Category: Animal House
As some of you know, my dog chews for world peace. It's incredible. However, I digress. I went to the pet shop today and was looking at dog toys as she only has a few, and I think she's a bit borred of them. However, all I could find is flimsy rubber squeaky toys or stuffed toys, both of which she'd tare apart in seconds. All I could get her is a new bone, and a chewy ring, which she already has, but this one I will leave at work for her. My question is, does anyone happen to know of any indistructible, yet interesting dog toys, and if so, where I might be able to get them?
the only dog toy I've ever seen is a rubber thing that looks rather like a bow tie in appearance. You hold one end, the dog grabs the other in its mouth and it's a tug of war from then on *smile* We used to play that game a lot with our German Sheperd dog. I don't know why they seem to love that tug of war game so much. Try that.
aww, danielle you should get it a cong. it's a funky shaped think that you put a dog treat in and they play with it trying to get the treat out a bit at a time. samson loves his! played with it forever. i know you can get them at the pet shops here. not sure there!
Yes, you can easily buy a Kong here, hopefully she shouldn't be able to distroy one of those. otherwise, a solid rubber dog ball is a good one.
I got a hard rubber ball that has a bell inside. Penny has always loved bells, so I figured that would be the best thing for her. Otherwise, I give her one of those big bones and that can keep her busy for awhile. *smiles* Otherwise, I can't give her much else either. Maybe I'll try one of those things y'all are talking about too. At least for my smaller dogs it's a little easier. They usually can find pieces of sticks on their own to play with, or can play with each other. Yeah, I haven't tried those tug-of-war rope things, but I'd think that would also sound good, as most dogs do like to do that.
Depending on the breed of dog. If it's a toy dog (small, tiny dogs.) Stuffed toys and squeeky rubber toys are ok. For the bigger breeds such as labs or larger go with rope toys, tennis balls, freesbies, plastic tug toys (One end the dog holds and the other you hold and you two play tug of war.) But for the larger breeds rubber and stuffed animal toys aren't a grand idea simply because they can puncture/tear apart and some of the reminats might get stuck in their throat that might lead to choaking or getting sick.
It really depends on your dog. A dog can checw up just about anything if it really wants to. The kong that everyone is mentioning is a good idea, but it is really only for treats, and u also have to make sure u get the right size, (I have one that is over 2 years old and no damage to it). Another good toy is any kind of tug-of-war toy. My dog plays with that on her own almost daily. It’s also good to play with your dog with. The only other suggestion is ask anyone at a pet store, because it is really a hit or miss topic. I know a dog that has done nothing to a stuffed animal he gets, but my dog would rip it to shreds in seconds.
nope the kong is not only for treats. they love to play with it also. at least samson loved to throw it around!
kongs are made from natural rubber and are therefore indestructable. i have a kong which I bought at the same time as I got my guide dog and I've had her for just over 9 years. Also, there are various other such toys which are available, I have a toy called a frame ball - it's kinda three circles stuck together - bit hard to explain. Also if you're looking for things to chew then you could buy smoked bones, just be careful of not letting the dog have it for too long as it can make them very thirsty.
I'd say anything squeaky and large enough to prevent the dog from swallowing it..We have a squeaky textured rugby ball for Dougal, and a squeaky chop for Scott,they love them to bits and rarely play with anything else.. if possible, take your mutt to a pet shop, and let them decide.
You could get the tug of war things, they are really good, you can get them hear, but, don't no about over there.
Have you tried giveing her sticks?
I am going to get her a king, but am pondering how long it will survive for. Claire, you say they're indistructible, no they're not. She had one when she was training before I got her, and she managed to bite the top off. I will get her one I think, but I'll just have to keep a close watch on it. She's got a tugger, and bones, and a ball, but she's kinda bored of them I think. Mind you, I guess there's not really much else, seeing as she'll destroy most things.
Kongs come in different sizes, and I've found for my guide dog the best was either the second largest or largest one; in this way she didn't chew it to pieces.
