dog toys

[aquarian215]

So I went to the pet store yesterday and spent $70 on dog food and four new toys. I gave Dudley 2 of them and within the hour he had pretty much destroyed both of them, now when I look for toys I try to get the ones that look to me to be the most durable because he is rough on toys (Dudley the Destroyer), but I never really have any luck, there was this one toy that lasted about a week (a record), and it was a .99 cent stuffed animal that he ended up ripping the eyes out (perfect circle, empty eye socket), and went through the head to the belly and took out the squeaker. So anyway my question is what kinds of toys do you reccomend? I would like to get my moneys worth anyway, I can't afford $50 a week in dog toys, anyone know of any toys that can hold up pretty well? I have tried hard plastic/rubber toys, but he won't touch em. Thanks for any input.

[britishbandit]

I realize you said you've tried plastic/rubber toys, but have you tried a Cuz (specifically) yet? I have numerous kongs around here, and my two never touch them. But I got them each a Cuz at Christmas, and they play with them all the time. I don't know what it is about them, but i've yet to hear about someone trying a Cuz and have their dog not like it.

Two warnings though, they have a super annoying squeaker in them, so be prepared for that. And watch your dog when playing with it. My two had the legs coming off pretty quickly, but I ended up just sawing them off. It's solid plastic so it leaves no holes. And apart from the legs, they are very tough toys. Even after a year of abuse from two Rotties, the Cuz's are still in great shape. Minus the legs of course.

[Kuchi]

I've had great luck with the everlasting treat ball, there are many treat balls out there but this brand has lasted over a year. Its still around but its starting to get teeth marks.
http://www.triplecrowndogs.com/shop/product.htm?loc=208

I get most of my dog toys on ebay. The last time I bought kongs was off of ebay and buy in bulk because its nice to have 6 kongs in the freezer to rotate. After shipping I think it was $40 for 6 kong toys, which included 4 large of the black kind, a football and the bouncy ball. I don't buy toys that much because they are pricy so I tend to keep my freezers packed with marrow and knuckle bones because the butcher will give me 3 lbs of them for $5.

And Kuchi like is cuz toy too, I think its a turtle toy. So look on ebay and buy in bulk and take out a toy weekly so he thinks its new.

[Flutterby]

Mine aren't really fans of Kongs either, unless there's something yummy inside or it's being thrown and bounces crazily. The Buster cube went over okay, it depends on your dogs' personality and level of inquisitiveness. My dog that played with it the most (and it was the large cube for large dogs, not the little one!) was my 10 pound Italian Greyhound - the cube was bigger than him, almost! LOL

Most of my crew love squeakies, but I have a habit of getting very few stuffie squeakie toys, because they never used to last long at all. Though, everything is lasting *MUCH* longer since losing my Silly Dog, Sally the Vizsla. She would completely destroy a stuffie in about 4 seconds. The Weims aren't all that interested in stuffies (or any toys, really, they prefer lounging inside rather than playing with toys, or chewing on a bone), and the Alaskan Klee Kai and Beagle are not nearly as hard on toys as Sally was. So now I actually have a couple of stuffies (including Little Green Bear, *the* toy of choice, according to Arella and Kaima, who always try to be the first to grab it so the other doesn't get it!) lying around my living room, which is definitely a first for me!

I also have several rope toys and tennis balls (a pretty cheap toy that most dog seem to like alright). Sally would destroy a tennis ball in no time flat too, but like the stuffies, I now have a couple tennis balls rolling around my house that stay in relatively good shape for weeks.

Where do you get a Cuz? Sounds interesting!

Lanie
And The Zoo
Royal Star Estates
freewebs.com/royalstarestates

[britishbandit]

Originally Posted by Flutterby

Where do you get a Cuz? Sounds interesting!

You can get Cuz's at most pet supply stores. I know for sure Petsmart always has them, but even the smaller chains in my area carry them as well. You can also find a ton of places online that you can order them from, sometimes some really good deals too!

[Sophie45]

I buy hollowed out bones, fill them with peanut butter or wet dog food and freeze them. One can of wet food fills about four bones, and Sophie goes bonkers for them! The bones cost $4-6 a piece, and since you can re-use them, they are very cost efficient. I rotate different types of wet food to keep Sophie interested. I also love the stuff-a-kong, I fill it with different treats, cheerios, etc. and top it off with a layer of peanut butter and Sophie loves rolling it around gobbling up treats out all over the house!

[Rivsky]

I've got a dog here who won't touch a Cuz (also doesn't like plastic toys) so if you want to get one for Dudley might be worth taking him in with you to see if he shows any interest in it first.

If you don't want to spend a lot of money on toys have you tried making some yourself for him? River LOVES soft drink bottles - he bashes them around the house for hours - just take the lid, label and plastic ring thing off them first. I've heard of people putting kibble into the bottles as well.

Another home made toy my old dog loved was a tennis ball in a stocking - he would fling it around for hours on end and had a blast catching it an chasing it around.

[britishbandit]

Well that's a first for me Rivsky! LOL River is officially the first dog I've ever heard of not liking a Cuz! I'm not so sure about bringing a dog in to the store to see if it likes it is the way to go though. I don't know about other dogs, but my two don't care about toys when we're at the store, or food/treats on the shelves. They're usually too excited about the other dogs and people being around to care about anything else. hahaha I guess getting petted and sniffing butts is their first priority.

The pop bottle idea is a good one! Cheap and can be replaced often. Also tough enough to get a decent amount of play time in before it gets destroyed. I also find that putting kibble in them stops them from chewing it because they're constantly flipping it around to get the food out.
But I've never much liked the idea of the tennis ball in a stocking. Both being things that are quickly demolished by destructive chewers, and dangerous if swallowed.

[CdnRottieMom]

I stopped buying toys Neyla because she would just destroy them. When I bought her a cuz, she wasn't interested in it until a month later. It must have been after watching PJ and Tysa enjoying their Cuz balls. Now she takes it everywhere with her, hoping someone will play fetch with her. I also had to cut the feet off the ball.

[GSD4me]

get your dog a cow femur. they're virtually indestructible.

[aquarian215]

My husband went out and got 4 marrow bones, for like 6 bucks, on Saturday and he is still working on the first, its great, he loves em. I don't even think I know what a Cuz is, I will have to check that out. Thank you all for the advice. Now how harmful is it went he eats his toys? What do I have to be aware of (as parts on toys, ect) that he shouldn't ingest? I do take things away once I notice he is eating one of his toys, but sometimes I don't realize right away.

[Rivsky]

Pretty much anything a dog ingests that it's not supposed to has the potential to cause a blockage and become a big problem so you need to continue keeping an eye on him with his toys as you have been.

[mmizuno94]

A strong toy you might want to look into is the Tuffies. They're more of a throw and catch toy I think but you might want to look into them. They're suppose to be very durable.
http://www.edogtoy.com/retail/files/