If you’re like a lot of dog owners, you
think ‘chewing dog’ and a chill goes down your
spine as images of ruined sofas flash before
your eyes. There is no denying it, dogs love to
chew. It's not just a puppy thing , even adult
dog's chew. And they should chew, it's healthy
stimulation for their teeth and gums, and burns
excess energy, (and we all know what dogs do
when they have too much energy on their paws,
yikes!) One of the best things you can do for
your dog - and your sanity - is to encourage a
healthy chew toy habit so that your dog gets
plenty of dental exercise without destroying
your furniture or nibbling on your new shoes.
Do some experimenting to figure out what kind
of stuff your dog likes to chew on. Some dogs
like a simple, mouth sized chew toy, like a ball that is
easily chewed while being carried around, (and
is conveniently readily accessible for a game of
fetch). Other dogs prefer a bigger chew toy that
they can lay down with and wrap their paws
around, like a pressed
rawhide or rubber bone.
Almost all dogs enjoy soft
plush toys to chew on. Soft plush dog toys
are especially helpful if your dog chews on your
pillows and clothes while you are away. Just put
a new plush toy in your dirty laundry for a few
days, your dog will be comforted by the soft
texture and your smell when he’s home alone.
However, if your dog is a vigorous chewer,
you’ll want to monitor her to make sure she
isn’t swallowing bits that have been ripped
off. Chewies that have a medium amount of
squish, like West Paw
Orbee and Kong
toys, are also generally enjoyed by most dogs,
and are nice and bouncy for more energetic play
too, but will hold up to tough chewing much
better than most plush toys. Tuffies toys are much more solid than
traditional plush toys, but they are
ridiculously indestructible and are probably the
only plush toy that is perfect for a heavy duty
chewer.
If your dog needs a little encouragement to
stay engaged with a chew toy, you may want to
try an edible mea
ty chew to exercise your pup’s jaws and
clean his teeth. Most dogs enjoy meaty flavors,
so long lasting bully sticks are practically guaranteed
to please. If your dog is less of a meat flavor
fan, or needs to cut back on rich treats,
a dehydrated sweet potato chew might be just the thing.
In
the summer, you really couldn’t do any better
than a Fill-n-Freeze which you can fill with
any liquid your dog prefers, from broth to
juice. Of course, the classic Kong
Toys are a great way to give your dog a tasty
chew. They can be stuffed with whatever your
little heart desires, and the yummy stuffing can
be easy to extract or you can make it so
difficult that your dog is kept busy for a
really long time. A Kong Time
Automatic Dispenser will keep your dog busy
all day with a new Kong delivered every couple
hours or so.
You'll want to have a supply of dog toys
large enough so that you can rotate items in and
out of circulation. Like us, dogs can get bored
with the ‘same old thing’ everyday, so if you
make sure to pick up a couple toys and put down
some new ones every few days, fido will be a lot
more likely to stay engaged with his chew
toys.
So now that we’ve given you all this to chew
on, hehe, go pick out something your dog will
love!
|
