Dog Toys

Part of having a dog who loves to chew: toys don’t last long.

Over the past year and a half, we’ve gone through every kind of toy we can get our hands on. Balls, ropes, wobblers, bones, antlers, pig ears. Some of them last a few weeks, then as soon as we buy another they get demolished within a couple of days after she learns how to destroy them.

So far the best are Kong Extreme, ChuckIt Ultra, Nylabone and deer antlers.

Kong Extreme

So far the best toys are the incredibly tough black rubber of Kong Extreme products. Impenetrable, even after hours of chewing every day for months, and their bone-shaped ones are great for playing tug-o-war too!

Kong extreme — well worn.

We’ve had the original Kong Extreme for months now, recently getting the Kong Extreme Goodie Bone as a better toy to play tug-o-war with. Incredibly durable. Plenty of bite marks in each of them, but no tears or breaks.

Filling the Kong with peanut butter will keep a dog occupied for a while, and if you freeze it for a while, it’ll last even longer!

ChuckIt Ultra Balls

The best balls are the medium sized ChuckIt Ultra ball. After hours and hours of playing with them down at the dog park, she’s only eaten a small hole in one after we left her alone with one for an hour at home. Great to take down to the dog park with a medium ChuckIt stick to keep other dogs occupied too. The medium sticks fit normal tennis balls so you can fling all of those around along with the ChuckIt balls!

A collection of ChuckIt Ultra balls.

Antlers

Antlers are super solid toys that probably taste more like a treat. We started with a half or quarter antler when she was smaller so she could easily get inside it, then moved up to the full antlers when her teeth were strong enough. If we pick a decent sized harder one, they last at least a couple of months before they get gnawed down to an unsafe size and we throw them out.

A well chewed deer antler.

Nylabone

These incredibly dense nylon bones are great to have around for chewing and they last months — until they get dropped on your face or you kick or stand on them in the middle of the night. They also seem to irritate a dog’s mouth after a while, as the nylon gets fairly sharp from months of chewing.

The Nylabones, after a few months.

Nope

Pig ears last about five minutes and make her fart. F-. Gross.

Frozen chicken necks are great treats, but she swallows them whole. They last a minute or less.

Rope toys are great for playing tug-o-war with her, but when she’s left alone for a while with them they end up looking like a ropey mess all over the house. Bright red entrails on the carpet that we have to pick up, vacuum up and then wipe off red dust that clings to every surface in the house. 🙈