New Brunswick man creates snow maze to keep dog busy after winter storms

A New Brunswick man has left his neighbours puzzled by how far he will go to spoil his dog after building a maze made of snow in his backyard.

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After 115 centimetres of snow fell in Greater Moncton this month, Denis Jalbert of Dieppe decided it wasn’t safe to walk his four-year-old Corgi dog named Wally on the streets, so he used the same snow that kept him from taking his dog out to keep Wally active.

“I wanted to create something entertaining to keep my dog busy after a couple of snowstorms,” Jalbert said.

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Jalbert grabbed a shovel and spent six long hours turning his entire backyard into a giant snow maze. He then brings out an plastic egg-shaped dog toy and tosses it into the maze.

“It is perfect for him because he pushes the egg around and tries to chase it at the same time and herd at the same time,” Jalbert said.

He said Wally is a herding breed and highly intelligent, so he needs to keep him busy so he won’t get into trouble.

WATCH: A Dieppe, NB man who found there was just too much snow to safely walk his dog came up with an idea that just about sent his dog into spirals. Global’s Shelley Steeves has the story.

2:21 N.B. man hand digs snow maze for 4-year-old corgi Wally

By creating the maze, Jalbert’s dog can now run around chasing the dog toy without getting bogged down in deep snow and road salt that’s hard on his paws.

“So for me the pain and the soreness it caused is well worth its purpose.”

Even though it was only built recently, Wally is also able to make his way through the maze in record time.  His short legs don’t seem to slow him down any and the cleverly crafted dead ends Jalbert threw in for fun are no match for Wally’s sharp mind.

“He has been capable to push his nose underneath the toy and flip it over him so he can do a 180 and come back the other way,” said Jalbert, who is pretty proud of his pet’s agility and ability.

“He surprises me every time at what he is able to do.”

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READ MORE: Lack of snow puts ‘paws’ on NB dog sledding business

Jalbert added his dog can be a bit of a cheater because he peeks over the walls that are shrinking in the recent mild weather to try and spot his egg and the exits.

But Jalbert still thinks his pet is amazing and said he plans to step it up a little next winter and create a more complicated maze, possibly with tunnels and bridges, to keep Wally on his toes.

“I will try to do bigger and better every year.”