How To Keep Your Dog Calm During Thanksgiving Dinner (Yes, It’s Possible!)

3 quick enrichment ideas for a peaceful holiday meal.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays…except for the fact that a house full of guests and a table full of food is basically the Super Bowl of temptations for my dogs. My two pups, Scout and Pepper, each bring their own brand of drama, which means holiday chaos can turn into a lot of stress very quickly.

In our house, Pepper and Scout have very different approaches to Thanksgiving. Pepper is a dramatic mix of excited and fearful around new people, so may cower in a corner one moment and jump all over everyone the next. Scout is the exact opposite: calm and affectionate with familiar guests, but she would sell her soul to get a bite of turkey from the table. She’s also constantly bored with her own food, so if she has the option to beg instead of eat? She’s begging every time.

To make things even more fun, Pepper and Scout cannot be trusted together around food — their own or ours. (That’s a very long story, so I’ll save it for another day.) So Thanksgiving requires a little strategy. Thankfully, a few enrichment activities make the entire evening smoother for dogs and humans.

Here are my three favorite low-effort enrichment ideas to keep dogs calm, busy, and out of trouble during Thanksgiving dinner.

1. Use a Crate or Quiet Room

Crates can be amazing during busy holidays, but here’s the key:

Thanksgiving is not the day to introduce your dog to a crate for the first time.

Pepper goes into her crate every single night to eat her dinner. It’s part of her routine: race to the crate → mom gives me dinner → settle in for a nap → humans eat their dinner → get out after every crumb is cleaned up.

But if your dog isn’t crate-trained, locking them in a crate or a closed room for the first time will probably lead to whining, scratching, barking, or even panic. Not peaceful for you, and definitely not peaceful for them.

Even if your dog is crate-trained, the craziness of Thanksgiving may knock them out of their normal routine. So here are a few tricks to help them settle in:

• Give them a stuffed Kong, frozen treat, or chew toy they don’t get every day.

• Turn on calming music (there are YouTube channels that specialize in dog music if you aren’t sure where to turn).

• Cover the crate with a blanket if they prefer a den-like feel.

If your dog isn’t crate-trained, you can try a quiet room instead. But that requires training and acclimation, so be prepared: some dogs (like Scout) will bark if they are not used to separation. Thankfully, we can turn to the second tip for help.

2. Give Them a Job

Scout is the queen of begging. If she thinks she might get a bite of turkey, pumpkin pie, or stuffing, she pants and stares intently at the easiest mark at the table (usually my dad).

If this sounds familiar, try giving your begging dog something to do that keeps them busy enough to forget the table exists.

Try:

• Lick mats smeared with peanut butter

• Snuffle mats with high-value kibble or tiny treats

• Food puzzle toys that require just enough focus to keep them from staring at your plate

• Frozen treats on mats or in toys to stretch out snack time

The goal is to give them something that lasts 20-30 minutes…at least enough time for folks to get a peaceful first taste of all the Thanksgiving sides. A frozen lick mat or stuffed toy can make this possible, especially if you find the right tasty combo that is a rare treat for your pup.

3. Be Ready To Distract (usually with treats)

The entire week of Thanksgiving is full of unusual activity at our house, which can throw the pups off. I like to have some special treats on hand that get their attention and distract them when necessary.

Since pumpkin is practically the official food of November, this is the perfect time for a simple homemade dog treat that’s also really healthy for your pup. And bonus: the fiber from the pumpkin may help to soothe upset tummies if they’ve already sampled too many treats.

My go-to Thanksgiving freezer treat (takes 90 seconds to prep):

Ingredients:

• ~1 3/4 cups plain, no-fat yogurt

• 15 oz can of pureed pumpkin (plain, not pumpkin pie filling)

  
  

Directions:

1. Stir together roughly equal parts yogurt and pumpkin (measurements don’t need to be exact)

2. Spoon into ice cube trays or silicone molds

3. Freeze

4. Hand one to your dog and enjoy the sudden silence

Optional upgrades: Stuff the mixture inside a Kong or toy, slather on a lick mat and freeze, or add in dog-safe extras like peanut butter or blueberries.

Final Thoughts + A Few Fun Extras

Thanksgiving with dogs doesn’t have to be chaotic (though a little bit of chaos is what I love the most about my dogs). A little planning can go a long way, especially if your dogs are like Pepper and Scout, with big personalities and strong opinions.

With the right setup, your dog gets fun and calming activities, and you get to enjoy your holiday meal without guarding your plate like it’s the last meal on Earth.

I’d love to hear from you!

• What are your favorite Thanksgiving strategies for your dogs?

• Please, tell me I’m not the only one with funny or chaotic holiday stories. Please share!

• Want your pup featured in our blog? Submit your dog to be Dog of the Week and join our community of dog people.

  
  

And if you’re feeling particularly festive, check out our Thanksgiving Day Cleaning Crew merch. Perfect for anyone surviving the holidays with dogs!