Tennis Balls - Dangerous?

So, I was looking into getting a couple tennis balls for Ryder, and I found out that they are actually dangerous for dogs? How did I not know this? I am wondering if I should still give him one, maybe a Kong brand, it'd cost more but would it be a better choice? Or do you have a better suggestion on what kind of ball to get him? He will be 8 weeks old when we bring him home, and I want to keep him acquainted with chew toys in the beginning and yet still (maybe I don't have to teach) play a game fetch, at least learn how to. Any help would be appreciated. As of right now, he has a Fetch & Glow ball and a pack of 3 tennis balls, but I'm starting to think I don't want to give him these. I know I sound paranoid but he is going to be my FIRST fur kid. ;)

I didn't know that either. Clover had several tennis balls. They usually end up rolling behind the furniture though so when I do my cleaning and pull the chairs out I find 4-5 balls behind them :o She mostly just likes people to throw them for her.

How are the dangerous though? Like if they eat them? Curious about this now...

They're not dangerous. I would just never leave him unsupervised with one. :) He may like a jolly ball too!
http://jollypets.com/

They are dangerous because tennis balls do present a hazard that requires they be used only in supervised conditions. They can wear down dogs teeth if chewed very frequently. SO I guess as long we are around our dogs with these, they should be fine. Hmmmm. I mean if you look up about it online, there's a lot of articles about why they're "dangerous" for dogs - it's mostly a choking hazard, though!

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Originally Posted by luvofallhorses

They're not dangerous. I would just never leave him unsupervised with one. :) He may like a jolly ball too!
http://jollypets.com/

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I've been looking into that! Ha I feel picky on which one to get Ryder. There's all different types, but I'm more on about what the right size of Jolly Ball to get him. He'll be at least 80 lbs when he's full grown. So should I stick with a smaller one for now since he's a puppy? I think maybe 6 inch ball would be good?

I can understand tennis balls being dangerous. Even my Myndi who is a little 10lb Pom, used to chew right thru them, and they were regular size ones too - not the smaller ones. I finally had to take them from her, and any toy that had a tennis ball as part of it.

Didn't one of Oprah's dogs choke to death on a tennis ball? I vaguely remember something about that a few years ago.

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Originally Posted by pomtzu

I can understand tennis balls being dangerous. Even my Myndi who is a little 10lb Pom, used to chew right thru them, and they were regular size ones too - not the smaller ones. I finally had to take them from her, and any toy that had a tennis ball as part of it.

Didn't one of Oprah's dogs choke to death on a tennis ball? I vaguely remember something about that a few years ago.

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Yes, her dog did choke to death from one.

When I was a teenager, we had a bird dog named Bowser who swallowed one. Lucky for him, my dad was there. He saw it in his throat and was able to scoot the ball up his windpipe and Bowser finally spit it out. :love:

Yes, I've also heard they are dangerous for dogs. The real tennis balls are made with a certain kind of material that is dangerous. However, we have tennis courts right over our backyard fence so sometimes we (or the dogs) will find a tennis ball outside. Luckily they do not chew them to pieces, so I'm not worried about it.
They do sell "tennis balls" that are specifically designed for dogs to chew on. Is that what you got for Ryder?

If you have a dog that's a chewer, or one that likes to run with a ball in his mouth, I don't think it matters if it's a "real" tennis ball, or one made specifically for dogs. They can still choke on the whole ball, or pieces that get chewed off. I'd rather find a different type of ball - better to be safe than sorry.

Oh Oh ... Grandpuppies have these! Zoey and Sunshine pretty much just chase and fetch them though. I have not seem them actually chew them.

I think you have to wait until he is out of the teething stage to worry about tennis balls at all. For now, random sticks in the yard will be as exciting to lear to fetch as any ball!

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Originally Posted by pomtzu

If you have a dog that's a chewer, or one that likes to run with a ball in his mouth, I don't think it matters if it's a "real" tennis ball, or one made specifically for dogs. They can still choke on the whole ball, or pieces that get chewed off. I'd rather find a different type of ball - better to be safe than sorry.

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See, I didn't hear of them being dangerous for the choking hazard, but for the material it's made out of. Lots of toys could be choking hazards if you think about it.

I did buy Ryder three tennis balls, but I'm not sure about that anymore because it was only a $1 from the Dollar Store. Maybe I should ditch them? I ended up buying him a 6 inch blue Jolly Ball with a handle - so I think he might like that - just have to supervise, so he doesn't chew off the handle or anything like that!

Since any toy really, can be a choking hazard, it's best that they are supervised with any toy that they can chew pieces off of, or put the whole thing in their mouth. I wouldn't worry too much about those dollar store tennis balls when he is little - just watch what he does with them and take them away if he chews them, and don't let him play with them on his own. He should be fine with them otherwise.

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Originally Posted by CountryWolf07

I did buy Ryder three tennis balls, but I'm not sure about that anymore because it was only a $1 from the Dollar Store. Maybe I should ditch them? I ended up buying him a 6 inch blue Jolly Ball with a handle - so I think he might like that - just have to supervise, so he doesn't chew off the handle or anything like that!

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I would absolutely ditch them, as I bet they are "made in China" and if so, you have no idea what is in or on them anyway! Better safe than sorry!

Hmmmm - interesting. I have had three dogs in my life time, all of whom had tennis balls. Throwing and retrieving tennis balls is the major activity for all the dogs in our local park. I can see where these days you need to be careful where they are made because of the risk of harmful dyes and yes, occasionally I did have to rescue balls from Louie's mouth when he had chewed them to pieces but otherwise until now I have never heard any concerns about them being dangerous. Louie, by the way was very choosy about his balls and would only play with brand name tennis balls. If they smelled funny, he wasn't interested. It's unwise I think to leave any dog alone with a chew toy other than the kong type heavy duty toys they cant destroy.

I don't think they are any more dangerous than any other toy they could chew up and eat. Just make sure you supervise him. The tennis balls made for actual tennis (buy them in the sporting goods section) are usually way better quality than the ones made for dogs/ones at the dollar store. Those are junk the dogs bite them in half in three chomps but I've had other tennis balls last for years without being destroyed.

Most toys can be considered dangerous to be used unsupervised. If your dog uses tennis balls for "normal" play, ie for fetch with you, but does not have an abnormal obsession with them (will chew/eat them, etc), then I would say they are fairly safe to continue using as you were.

I echo the fact that the ones you buy at the pet store for $1 or so are very cheaply made and fall apart within minutes of using them, and Jamie is not hard on the balls. I can easily see how those would quickly become choking hazards, especially for the "ball obsessed" dogs. I usually fork out less than $10 to buy legit tennis balls from the sporting section at Walmart and they last months/years, provided she doesn't lose them!!

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Originally Posted by CountryWolf07

I've been looking into that! Ha I feel picky on which one to get Ryder. There's all different types, but I'm more on about what the right size of Jolly Ball to get him. He'll be at least 80 lbs when he's full grown. So should I stick with a smaller one for now since he's a puppy? I think maybe 6 inch ball would be good?

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A smaller one would be fine! :) They are pretty durable too.

I'm don't let Levi have tennis balls. He is a chewer, and they really wear down their teeth!

Why not just get dog safe balls? The kong squeekers are fine for play. If you concerned about the size you can get them in bigger sizes.

I'd steer clear of the kong rubber balls, now there's a choking hazard.

My guys play ball everyday without any problems.

Interesting. I ended up buying Ryder a 6 inch Jolly Ball with a handle - He's going to be a big boy so I think he'll be fine with it. :)