Our golden retriever, Rye, has recently been diagnosed with joint pain which meant her physical exercise has had to be reduced. As everyone with a young dog will know, a bored dog with pent up energy can lead to disaster.

I needed to increase her mental stimulation in the home to help calm her, so I decided to make her a dog safe sensory garden. This sounds much posher than it is!  We had a left over wooden barrel planter which we filled with dog-safe herbs and plants.  At the moment we have rosemary, thyme, mint, sage and strawberries, and plan to add wheatgrass as soon as the seeds grow. The lavender plants we have in pots have survived being pawed at and tasted, and Rye loves sticking her head In the middle of the plants.

This gives her somewhere to sniff, which is a calming activity for dogs and relives boredom. We also have a water feature – a plastic dog toy which shoots water when she stands on it.

Rye is now enjoying the garden more and thankfully has stopped digging up Gav’s favourite plants