I have an 8 week old chocolate Lab/Shepherd and he always tears up his toys. If it's a stuffed animal toy it's gone in at least a minute. I love to make toys; do you have any ideas on toys I can make him before Christmas? Thanks.
By mikayla
Store bought stuffy toys are quickly torn up in a minute or so and can become costly to continually replace with the same old thing, so I give my dog an ice cube and he loves running after it as it slides across the floor besides crunching down on it and eating it. It's the cheapest toy, very entertaining, and easily replaced.
I can't buy stuffy toys for my other dog because of my male being too destructive towards them, so I buy a lot of different sized balls that do different things to keep them entertained and also safe chewy toys that seem to last long.
An old sock is another favorite for my dogs and they play tug o' war with it often. Also, the red LED light that dogs like to chase after. They play a few minutes chasing after the light, but don't ever shine it into their eyes or make it a long time at play as it can drive a dog wild and become obsessed with the light searching all over for something that's long been put away. This is strictly in moderation and not frequent play. When the finger tires of holding down the button on the light, that's when the play ends and even sooner for a puppy.
You could buy a bag of squeakers that go into toys reasonably priced on the net and then make a blanket the dog can walk on and sew into squares and insert a squeaker into each square and when they walk on it, sound comes out and each time they take a step, a sound comes from where their paw was placed. Keeps them busy trying to go after that newest sound, and I'd try making it from a strong material like heavy denim or heavy remnant upholstery material. It should last longer than the stuffed toys. Still have to watch out for any holes made from teeth trying to remove the squeaker so they don't swallow plastic parts. I wouldn't let the dog have it when unattended for this reason. (12/07/2009)
By Myrna
My puppy loved a carrot tied up in a sock. (12/10/2009)
By Janet
Go to your hospital's lab and ask for a few of the used huge over sized rubber band type tourniquets they use when drawing blood. Go to Walmart and get a card of cat toy balls with the little bell inside the plastic cage type ball for $1.98. Tie the balls with the rubber band through the slots. Then shoot them across the room. He will chase them, they will skittle and ring, then he can spend hours holding the rubber band down and trying to stretch the ball loose, only to have it snap back and scoot some more.
By Gloria Hayes
Take a long (knee high) sock and tie several knots in it. Good for tossing or tug-of-war. Stuffed animal toys can be found very reasonable at yard/tag sales or thrift shops. You can just toss them in the wash and then give them to your dog. You can also go onto Craigs list and ask for free dog toys or stuffed animals. A lot of people just throw them out and will give them to you for free. (12/11/2009)
By Diane
Our puppy has a lot of fun with empty gallon-size jars of milk. We take it from him once the plastic starts breaking up, and just hand him the next empty one. He likes them better than most store-bought toys. He also loves potholders and oven mitts. I gave them a couple that were falling apart--probably because of all the food smell. Always be careful to make sure he doesn't end up swallowing stuff he shouldn't swallow. (02/13/2010)
By F
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