Keep me busy so I don't keep you busy...
November 6, 2011 8:12 AM Subscribe
Fido is coming to visit the in laws with us at Christmas. We want to minimize his potential annoyance to others and boredom. What are the best treat dispensing smart busy toys for dogs? We have a kong and a jolly ball, but what else is out there? It needs to be durable and very difficult since Fido is too darn smart. He loves a good calf thigh stuffed with cheese, but the licking sounds he makes are a little too gross for public. He is around 50 pounds, so it needs to be for large breeds that are hard chewers. Thanks!
Please, no rants about proper training and socialization before hand. We are aware of these things already. He also will have his crate if he wants to go away for a bit. We just need recommendations for toys for too smart dogs that are highly food motivated. We will also be bringing his favorite chicken jerky treats for hand dispensing.
Please, no rants about proper training and socialization before hand. We are aware of these things already. He also will have his crate if he wants to go away for a bit. We just need recommendations for toys for too smart dogs that are highly food motivated. We will also be bringing his favorite chicken jerky treats for hand dispensing.
Could you find some sort of chew, be it rawhide. bully stick or a cow toe or something. Chewing noises are better than slurpy licking noises and while they are not that mentally stimulating I have yet to meet a dog that doesn't get into a nice happy place for a while chewing on a cow toe. I have frozen PB into a cow toe with little bits of jerky in and my dogs have a great time with that, and unlike a kong they can eat/chew the wrapper.
Other than that I've had great luck with these because you can make them as hard or as easy as you need by how you assemble them, though buying a few can get a bit pricey.
posted by wwax at 8:39 AM on November 6, 2011
Other than that I've had great luck with these because you can make them as hard or as easy as you need by how you assemble them, though buying a few can get a bit pricey.
posted by wwax at 8:39 AM on November 6, 2011
Response by poster: Our niece will be there on occasion, but I don't know is she likes dogs. It's a great idea though! Plus we could get him used to children (she is 6). We had one of those plastic bacon bones and he broke it in about 30 minutes. I took it away because I didn't want him to choke on the little bits.
He destroys rawhide and bully sticks in about 20 minutes. I have tried all kinds. He is a serious chewer! I have not tried cow toe yet. We did a knuckle once, but he cracked that apart so quickly! I could see little shards lying around, so of course I tossed it for fear of cutting up his innards. The big calf thigh has held up for months with only a few scratches on it, but yeah, the slurppy sounds are just nasty. The good this is that it will keep him entertained for over an hour when stuffed with cheese!
I did visit that website, but wasn't sure just how durable those were.
posted by MayNicholas at 8:54 AM on November 6, 2011
He destroys rawhide and bully sticks in about 20 minutes. I have tried all kinds. He is a serious chewer! I have not tried cow toe yet. We did a knuckle once, but he cracked that apart so quickly! I could see little shards lying around, so of course I tossed it for fear of cutting up his innards. The big calf thigh has held up for months with only a few scratches on it, but yeah, the slurppy sounds are just nasty. The good this is that it will keep him entertained for over an hour when stuffed with cheese!
I did visit that website, but wasn't sure just how durable those were.
posted by MayNicholas at 8:54 AM on November 6, 2011
Buster Cubes work well (they withstood my hard chewer who thought the problem with the Molecuball was a simple engineering issue with the hole being too small, and rectified it). I would also try freezing his Kong with some broth or something inside along with the food/treats (only OK if he is in a crate or somewhere the floor can take the mess). Be careful looking for things for him to chew that are too hard - dogs can and do break teeth while chewing on things like cow hooves, bones and hard Nylabones. You could also try an Everlasting Treat Ball.
I would also make sure you take him for a good long run/walk every day - it's good for you and he is less likely to be a pest if he is adequately exercised.
posted by biscotti at 9:19 AM on November 6, 2011
I would also make sure you take him for a good long run/walk every day - it's good for you and he is less likely to be a pest if he is adequately exercised.
posted by biscotti at 9:19 AM on November 6, 2011
My dog was given a Nina Ottoson game for Christmas last year (the Dog Turbo to be specific). They do require some training and limited supervision when using. As for other chew suggestions, have you tried antler chews or Himalayan dog chews?
posted by bCat at 9:23 AM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by bCat at 9:23 AM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Be very cautious introducing a dog that is not used to children to children who are not used to dogs. They can really suck at reading each others' signals, and misunderstandings and conflicts can arise very quickly as a result.
Particularly when food is involved, dogs will often parse children differently from the way they parse adult humans, and can exhibit aggression you have never seen before. So I'd recommend against having a child dispense dog treats, especially if they're just meeting.
As far as the busymaking things, I have a brilliant, active pit bull mix who is easily bored, and the two things that tire her out and make her the happiest are the Kong Stuff-a-Ball, which is more complicated than the standard model, with different types of treats stuffed in the outside ribs and the inside compartment--I usually use a combo of jerky, peanut butter, and kibbles or cookies--and some one on one thinking games. I play a version of a shell game with her, where I put a treat under a cup, then shuffle three cups and call her to find the treat; and we also play treat hide and seek, where I put her in a down, then go into another room, hide a treat, then call her to come search for it. A ten or fifteen minute game of that can satisfy her and settle her down for the rest of the evening, having had a little intense socialization, some fun brain puzzlers, and a sense of accomplishment. (My dog is absolutely brilliant at those games, and loves to show off. She does these ridiculous end zone dances when she wins, and just prances around like a show pony the whole time. She can just wear herself out showing off if there's a crowd of people egging her on.)