Oh no, this was the largest one, lol
you seem to have one distructive dog sugar. good luck with her!
hehheh, yeh, I need it... I found out yesterday that apparently, Red kongs are weaker than black ones. It was a red one she destroyed, so maybe I'll get her a black one and see what happens.
Ok, first of all, kongs are great. They come in sizes from toy breeds to great danes. Their color determines their hardness. I think light blue or pink is the weakest. They are primarily for puppies, toy breeds and much older dogs who's jaws are not as strong as they used to be. The red ones are good for dogs that aren't overzellous, but the dark blue and black kongs are really industrial strength. If you want to play fetch with it I'd reccomend either red or dark blue. The black ones have been known to break the dogs teeth or cause structurel dammage to and a great deal of bleeding from the nose when the dog is accidentally hit or is trying to ketxch the toy in their mouth instead of just picking it up off of the ground after it has been thrown. One nice thing to do with one of the dark blue or black kongs is to fill a medium sized one with either peanut butter mixed with uncooked long grane rice, or a mixture of unflavored yougart, a small amount of sour cream and some slivers of turkey or lean steak, then throw the kong into the freezer and let it freeze solid. Your dog will have fun for hours and will burn off the callories of the treat while playing. If you do this, 1, don't forget to put the freshly filled kong in a plastic bag or paper cup in the freezer so that you don't get the mixture all over the inside of the freezer before it has a chance to freeze properly, 2, don't play with it out side in this condition, as it often attracts ants and or bees that your dog might accidentaly ingest, and 3, pick up and rinse out the kong when your dog has gott most of the food out, you don't want to leave it down for more than four hours, or bacteria will grow and the food will begin to turn. You won't have as much trouble with the peanut butter mixture spoiling as you will with the other. You can leave the peanut butter down for many many hours, so it is appropriate to leave out while you go to work or if you otherwise need to leave the dog home alone. Don't wash the kongs out with soap unless you're prepared to rinse for a good long time to be sure your dog doesn't ingest any cleaning product. I don't know if they're dishwasher safe or not, I think the harder it is the safer it would be. If you did use the dish washer I would also rinse it by hand before and after putting it in the dish washer to run, and after unloading the dish washer. Never give animal bones, or sticks, as they can splinter and cut up the dogs mouth, and worse their throat and esophigus. Toys with squeekers and bells are extreemly dangerous, and in my opinion should never be given, even during supervised play. They can tare apart the toy and swallow part of it so fast, and think about it, you love this dog, do you really want to take the chance? Rawhide and pigs ears and pigs feet are very, very, very bad for dogs and should be given under no circomstances. Rope toys, especially good high quality hard close woven ones are great. If your dogs gums bleed a little bit when tugging on it or chewing it don't panic, just take the toy away for that day. It is not unusual or detrimental for them to do this, their gums will decrease in sensitivity as time goes by. Hard rubber, solid rubber balls, bones and tugging rings are excelent choices. Real animals bones, only from cattle, not smaller animals, and not fake synthetic bones are great. They should be at least an inch and a quarter in diameter, very thick walled and hard, and they should say something to the effect of starilized or bleached on the package. Nylabones are ok with supervission, but throw it out when it starts to get sharp in places. It can cut your dog's tung, and also can do a number on bare toes when you kick them in the middle of the night. If your dog has a nice strong stomach, swallowing a little stuffed toy stuffing certainly won't kill it, but keep in mind that your dog, smart and wonderful as he or she is, may not be able to diferentiate between his or her stuffed chewy snake, and your childhood teddy bare. I hope this helps. Please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.
