July Enrichment: Canine Space Camp

In July 2026, Metro Animals daycare dogs in Fort Worth and Plano started Canine Space Camp, a four-week space-themed enrichment adventure with slow feeders, lick mats, sensory textures, obstacle challenges, agility runs and teamwork games.

In the last days of June, Mission Control started dropping hints. Mission preparations were officially underway, special challenges were in the works, and a mysterious discovery had been detected in deep space that only a crew of Canine Space Cadets could investigate. Then it was official: July’s enrichment adventure, launching July 1, is Canine Space Camp.

This month the pups of Barksville head to Space Camp in Runtsville, Barksville’s sister city, for the Canine Space Cadet Training Program. They join CASA, the Canine Aeronautics & Space Administration, to train just like the real astropups do and earn their own space cadet credit. Every mission is designed to build problem-solving, confidence and focus while keeping play at the center, with obstacle challenges, teamwork, sensory enrichment and interactive games along the way.

Training runs in three modules: foundational skills and confidence-building first, then simulated space travel through sensory activities and enrichment games, and finally teamwork, search-and-find missions and spacewalk-inspired activities. One question hangs over the whole camp: does your dog have what it takes?

What the weeks hold

• Week 1: Canine Space Cadet Training Program — rocket fuel rations, a zero gravity texture zone and a rocket launch agility run.
• Week 2: Mach No Mistake — let the training begin, with a meteor shower scatter feed, galactic scent trails and a lunar leap challenge.
• Week 3: No Train, No Gain — a Mission Control puzzle feed, an asteroid field exploration zone and a power grid activation game.
• Week 4: Mission Accomplished — graduation week, with an alien food lab, a splashdown landing course and a welcome home pawty.

Week 1: Canine Space Cadet Training Program

The first week was all about getting cadets mission-ready. With Rocket Fuel Rations, pups worked to uncover their meals from Kongs, slow feeders and lick mats. The Zero Gravity Texture Zone laid out a variety of surfaces for confidence, balance and body awareness, and Cadet Command Codes strung familiar cues into sequences that sharpen focus and memory. Cadet Confidence Coaching paired guided activities with positive reinforcement, and the Rocket Launch Agility Run sent everyone over jumps, through tunnels and up ramps.

Camp opened in Fort Worth and Plano alike. Cadets got familiar with all the new technology, collecting fuel for the rockets and gathering pieces for some very delicate equipment, then settled in for a relaxing story time about the galaxies. In Plano, Archer completed one of the all-new Space Camp activities and was ready for liftoff.

Watch the week

This month’s adventure

• The story begins (week 1) (this post)
• Week 2: Mach No Mistake
• Week 3: No Train, No Gain
• Week 4: Mission Accomplished

How to join the next adventure

Enrichment is an add-on to any daycare day at Metro Animals — ask for it at drop-off, by the day, the week or the whole month. It’s part of the program that earned us the highest score in the country at the 2024 Dog Gurus Daycare Games. Read more about how our enrichment works, and if your pup is new to the pack, find your nearest location — every new dog’s first day is free.

It’s a great day to play!

See the latest on our pages: Instagram @metroanimalsfortworth and @metroanimalsplano, and Facebook.