Without knowing a little more about your dog, though, it's hard to make suggestions. I mean, is your dog CUTE? Does he have a funny face, or do anything adorable? Can he show me his belly? Who is a good dog? Is he a good dog?
posted by ernielundquist at 9:33 AM on November 6, 2011 [2 favorites]
Particularly when food is involved, dogs will often parse children differently from the way they parse adult humans, and can exhibit aggression you have never seen before. So I'd recommend against having a child dispense dog treats, especially if they're just meeting.
As far as the busymaking things, I have a brilliant, active pit bull mix who is easily bored, and the two things that tire her out and make her the happiest are the Kong Stuff-a-Ball, which is more complicated than the standard model, with different types of treats stuffed in the outside ribs and the inside compartment--I usually use a combo of jerky, peanut butter, and kibbles or cookies--and some one on one thinking games. I play a version of a shell game with her, where I put a treat under a cup, then shuffle three cups and call her to find the treat; and we also play treat hide and seek, where I put her in a down, then go into another room, hide a treat, then call her to come search for it. A ten or fifteen minute game of that can satisfy her and settle her down for the rest of the evening, having had a little intense socialization, some fun brain puzzlers, and a sense of accomplishment. (My dog is absolutely brilliant at those games, and loves to show off. She does these ridiculous end zone dances when she wins, and just prances around like a show pony the whole time. She can just wear herself out showing off if there's a crowd of people egging her on.)
Without knowing a little more about your dog, though, it's hard to make suggestions. I mean, is your dog CUTE? Does he have a funny face, or do anything adorable? Can he show me his belly? Who is a good dog? Is he a good dog?
posted by ernielundquist at 9:33 AM on November 6, 2011 [2 favorites]
Our dog LOVES her bob-a-lot, though some people on the internet say their crazy-chewing dogs destroyed them. The Everlasting Treat Ball was NOT good for us... it was more of a 15-minute lasting treat ball.
I would also encourage you to be cautious with the kid thing. "Getting him used to children" is not something that should happen under strange, possibly stressful circumstances, and should definitely not happen without very close supervision. Even dogs that seem totally sweet and calm and great can have unpredictable reactions to kids doing things that kids do, and believe me when I tell you that can add a WHOLE lot of unneeded stress to your holiday.
Finally, if there are going to be a lot of strangers and a lot of activity in the house, consider having a safe, quiet space where your dog can go to chill out. Crowds of rowdy (or not rowdy) relatives can be really stressful for a dog. Watch for signs of stress, give the dog regular time-outs from all the people, etc. etc. You want to set your dog up for success in this situation. So, yeah, use that crate for sure.
posted by juliapangolin at 9:39 AM on November 6, 2011
I would also encourage you to be cautious with the kid thing. "Getting him used to children" is not something that should happen under strange, possibly stressful circumstances, and should definitely not happen without very close supervision. Even dogs that seem totally sweet and calm and great can have unpredictable reactions to kids doing things that kids do, and believe me when I tell you that can add a WHOLE lot of unneeded stress to your holiday.
Finally, if there are going to be a lot of strangers and a lot of activity in the house, consider having a safe, quiet space where your dog can go to chill out. Crowds of rowdy (or not rowdy) relatives can be really stressful for a dog. Watch for signs of stress, give the dog regular time-outs from all the people, etc. etc. You want to set your dog up for success in this situation. So, yeah, use that crate for sure.
posted by juliapangolin at 9:39 AM on November 6, 2011
Just a side note about the cow hooves-we tried them once with our dogs but never again because the smell was AWFUL.
posted by brilliantine at 10:23 AM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by brilliantine at 10:23 AM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Have you tried Nylabones? They're made of some kind of heavy duty nylon, and we've got a few that have been around for years. My Powerful Chewer (tm) likes hers - it has some kind of flavor, and also one end is larger and flatter so she can put her paw on it to keep it upright for easier chewing angle.
posted by SuperSquirrel at 12:17 PM on November 6, 2011
posted by SuperSquirrel at 12:17 PM on November 6, 2011
For chewing: deer antlers. No stink, no slurping, no slimy chunks left on the carpet. My greyhound chewed on his almost daily for several months, and all it did was slowly grind down some of the corners of the antler.
posted by specialagentwebb at 12:20 PM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by specialagentwebb at 12:20 PM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Our Manners Minder is great, but it requires a good bit of training. It's a great option for training your dog to run to a specific mat or place on the floor when guests come to the door. And you can use it within a larger training/exercise regime too. We call ours the DogBot and it can keep him occupied for a good 30-45 minutes at a time.
Antlers are a bit pricy but they seem to hold up to strong chewers.
Are you freezing the kong? Bits of food, cheese, broth, meat, etc. in a kong, and freeze it overnight. The doggy popsicle will last longer than a regular kong.
posted by barnone at 5:24 PM on November 6, 2011
Antlers are a bit pricy but they seem to hold up to strong chewers.
Are you freezing the kong? Bits of food, cheese, broth, meat, etc. in a kong, and freeze it overnight. The doggy popsicle will last longer than a regular kong.
posted by barnone at 5:24 PM on November 6, 2011
My super smart little herding mix loves the Kong Stuff-A-Ball. It seems to last about the right amount of time and definitely takes some work to get the stuff out off. I usually drop in a handful of treats of various sizes so she gets some reward right away and has to work longer for the ones I wedge in there. (I haven't tried the jolly ball-- not sure how that compares).
Also: big hollow bone, smear in peanut butter for extra intrigue. This may or may not pass your "too gross for public" test.
posted by Atalanta at 7:41 PM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
Also: big hollow bone, smear in peanut butter for extra intrigue. This may or may not pass your "too gross for public" test.
posted by Atalanta at 7:41 PM on November 6, 2011 [1 favorite]
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posted by mercredi at 8:37 AM on November 6, 2011