I agree with most points, but I've always thought raw hide to be ok
Awwww Danielle, sounds like you're having fun! Or being kept on your toes at least :). I know this is gonna be really helpful, but Hayley's friend Will has a guide dog called Yaron, and he's got this really cool samllish hard rubber tyre thing, and he loves it! That seems pretty indestructable, and you can drag them round the house with it! Trouble is, I have absolutely no idea where you'd get one from! Which is the really useful part, I know! The thing with dogs is finding a toy that they really really adore and treasure. Our old housemate had a guide dog, Quanda, and she used to destroy everything. That was until she nicked her her owners smallest cuddily toy, this tiny rabbit (which we affectionally named Skanky bunny, as it was always gross and slobbered on), but she loved it so much, even that little thing lasted forever! I'm sure she still has it now, and we only gave it a lifespan of 2 weeks! Similarly, my Nan used to have a boxer, and she had this tiny little rubber toy which was about as big as your index finger, and she loved that so much, took it everywhere with her, and it outlived her (bless her soul). So I think the trick might be in finding the toy she adores rather than the most indestructable thing in the world! Hope some of that waffle helps! And good luck :)!!! Lucy -x-
Awwww Danielle, sounds like you're having fun! Or being kept on your toes at least :). I know this is gonna be really helpful, but Hayley's friend Will has a guide dog called Yaron, and he's got this really cool samllish hard rubber tyre thing, and he loves it! That seems pretty indestructable, and you can drag them round the house with it! Trouble is, I have absolutely no idea where you'd get one from! Which is the really useful part, I know! The thing with dogs is finding a toy that they really really adore and treasure. Our old housemate had a guide dog, Quanda, and she used to destroy everything. That was until she nicked her her owners smallest cuddily toy, this tiny rabbit (which we affectionally named Skanky bunny, as it was always gross and slobbered on), but she loved it so much, even that little thing lasted forever! I'm sure she still has it now, and we only gave it a lifespan of 2 weeks! Similarly, my Nan used to have a boxer, and she had this tiny little rubber toy which was about as big as your index finger, and she loved that so much, took it everywhere with her, and it outlived her (bless her soul). So I think the trick might be in finding the toy she adores rather than the most indestructable thing in the world! Hope some of that waffle helps! And good luck :)!!! Lucy -x-
Yeh, lol, I went to school with Will... Yeh, Libby's got a tire too, but she doesnt' like it much. She destroyed a frizby yesterday, heheheheheh.
Well, I can tell you from experiance that raw hide can kill, especially in labradors and flat coat retrievers, as they are inclined to ingest things, but not inclined to chew them. It can do serious damage to the esophagus, stomach lining, and intestins. I know too labs that have died as a result of being given raw hide, and that doesn't even begin to cover other breeds I have known to have trouble with it. Give your puppy a hug from me. I'm so excited, I'm getting a new guide dog very soon.
Well, I'd like a new guide dog too, but you do have to consider the toys you'll buy for him/her. I read recently on the GDBA website, that guide dogs shouldn't have or play with balls, simply because families having a day out in the park, at the seaside or wherever you'll be walking the dog, play a lot of ball games which may distract the dog as he/she wants to join in the fun. Harsh, I know, but I certainly wouldn't want my dog taking off after a flying ball when I'm working with him/her, because I gave it a bit of slack and let it play with them when I was at home.
Hi guys,
I have a lab/poodle cross--Addy/Adam--and he is a serious chewer. I mean, serious!!!
So the toys I have for Addy are:
1. Kong--the black one, as he destroyed the red pretty quickly
2. A very hard rubber bone--with a squeaker inside that looks like it can never come out. I got this approved by someone at GDF before I bought it.
3. Another rubber toy that is a really good chewing toy and you can put water in it which makes it bounce more.
There are others, but I can't remember them all.
He never gets sticks, rawhide, any kind of bone--except the Nylla ones... Oh yeah, he has this red really hard rubber ball thing that he seems to like pretty well. He loves the kong though, especially if I am the one throwing it around--Addy could really care less whether or not it's filled with treats.
