10/13/2026
This morning, our Daycare Coach, Dani, told me she thought we were just messy. 😂
When she first started at FPC, she tried picking up the enrichment room. Our Enrichment Coordinator, Hudson, stopped her. “Actually, there’s a reason for the mess.”
We were talking about the Global Enrichment Summit, where yesterday I helped kick off the seven-day event alongside three other daycare industry leaders. Me, a small-business owner in Troy, IL, sharing our work with people around the world. Insane!!
Someone asked how we give dogs choices. My exact words about our enrichment room? “We make a mess of it.” We put out options and let dogs explore. We watch what interests them, what they return to, and what they skip. Not working inside? Cool, let's pivot for their next visit.
Our backyard has scents, textures, climbing heights, a sensory garden, and toys. We do group training, spend time engaging with the dogs, and build in rest. My behavior and training background shaped all of this, followed by years of researching, testing, and adjusting. Everyone on that panel understood how much work goes into getting it right.
This is why I get passionate about daycares upselling a puzzle and calling it enrichment. A puzzle CAN be part of enrichment but it doesn’t make an entire program enrichment-based.
The five pillars, social, physical, cognitive, sensory, and nutritional, help us consider the whole dog. We’re creating opportunities to follow natural instincts and make choices. Every dog is different.
Inside FPC you'll see posters explaining our 50/50 approach: 50% dog-led choices, 50% human engagement, with rest in between. But if a dog wants to spend their whole activity time sniffing, that’s okay. They don’t have to finish our agenda because that's not what enrichment is about.
Two years ago, I started realizing how different our work was. Yesterday, I shared it on a global stage. This morning, I’m laughing with Dani about the time she tried to clean up Hudson’s enrichment setup.
I’m proud of this team and the thought they put into your dog’s day even when it's messy. Want your dog in on it? Fill out an intake form. We’d be lucky to have you.
Mikayla
