Apr
24
Best toys for dogs
April 24, 2009 | Leave a Comment
For dogs and other animal companions, toys are not a luxury but a necessity. Toys help fight boredom in dogs left alone and toys can even help prevent some problem behaviors from developing.
Although cats can be pretty picky when it comes to enjoying particular toys like ignoring a catnip mouse and marveling over a piece of crumpled newsprint, dogs are often more than willing to “play” with any object they can get their paws on. That means you’ll need to be particularly careful when monitoring your dog’s playtime to prevent any “unscheduled” activities.
Many factors contribute to the safety or danger of a toy and a number of them depend upon your dog’s size, activity level and preferences. Another factor to consider is the environment in which your dog spends its time. Although we can’t guarantee your dog’s enthusiasm or his safety with any specific toy, we can offer the following guidelines.
The things that are usually most attractive to dogs are often the very things that are the most dangerous. Dog-proof your home by removing string, ribbon, rubber bands, children’s toys, pantyhose and anything else that could be ingested.
Toys should be appropriate for your dog’s size. Balls and other toys that are too small can easily be swallowed or become lodged in your dog’s throat.
Avoid or alter any toys that aren’t “dog-proof” by removing ribbons, strings, eyes or other parts that could be chewed and/or ingested. Discard toys that start to break into pieces or are torn.
Take note of any toy that contains a “squeaker” buried in its center. Your dog may feel that he must find and destroy the source of the squeaking and it could ingest the source of the sound. Supervise your dog’s play with squeaky toys.
Check labels for child safety for these apply to your pet as well. Look for stuffed toys that are labeled as safe for children less than three years of age and that don’t contain any dangerous fillings. Problem fillings include nutshells and polystyrene beads but even “safe” stuffing’s aren’t truly digestible. Remember that soft toys are not indestructible but some are sturdier than others. Soft toys should be machine washable.
Are you losing your pets to accidents? Do they wander and never return? Show them that you care. Keep your pets safe from harm with the petsafe radio fence.
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.