax supervision. You should see a meaningful shift within two to three weeks.