Cool Dog Toys

It's always interesting to me to see which dogs like which toys, and since we have had a fair amount of foster dogs and puppies over the last few years, we have a crate of toys at home so any dog has a nice selection to chose from and indicate their preferences.

Each and every puppy or dog gets at LEAST one new toy of their very own too....of course! Every creature deserves a little taste of feeling special.

Maisey Mae is now nine months old.  I am not sure what access she had to toys before.  Her prior owners said she didn't play ball or have any favorites, but certainly that is not the case at our house!  She immediately caught on to the "toy box" idea and each day she takes out and plays with several toys, often carrying around two at a time so she doesn't have to be limited to just one.

She likes Dingo dones and Ringos (but what dog doesn't!), and she really enjoys cow hooves.  One surprise is that she even likes cheap dollar store rubber toys, and I think part of why she likes them is they float in her water bowl.  Maisey loves to "wash"her toys.  She puts them in the water bowl, stirs and bats them around, bites at them, and then extracts them - and likes to bring them over to play with (often on the bed!).  She is truly fascinated by the water bowl and will sometimes put in two toys at once, of different weights, and seem to experiment as they float or sink.  I wonder what is going through her head?

Recently for a "new" toy I got her a red eco-toy with a squirrel tail, pictured above.  These toys, available for only $9.99 at The Ultimate Green Store, are filled with plastic water bottles that make them crunch.  There is also a squeaker in the tail.  When the "crunch" wears out, recycle the old bottle (it will be completely flat!!!) and insert a new one!  Maisey LOVES everything about this toy - it's good for tug of war, it has different textures, and she likes the crunchy sound and the squeaky sound - and it has good flight properties for fetch retrieval.  I can already tell there will probably be another in her future when she has a birthday!

Maisey also loves a "jelly ball" which is a ball with a really soft jelly type texture that is not solid but textured - I think she likes the feel of it.  Oddly enough, she hates hot dogs, doesn't really care for many treats, and would rather play with toys than do just about anything! Toy drive = HIGH!  She does love a peanut butter filled mini-Kong though!

I think the best prices so far on Dingos (particularly Ringos) is at Doctors Foster Smith.  (If you know of a better one, let me know!).  I also like to check out dollar stores and specials at the grocery store, and pet store sales, especially after holidays.  Simon loves sweet potato treats we order by mail that come on a rope (though I think largely because it's food and he loves food!).

One interesting thing about Maisey's love for toys is that it appears to be infectious.  Simon has never shown any interest in some of the toys that have been in his living room the entire 6 years he's been with us - and when Maisey shows interest in them, suddenly he loves them.....despite never caring when foster dogs liked the same ones.  Mollie, who is over 128 in dog years, never touched a toy in the last 4 years I knew her, and now all of a sudden she MUST have some daily!!  Maisey magic appears to charm every toy she touches.  Luckily, there are more than enough toys to go around,s o we have three very happy dogs at the moment, and no toy fights.