Dog Puzzle Toys

[Freedom]

With many of us heading in to Winter, I thought this may be of interest.

I am looking into some puzzle toys, to keep the fluffs busy inside, and not always with ME involved.

"Play Together, Stay Together," by Karen B London and Patricia B McConnell, suggests considering these toys. Note, they do state some of these are expensive, and to start with the less costly ones to see if your dog shows any interest.

Kong toys with stuffing ( or any stuffable toy ) - "Life without a Kong is now hard to imagine!" - page 48

Other stuffables: Orbee-Tuff Orbo,, the Havaball, Premier's football, and Orbee Tuff Bone.

Roll - A - Treat and Buster Cube "noise level on a hard floor reminiscent of a 747 on take off, so if you are sensitive to noise give these a 'pass.'

IQube and IntelliBone are quieter, but designed for a higher education in mind

No food, relying on squeakies instead:
Egg Babies, Jackpot Chipmunk, Booda Rip 'Ems - re the last one, many dogs seem to love the ripping sound of velcro, ha haa

The most sophisticated are the Zoo Active line "a family of top quality wooden toys that require a dog to line up holes, slide parts around and spin things in order to make treats accessible." Expensive but last. Easy: the Dog Brick, a good starter puzzle. VERY challenging: The Twister.

New ones are always being developed.

Well, I am off to Google some of these and see what I find. If you are interested in finding some as well this should give you a basis to start with!

[MonicanHonda]

Nina Ottosson toys are awesome... but expensive. There are cheaper brands though. They are like the zoo active toys you are talking about. I need to eventually buy the dogs one. Lol We like the Kong Wobbler too... not too shabby. I just might have to tape the hole a little bit to make it harder for them... the treats go away too quick. Lol

[happylabs]

Casey had one of those treat cubes. She learned how to put her mouth over the hole and throw it across the room. Wish I had gotten a video of it. Was fun to watch her play with it.

[luvofallhorses]

Busy Buddy toys are nice.
http://www.premier.com/View.aspx?pag...toys/busybuddy

[wanwan1007]

Busy Buddy toys are nice.
http://www.premier.com/View.aspx?pag...toys/busybuddy

Luv which toys have you used?

[Freedom]

Thanks for that link!

Another thing to try, for a dog left alone for a time:

Use a milk crate. Put the dog's toys in. When you are ready to leave, toss in a handful of kibble.

Depending on your dog, either feed no breakfast, or feed less than normal, to account for this extra. It keeps the dog busy for a time, searching and poking about to find the kibble.



Monica, I'd love the name or link for the less expensive line of toys, if you come across it!