It's Play Time
Article Written By: There's No Place Like Home
Providing your dog or cat with enough toys to choose from is important in keeping him from
becoming bored and potentially destructive in your absence. However, you'll want
to provide him with toys and playthings that stimulate him rather than promote
unwanted behaviour. We have listed some toys that we recommend as well as good
forms of play.
Some Tips & Tricks When Playing With Your Dog
Dogs learn a lot through playing and the way in which you play with your dog can potentially teach him about interacting
properly with you and others.
1) Your pet's teeth should never come into contact with your skin.
If/when this happens, you should give a firm & low pitched "NO" and stop playing for at least 5 minutes. Once the incident is
over, you can resume play. With puppies/kittens, this may happen several times during a few minutes of play and it requires patientce & persistance. With
consistancy, your dog/cat will learn that his teeth are not meant for playing or for touching a person's skin.
2) Furthermore, you should not use your hands to play with your pet. By doing so, you are teaching them that
hands are toys and that is okay to expect to be able to play with them. Instead, what you want to teach your pet is that hands are not for playing with and in order to do so, you'll need to quickly distract your pet with a toy whenever he tries to play with your hands. This way he'll learn that toys are okay for rough housing with instead.
3) When playing Tug - Of -War with your dog or puppy, you may be inclined to
let him win and take the object of play away from you. Some may think that this
provides a confidence boost to the dog...and it does but the wrong kind. By
allowing your dog to win during this kind of play, you are actually teaching him
dominance. You are showing him that not only is he capable of
dominating/overpowering you, but that you will allow him to do so. Instead, you
should only allow him to get the toy away from you 5% of the time, the other 95%
you should be taking the toy from him and winning the game of tug of war. It is
important to establish a hierarchy within the household with you clearly at the
top. You want your dog to know that you are 'above' him and in charge. A dog who
believes that he himself is in charge of the home & you becomes overbearing
and difficult to manage often times resulting in severe behavior issues.
4) Don't offer your dog old household items as toys such as shoes, childrens toys, socks etc...Although it may
seem like a cheap alternative to buying toys, giving your dog an old show to chew on is essentially telling your dog that all shoes are meant for
chewing. Your dog cannot decipher one shoe from all the rest. To eliminate creating an issue it is recommended that you only offer toys that he can
continue to play with. An example would be stuffed animals, if you have a child who has beloved stuffed animals, it would be wise to not give your dog a stuffed animal. He won't be able to tell which are his and which belong to the child and he won't understand why he is being scolded for playing with them.
Toys & Playthings
*** When buying toys, remember that you can almost always find them much cheaper on websites like Amazon.com instead of directly from a pet store!!!
* Kong toys are great for dogs & puppies alike. It provides your dog with both something to chew on as well as
stimulation while he tries to get the food out from the inside of the toy. Kongs are made with tough rubber making them difficult for dogs to chew apart so that they have a long lifespan. You want to be sure to purchase the correct size for your dog and if you have a puppy, you'll need to purchase new. larger Kongs as he grows. Kongs are especially handy for dogs who must be crated or left home alone during the day because they are interactive and will help to keep your dog busy. You can fill the inside of the Kong with something like peanut butter or canned dog food and sticking it in the freezer before you give it to your dog will make the play time last even longer. Kong brand also has other fun interactive dog toys that you can check out by visiting their website
www.KongCompany.com
2) For ball-loving dogs, the Chuckit! is a fun way to play fetch. It limits the amount of activity that you have to do while allowing your dog to enjoy running & retrieving his ball over & over again. Chuckit! brand also has several other toys that you can check out by visiting their website
www.chuckit.com
3) Busy Buddy brand creates a variety of interactive dog toys that can keep your dog occupied in your absence. These toys are great for when your dog has to be left home alone. You can check out their products at their website
www.busybuddytoys.com
4) Pet Stages is another brand with several toys which are great for chewing. Although these toys are good for any dog, they do make lots of toys made specifically for puppies that are perfect for teething. They also make wonderfully inventive cat toys! You can check out their products at www.petstages.com
Article Written By: There's No Place Like Home
Providing your dog or cat with enough toys to choose from is important in keeping him from
becoming bored and potentially destructive in your absence. However, you'll want
to provide him with toys and playthings that stimulate him rather than promote
unwanted behaviour. We have listed some toys that we recommend as well as good
forms of play.
