Tips on dog toys that really work!

what type of dog do you have big and tuff or small and cute with this instructable you will learn how to make toys and what brand toys to buy.

please, please comment..

Step 1: What brand should i buy !?!

it depends.

great brand name toys
geared tawards large dogs=L
geared tawards small dogs=S

L&S kong
L Nylabone
L&S Petstages

Kong is a great brand and its signature toy is made in the USA it lasts forever i had mine for 3 years already!

nylabone also has some nice toys but they seem as there made for larger dogs.

and petstages although not as strong as kong is great especialy their Orka Jack toy!

Comments

[=SMART=]

I have that cone thing, it came with a gel that you squirt inside and the dog eats it, it more fun you just create huge trails and watch as the dog goes round in circles :P

[skimboarder33]

i have that too its called kong stuff'in i think

[=SMART=]

yea thats right, you can get different flavours too

[hake0305]

I use Kongs too, but what I do is freeze peanut butter mixed with plain yogurt (about half and half, slightly more yogurt works best) in molds (got funky silicone ice trays at Ikea) then put those in the Kongs. It takes a while for them to melt and by the time they are, the dogs have already licked them clean!

[gardenwife]

I've thought about doing something like this, but doesn't it get on your furniture and/or carpet? I'm imagining nightmare cleaning situations. LOL

[saosport]

If you use you finger and put the peanutbutter in the kong as far in as possible it stays in better. I have a weim and if I just put the peanutbutter in it does not get on the furniture. I only put a small amout in and the little he gets out at a time makes it to his mouth. The only time it did not is if you put treats in at the same time or yougurt. Just be carefull not to put to much inside the toy unless you can watch them. I made that mistake the first time I left him alone with a kong with a bunch of peanutbutter and treats in it. Some got out and onto the carpet in his room. Lucky me he got it out along with a five foot circle of carpet and carpet padding. Leason learned only a little bit of stuffing when dog is alone.

[hake0305]

It can get on the floor or furniture but I just keep them in the kitchen area or outside.  You can throw them a few times before they start to melt... but the dogs usually just would rather sit and lick the treat out than play fetch anyway!  My dogs usually are just content on the kitchen floor, or on a rug (that I can easily wash).  I guess the frozen PB isn't a good treat unless you're around while the dog has it or the dog is in a confined space.

[dugwarrender]

Our dog is an uber chewer and the only thing that has been able to stand up to him is called a Hurley. He gets through them eventually, but they last longer than even the Kongs.

[saosport]

Thanks any shape? I saw those and was thinking about trying them for my weim. Have you tried the Pet Buddies Pooch Super Bouncer Ball or Orbee-Tuff Cosmos Dog Toy. My dog likes them and he is a stronger type chewer. THere are dogs better but he likes to destroy toys. I just got these two in the last week and they are still going stong. I thought he would have torn them apart by now but nothing yet.

[skimboarder33]

ill have to check that out for my dog

[saosport]

I have a weimaraner so bigger dog. He is a master at destroying toys. I have had the best luck with Kongs. We get the black ones. He has just about every size and likes them all. He laso likes the Kong airs. Only thing is they can be hit or miss on quality. we have had luck with the round kong air balls in large and regular size but the bowling pin shaped toy he pullled all the fuzzy part off of in less than two minute, Also the toy is annoying. The squeek is very high pitch and loud.
He also loves the Coleman dino stuffed toy (We found them on Amazon) The stegasarus is his favorite and he has not destroyed it yet. He did chew off the bumps on the back but thats it. It is the only soft toy to last more than a day. MIght be because he likes it.
Another great ball is the Planet Dog Orbee-Tuff Cosmos Dog Toy. I thought my dog would destroy this in two seconds but he has had it for a week now and it still looks good. It is a large ball slightly bigger than a softball and it is about a 1/4" thick with two holes in it to put treats in. I have not needed to my dog loved it right away. Best part is it smells like mint. THey also have one that glows in the dark.
We also got a new toy the Pet Buddies Pooch Super Bouncer Ball so far so good. It bounce really high and is not as hard or heavy as the kong balls. Two weeks of chewing and still looking good.

[underdog114]

Any idea on what to stuff on a XL kong classic? I ussually just stuff dog food in it but unless I put a little hunk of meat at the bottom my dog looses interest. Anyone think I should just stuff a big milk bone in there?

[saosport]

Peanutbutter is my dogs favorite kong stuffer but make sure not to give them to much. Also a little yogurt is good but again in moderation. You can also mix the two togeather. WHen my weim was younger I would mix about a tablespoon of peanutbutter with about a 1/4 cup of his food and put it in the kong and put it in the freezer for about 45 minutes or longer. it all freezes to the insid eof the kong and takes longer to get out and eat. I have already had them in the freezer overnight and he is so happy to get it. He gets excited everytime I go into the freezer.

[Mr.Fizz]

I made a toy for a friends' dog with a cotton three strand rope. I got an inch thick rope and tied a monkey fist (http://www.instructables.com/id/Paracord-monkey-fist-guide/?ALLSTEPS with just the rope and nothing in the middle), then I spliced an eye splice on the other end for my friend to have a better grip on the toy.

[Mauigerbil]

You can cut 2 of these shapes enlarged out of fabric, sew, and stuff them with stuffing. For a personal touch, embroider their name into it.

[Wafflicious]

my dog loves those things you had in first picture (the snowmen things lol) when you fill them with peanutbutter

[Wafflicious]

or its fun to take a tenisball- cut of a circle at the top then fill with peanut butter.

[joyewils]

Great idea!! I am going to try it. Thanks.

