Toys, the good, the bad and the downright annoying!!

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Ocelot0411
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Toys, the good, the bad and the downright annoying!!

Post by Ocelot0411 »

Thought it might be an idea to start a thread on here so we could compare and review dog toys on the market. I have bought quite a lot of them over the last year or so and found some great and others a complete waste of money. Obviously it largely depends on your dog's personality as to what they will like and what they won't, but I thought if we gave a brief description of our dogs, the toy and the reason why our dog did / not like it we might be able to save ourselves some cash by buying things that other dogs they are similar to, enjoyed. So obviously I'll kick us off.

My Dog
Young, big, boistrous and silly. Very playful but impatient and not really a problem solver. Has a 'brute force' attitude to play (and life actually) and not good at entertaining herself. Most games therefore have to involve me.


Good
Cuz - in all their various forms, especially the fish shaped one as you can play tuggy with it too. God awful noise though.

Kong wubba - again robust, can be used as a throw toy, squeaky toy and also excellent as a tuggy toy as there is a distinct difference between the part your dog holds and the bit you hold so no chomped fingers.

Soft toys - preferably big and therefore 'raggable'. These are a particular favourite in my house.

Activity ball - this is actually just a plastic football but has a kind of harness around it with a bit of rope at either side, so you can play tuggy with it, you can throw it and of course play football with it.

Ball launcher - fab! Really gets them running, although my dog destroys the tennis balls pretty quickly.

Busy buddy - treat dispensing, robust, quite easy to figure out.

Not Good

Tug-a-jug - I know a lot of dogs love this but I think mine is a bit lazy and lost interest in this pretty quickly. Maybe it was too hard for her.

Dog pryamid - again hugely popular with many (recommended to me by my trainer) but my dog couldn't be bothered to work it out so just chewed the top off it! :shock:

Wiggly giggly - dismantled in seconds.

Hide a squirrel - the squirrels live on but alas their tree trunk is dead. Chewed up and destroyed.

Indestructiball - bit small and too hard. Nearly broke my toe trying to play football with it. If I don't kick it, it is ignored.

Downright annoying - top of this list has to be the 'Babble ball'. Quite fun and does last but chips away at your will to live. The cuz would have to come second and third any stuffed toy that makes an animal noise like a screaming chimp, a grunting pig and a a moo-ing cow. Still annoying though they are to me, they are pretty popular with my dog.
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

I gave up on bought toys several years ago because they don't last 5 minutes here. Most are dangerous when my dogs are around. I make my own out of fleece now and these last ages as long as they don't chew them. :lol:
[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
danabanana
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Post by danabanana »

haha I know how you feel about the babble ball!

What's a Cuz though?
Ocelot0411
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Post by Ocelot0411 »

See below for 'Good cuz' and 'Bad cuz'. I couldn't find a picture of fish cuz so I will have to take a picture of it when I get home.

http://www.petacular.com/products/Cuz-Dog-Toys.html
DawnStorm
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Post by DawnStorm »

I recommend the Jolly Ball. It's really for horses, but there's no reason why dogs can't play with it, and I have seen in the PetSmart. The Jolly Ball comes in various sizes, is made of soft yet durable plastic(?) and has a handle for easy throwing. I have two of these, and they are durable, plus they float. My two dogs could tear up an anvil.
Do a Google on jolly ball if you're interested.
My current crew:
Bruce the Albino Dobe; Flanders the Belgian Malinut; Leela, Scuttlebutt, and Felix, da kitties.
All much-loved but not spoiled!
pat
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Post by pat »

Here's some of my dogs' toys. They both started off exactly the same apart from the colour. The top ones are played with by Jamie, who's a flat coated retriever cross and very soft mouthed. The bottom ones are played with by Sasha who's looking longingly at Jamie's toys. I guess the lifetime of a toy depends on the type of dog you have.

