Dangerous Toys

[goforette]

Hollie and Brystal have a tendency to get bored w/their toys very quickly. So I'm always looking for new safe toys to keep them interested and entertained. But I'm one of those extra protective parents that don't want to give stuffed animals that have parts that could be swallowed like button noses or eyes - I've heard scary things about toys with tug strings that the strings can get wrapped in intestines and cause serious problems and even death and I'm concerned w/what's even good to give them for their teeth. Sometimes they get really going on their beef pizzle and I worry about them injuring teeth. What is super safe? - I have to leave the girls alone for about 8 hours each day so I need to make sure I'm leaving toys with them that are not going to harm them without supervision.

[kayharley]

I wouldn't leave a puppy or a young dog alone with any toy if they're still in the chewing/destruction stage no matter how safe it appears.

I've had great luck with these balls. http://www.activek9.com/tc-00026.html Even Elliott couldn't rip them apart. They also make a frisbee that's excellent.

Bully sticks are considered tough, many like the nylabones and Kongs are very reputable...but again, I think all toys need supervision.

Just my opinion...

[Eliz222]

I don't think you should leave any toys with your puppies all day. There are many safe toys available, but I don't think any are "Cairn" safe.

We have a tub full of toys that Scout and Finch play with. We also have toys that are kept up high on a shelf. I take these toys down when I can supervise their play time. I also have toys that are sitting in a "Cairn Hospital"...lol!

[goforette]

Kayharley - thanks for the website - and you guys are right I should re-evaluate the no-supervision w/toys. Right now they're only left alone with their squeeky balls that only squeek w/air - they have no device inside - but never say never and with my luck they'd wind up looking like the bumble bee or the toilet paper incident... I should never under-estimate them. Little that they can be...

[Barney's Mom]

If your girls chew like Barney does, there is just about nothing safe, I think!

I posted a while back about Nilabones because Barney just loved those brown puppy bones they make. He would just work and work on those things, getting it way back on his back teeth. But I started finding pieces of the plastic in his poop, so I quit giving him those. Now I give him basted rawhide and make sure when he gets it down to a small piece that I remove it. I also give him the Nylabone Healthy Edibles (?), I think that's what they are called. They are like a compressed stuff that just crumbles off in little pieces when he chews. If he breaks off a bigger piece, he just chews it up and swallows it.

A friend of mine gave Barney a Budda Bone and he ate the whole thing in a matter of an hour! I showed her the remains of it and she couldn't believe it! He doesn't seem to want to chew rubber toys or plastic squeeky toys, only "bone" type things. He chews on his rope toy and shreds the ends with his teeth, but the shreds that he gets in his mouth are minimal.

I am sure there are lots of organic chewies out there that would be pretty good. I guess the rule of thumb is, they could choke on or swallow almost anything. If you leave them with something for a long period, I think the Healthy Edibles would brobably be best. I remember reading somewhere on the forum that someone's dog chewed up a tennis ball and had to have some sort of surgery to get it out of them! Wouldn't want that!

Good luck!

[tena]

Sophie is grown and a lot more low key than some cairns, but sometimes I come home to toys all over, very very mad cats and a tuckered out Sophie....I can't imagine the mischief of two puppies.wow you are brave

[kcsdogs]

I think that toys require experimnetation and supervision. I am like you I don't want my dogs to get hurt on a toy so if I get them something and it gets desroyed in like 5 seconds we scratch it off the list. But for chewers I have also heard that bully sticks are good.