We have a dog run on the side of our house that my older dog used to use. Now, that's where we give the dogs baths. I also have a gated patio in case we get any wildlife coming around the yard. The gate opens, however, and they have lots of space to run. We try not to play too long these days though because they are senior dogs and are dealing with arthritis. But we have lots of chew toys, and we give them healthy, balanced foods. When I had cats, we had one litterbox, which was cleaned bi-weekly. They were grazers so we would freshen up the bowls every couple days. Joey was a long haired cat, and so I would brush his hair sometimes to help prevent matting.