In Him,
Shanda
Ok, about not giving your guide dog balls to play with. That is the purist unadulterated bull shit, that I have heard in a long time. Your dog isn't a machine, they need to be able to come home and flop down in the middle of the hallway after a long days work, to curl up in their favorit chair for a snooz, to play fetch in the backyard, getting all of their yah yahs out after having had to focus all day, and to just be plain old ordinary dogs. For most dogs fetch is one of the highlights of their lives, and to deprive them of it because you were told by the guidedog school that they shouldn't play with balls is ridiculous. One of the most important building blocks in a relationship and subsiquint bond with your dog is play. You simply can't not play tug of war with them, because you're afraid that some day they will refuse to relinquish a slipper or child's stuffed animal to you that they have picked up, or not play ball with them because you are afraid that while in the middle of crossing a street they will suddenly take a dangerous interest in the kids down the street playing with a bouncey ball. If a dog is properly trained, then they won't go charging off across the park while in harness, after a ball, just because they have similar toys at home. They aren't perfect, and they aren't completely amune to distractions, but they're pretty damn good dogs. You also can't take everything that a guidedog school says as gospil. They can be wrong, and most schools have conflicting views on many aspects of training, care, and recreation with your dogs. For example, a trainer at one school told me that it was cruel to take my dog into a noisy theatre, and bring her up on stage with me. I countered with, "well, if she is supposed to be able to handle the busy and noisy streets of New York city, and deal with stressful trafic situations, and cope with very loud subways and road construction. If she can't even deal with a little ol' theater, than what is this dog going to be capible of?" I went ahead and brought her up on stage with me in every single one of my Chamber singers concerts, and several recitals and also sat in the audience with her at many musicals, operas and rock concerts, and she loved every minute of it. You need to do research, read some dog care and training manuals, get to know your dog for your self, and ask for the advice of several guide dog trainers and users. Be prepared to make educated and well-informed decissions for your self about what is right for your dog and what is not. Don't just believe that the school is always right. They are no more so than the customer is always right. I hope that you enjoy your new dog when you get him or her. Have a nice day all.
Ahh! what a wonderful topic!! Really enjoyed all the great! information thanks all. My thoughts are as follows. First, don't deny your dog a ball. My boy loves his ball and when we pass people playing ball he does look and wag but a simple gentle command works well to keep his attention focused on me and we pass the fun. Work is work and home is fun. Also, boys! I just bought him the black cong because he keeps beheading the others. A toy that he hasn't killed yet is one I call squishy ball. squishy ball is actually a rubber ball looking like a globe put out by a company called planet dog. it's soft enough to throw around the house but seems to be able to take the punishment my beloved golden dishes out. Try the planet dog ball you will be quite surprised. It will last. Great day to all...
We were not told that we could not use balls--I think it would obviously depend from school to school, and even trainer to trainer.
When it comes down to it, once you get home with a guide--or a pet--that dog is your responsibility... You will have to decide what is right, and what the dog can handle--and what you can handle, ETC.
In Him,
Shanda, and Amazing Adam
We were not told that we could not use balls--I think it would obviously depend from school to school, and even trainer to trainer.
When it comes down to it, once you get home with a guide--or a pet--that dog is your responsibility... You will have to decide what is right, and what the dog can handle--and what you can handle, ETC.
In Him,
Shanda, and Amazing Adam
Both my dogs love it when you take a pair of old jeans, cut them in half, then tie a big thick knot at one end of each leg, then there are two rags for them and they can hold the knot in their mouth while you hold the rest. Yes, they'll get torn up, but they're fun while they last. Once, I had a pair of jeans with pockets and before tying the knots, I put rawhide chews in the pockets and then it was a chore for the dog to rip open the pockets and get the chews out. When I think of that, it's kind of sentimental because my first dog, Mosely, was working on chewing open the pocket and then he passed on and when we got Lacy, she finished it off for him.
Well, I suppose you could let a guide dog play with a ball, but I either read this article in the pamphlets and stuff a lady from the GDBA left when she came to see me and she decided I'd need more mobility training before I could have a dog. I'll look it out and post it on here.
Hey, Danielle, there's a web site and there's a catalog on there of different toys you can buy for your furry friend. I don't know if they ship internationally, but check it out. Most of the toys' descriptions tell you if they're for aggressive or less aggressive chewers. *SMILE*
Yuck. That didn't work too well. LOL. Guide Dog Users, Inc And they do ship internationally, I just checked.