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Getting eliminated is all part of the fun, or so I was told
DawnStorm
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Post by DawnStorm »

The tug rope is a favorite in my house.
My current crew:
Bruce the Albino Dobe; Flanders the Belgian Malinut; Leela, Scuttlebutt, and Felix, da kitties.
All much-loved but not spoiled!
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

I make these for my dogs, they are much stronger than I can buy in the shops and the only time they are damaged is when they are chewed.

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[url=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/PIXIE.jpg][img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v312/Nethertumbleweed/th_PIXIE.jpg[/img][/url]
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Horace's Mum
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Post by Horace's Mum »

Slightly off topic, sorry, but Pat do you run agilitybits forum/website?
pat
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Post by pat »

Yes, I do.
Getting eliminated is all part of the fun, or so I was told
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Horace's Mum
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Post by Horace's Mum »

Thought I recognised the dogs! Very useful website to those of us just starting out, thank you!
cbabygurl
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favorite toys

Post by cbabygurl »

My dog is a 14mo old, 65 pound, golden retriever lab mix. He has an endless supply of energy and is very smart.

GOOD:
Tug toy made by kong - It's great because he loves to tug but it lets me get a good grip as well. It's definitely not a chew toy though.

Glow in the dark ball - I usually can't get out to play with my dog till late and he could never see the ball so i got a glow in the dark one. It's about $5 but it can stand some decent chewing.

Classic Kong - this got my dog to stop chewing on the plastic on my chairs. It can also be used as a treat dispenser.

NOT GOOD:
Cloth toys - my dog will destroy them in a minute

Softballs - very interesting to my dog but didn't stand my puppies teeth for very long.
*CASSADY*
Maddie'sMom
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Post by Maddie'sMom »

My dogs:
6 year old Cocker Spaniel - very playful, LOVES toys. Likes to fetch, tug, and sometimes chew. She picks a favorite and takes it everywhere with her lol too cute
Missy loves to play and sometimes fetch. Her favorite is to pop tennis balls :roll:

Good
Orbee balls, orbee float toy... we like orbees!
Kongs, all sizes and colors
Stuffed Squirrels
Stuffed Heart
Hide a Squirrel
Tennis balls: Maddie likes smalls and Missy likes Larges. She loves to pop regular sized ones.
LOVE squeaky tennis balls :!:


Not Good
The fake sheep-like stuffed toys. Always end up shredded all over the downstairs
Rope toys usually end up shredded
Tug-a-jug
Puzzle Cube (was good for first couple of days, then destroyed)


I like to make toys, from leftover strips of fleece blankets that I make. If you can learn how to tie different knots, you can make really neat & unique dog toys. Well, Maddie appreciates them, anyways :oops: LOL
bordercolliemom
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Post by bordercolliemom »

i have a 6 month bc. she loves the jolly ball and would play with that forever! she also loves things with a squeaker (like fake animals) and her ropes. i've stopped getting her those, however, because she just shreds them and i'm afraid she's swallowing some fo the pieces. any ideas on what i could try with her?

she also loves her kongs! i put some peanut butter in there, dry dog food, a biscuit across the top so it's harder for her to get into and then freeze them overnight. it works great!
Mollysmom
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Post by Mollysmom »

Ok, so I've decided that Hyperstick is a terrific "stick" substitute... Be aware however that it sinks like the bloomin' titanic so it's not for water fetching.

Molly's a huge fan of anything with a rope so we picked up one of These last time we went to the pet store.

She loves stuffed squeaky toys but shreds them and/or slimes you with drool coated plush... so those are rare treats... (even if the stuffed squeaky AKC endorsed pheasant lasted longer than most others it wasn't worth the $14 USD pricetag. yikes!)

she doesn't have any toys that we've decided are far too obnoxious... it's actually rather amusing to watch her play with her toys when there are more than one out for her. She plays football (soccer for the americans here) with her tennis balls while carting around her rope or another ball in her mouth. And the Jolly Ball is a toy unto itself. (and now the ginormous rope ball thing... she's being a pest asking to play tug with that now lol)
~* Proud Mommy of a Mix Breed *~
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"If your dog doesn't like someone you probably shouldn't either." - Unknown
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