The importance of Play

The importance of Play.

We humans may dismiss play as a frivolous, cute activity - and may even intervene and stop it if it becomes too boisterous. But play is important - in fact, it may well be one of the more important activities that young animals engage in.

Play shapes the brain through epigenetic effects: it affects social competence, stress sensitivity and problem solving abilities. Play may just look like fun and games, but in this presentation, Karolina will talk about why we should take it seriously - and how we may optimize play opportunities for the dogs in our care, including tips on what we might consider when searching for an ideal play partner for our pooch.

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BIO

Karolina Westlund helps pet guardians and people working professionally with animals to get happier, reasonably well-behaved animals that thrive in the care of humans. She teaches animal behaviour management through blog posts, the odd free short online course, as well as more extensive online courses. She is an associate professor of Ethology at Stockholm University and sometimes publishes scientific articles related to enrichment, animal training, and wellbeing.

November 19, 2025 7pm CET.  Find your local time here.

The webinar will be recorded so that you can access the recording if you are prevented from participating live.

More about Karolina.:  https://illis.se/en/

The webinar will be recorded so that you can access the recording if you are prevented from participating live.