Some Tips & Tricks When Playing With Your Dog
Dogs learn a lot through playing and the way in which you play with your dog can potentially teach him about interacting
properly with you and others.
1) Your pet's teeth should never come into contact with your skin.
If/when this happens, you should give a firm & low pitched "NO" and stop playing for at least 5 minutes. Once the incident is
over, you can resume play. With puppies/kittens, this may happen several times during a few minutes of play and it requires patientce & persistance. With
consistancy, your dog/cat will learn that his teeth are not meant for playing or for touching a person's skin.
2) Furthermore, you should not use your hands to play with your pet. By doing so, you are teaching them that
hands are toys and that is okay to expect to be able to play with them. Instead, what you want to teach your pet is that hands are not for playing with and in order to do so, you'll need to quickly distract your pet with a toy whenever he tries to play with your hands. This way he'll learn that toys are okay for rough housing with instead.
3) When playing Tug - Of -War with your dog or puppy, you may be inclined to
let him win and take the object of play away from you. Some may think that this
provides a confidence boost to the dog...and it does but the wrong kind. By
allowing your dog to win during this kind of play, you are actually teaching him
dominance. You are showing him that not only is he capable of
dominating/overpowering you, but that you will allow him to do so. Instead, you
should only allow him to get the toy away from you 5% of the time, the other 95%
you should be taking the toy from him and winning the game of tug of war. It is
important to establish a hierarchy within the household with you clearly at the
top. You want your dog to know that you are 'above' him and in charge. A dog who
believes that he himself is in charge of the home & you becomes overbearing
and difficult to manage often times resulting in severe behavior issues.
4) Don't offer your dog old household items as toys such as shoes, childrens toys, socks etc...Although it may
seem like a cheap alternative to buying toys, giving your dog an old show to chew on is essentially telling your dog that all shoes are meant for
chewing. Your dog cannot decipher one shoe from all the rest. To eliminate creating an issue it is recommended that you only offer toys that he can
continue to play with. An example would be stuffed animals, if you have a child who has beloved stuffed animals, it would be wise to not give your dog a stuffed animal. He won't be able to tell which are his and which belong to the child and he won't understand why he is being scolded for playing with them.
Toys & Playthings
*** When buying toys, remember that you can almost always find them much cheaper on websites like Amazon.com instead of directly from a pet store!!!
* Kong toys are great for dogs & puppies alike. It provides your dog with both something to chew on as well as
stimulation while he tries to get the food out from the inside of the toy. Kongs are made with tough rubber making them difficult for dogs to chew apart so that they have a long lifespan. You want to be sure to purchase the correct size for your dog and if you have a puppy, you'll need to purchase new. larger Kongs as he grows. Kongs are especially handy for dogs who must be crated or left home alone during the day because they are interactive and will help to keep your dog busy. You can fill the inside of the Kong with something like peanut butter or canned dog food and sticking it in the freezer before you give it to your dog will make the play time last even longer. Kong brand also has other fun interactive dog toys that you can check out by visiting their website
www.KongCompany.com
2) For ball-loving dogs, the Chuckit! is a fun way to play fetch. It limits the amount of activity that you have to do while allowing your dog to enjoy running & retrieving his ball over & over again. Chuckit! brand also has several other toys that you can check out by visiting their website
www.chuckit.com
3) Busy Buddy brand creates a variety of interactive dog toys that can keep your dog occupied in your absence. These toys are great for when your dog has to be left home alone. You can check out their products at their website
www.busybuddytoys.com
4) Pet Stages is another brand with several toys which are great for chewing. Although these toys are good for any dog, they do make lots of toys made specifically for puppies that are perfect for teething. They also make wonderfully inventive cat toys! You can check out their products at www.petstages.com