[joyewils]

I bought our puppy a sock-like toy that looked like a skunk. Inside it has an empty 12 ounce plastic soda bottle. It cost $7. When the dog chews on the toy it make a crinkle sound. She loves it. I now make my own by using old socks. Just put a 12 ounce, or smaller, plastic bottle with the cap on (turned tightly) inside of the sock and tie a VERY tight knot at the end of the sock. Hopefully your dog will love this toy as much as ours does.

[Katzsta]

Do NOT get a Hartz Aqua or H2O ball. The plug can come out & the dog can eat it. It can then get stuck in their intestines preventing anything from going down. This happened to my dog and after $1500 in vet bills for investigation and surgery, & a complaint letter to Hartz, to which they didn't respond, we are using more natural toys such as the large tied rope, frisbees and balls with no removeable parts. The Hartz balls are very hazardous. All toys should be inspected to make sure they are not coming apart. Remember, dogs, and cats, only know it's a toy, not that it can be dangerous, so it's up to us to watch out for them. Now that I know, I see many dog toys that can be chewed until parts of them can find their way down the dogs throat. And if anyone from Hartz is reading this..... why didn't you respond to my letter? Guess it's time to give my attorney some more business. And also watch out for the squeaky thing that is in squeaky toys. If the animal tears the toy apart, the squeaky thing is pretty small & they can swallow it.

[joyewils]

I hope thhat your dog has recovered nicely. I think that it is disgusting that Hartz didn't bother to take a few minutes to answer your letter, and I do hope that you took legal action. I will not buy anything made by Hartz after reading your post.  Best of luck.

[dudejetfighter]

my dogs have destroyed all of those :P the best toy that ive found is an old sock tied into a knot

[Supercoke]

listen, my dog is a small dog ( miniature pincher- ~15 lbs.~) and i always get him the biggest nylobone i can find. he loves it. just because the package says it was made for big dogs doesn't mean your dog wont find a way to chew it to shreds. when i got my dog at about 3 months of age so got him a small, kinda flexible nylobone "made especially for puppies". and in no time he loved it. but sometimes it was left outside, or lost and i finally gave up with those stupid things. i immediately went to the nearest walmart and bought a "souper" chicken flavored nylobone, and i never looked back. yeah they hight cost $7-$9 bucks but mine has lasted my dog over 2 years! and, as for the paste that goes inside the kong chew thing, you should always read what they have in them. sometimes the snack gel tube will look almost the same as the vitamin infused health gel made for underweight dogs. and its never a good idea to give a dog too many vitamins. as for toys, well, i have a little thing that we call "bee-bee" and its got a squeaker, a raddle, and a tug toy all put together in a soft baby bottle shaped chew thing with the two tug ropes coming out of the side. and strangely, only my dog knows where to bite it to make it squeak. so, we've had that for a while and, the best part about it is that it is machine washable so if it gets dirty ( and it always does) we can just toss it in to clean.

[skimboarder33]

sure, if thats what your dog is into. i just posted about that because i have heard about jaw stress problems happening to dogs on the news and from friends .

[superMacaroni]

This is my idea.

Doggie chewie from pants

cut some old pants in half, rope them, knot the ends and pull the knots.

[skimboarder33]

go all out, it would be just like the stuff they sell in stores but cheaper and you can make it to your dogs dimensions.

[cbennett811]

my dogs like just about anything. A 2L bottle with the cap on is easy. They will paw at it and it spins away. Also they like alot of things from goodwill that are cheap. Such as softballs and any stuffed animal from the big bin they have just too name a few.

[skimboarder33]

thats cool, just make sure the cap is on tight. but if your dogs are playing with a 2L bottle their throats are probably large enough anyway that they would be safe.

[GuineaLover]

Ooh! I like your idea about the tennis sock!!! I'm trying to make/buy a bunch of toys to help out the local dumpy pet shop and ideas like these are JUST what I need! THANK YOU!!!

[skimboarder33]

best of luck, your quest is very admirable.

[laminterious]

What is fun for the owners and others to watch but not exactly good for your dog, is chewing tobacco. My friend's dog got into a can one time and it was hilarious.

[Supercoke]

what happened after that?

[skimboarder33]

wow.

[potmom]

take strong rope and do boondoggle with it

[dudejetfighter]

my tore a "heavy duty" kong ball up in about a half an hour. I will have to try some other things though...

[TehLonelyOne]

We've had a kong and a busy buddy, neither of them work. Any type of food we put in there doesn't come out AT ALL, and our dog just gave up within minutes. Even on the busy buddy we cut the inner prongs off and the food still didn't come out, the holes are just too small. The kong worked a little better, but the food either got completely stuck inside and our dog would give up, or the food would all fall out at once.

[boognishmofo]

I have found one bone that was made from actual sinew,tendons, and ligaments cant remember the name but they had it at pet smart that has lasted months. He can usually go through one of those huge ten$ shoulders in a couple hours. We were shocked it did. Kong anything is GREAT, has had the red frisbee for two years now. I do know that companies need to stop filling stuffed toys with that crappy plastic feeling cotton stuff. Every company seems to use it, and I am sick picking it up. Why not something like paper, even real cotton, at least then I could just mow over it

[modchidance]

My dog loves the Busy Buddy Waggles, I stuff it full with part of her morning kibble and it takes her a long time to get out and she's never destroyed it, i think because of it's shape it's harder to get a hold of to rip apart. It takes a while to stuff because of the way it holds the treats in, but if you use a wide mouthed funnel it's pretty easy.

[skimboarder33]

those look good, never underestimate the bond beetween a dog and there treats, thell find a way to get them out lol.

[jasonauton]

I have the large red kong. The two best things I have found are the Pedigree large breath busters treats. If you bend the mouth of the kong, you can get it down in there pretty good. I also put a slice of cheese in there, melt it in the microwave then freeze if for a few hours.