My girlfriend's puppy gets lonely when left at home by herself. Saffron will sit by the door on a little pillow and just wait for her owner to come back. We've tried a few solutions to provide surrogate entertainment throughout the day, but the television and radio aren't the same to a lonely little doggy. A bored dog is more likely to damage shoes and furniture, but Dogopolis has a robot nanny for automated canine entertainment.

The Kongtime is an automated dispenser for Kong doggy toys. Set the Kongtime for the duration of your absence and it will release four Kong filled treats at random intervals to keep a house dog entertained. The random feature is a necessity if you have an intelligent dog that is able to quickly pick up new tricks; otherwise they'll wind up camping the babysitter. Set it up on a countertop and the toys will bounce around the floor as the dog scampers around to capture it.

The Kong is a hard rubber chew toy with a space in the back for stuffing full of treats like milkbones and peanut butter. The Kong toys are designed to require a bit of effort to gain the treats, and this mental puzzle can provide lots of entertainment. Mixing up the treat fillings will keep 'em guessing. There's a marketing video of the Kongtime in action on their website, and a great overview on the art of stuffing Kong toys at All The Best Dog Stuff.