Toys - Ideas for making or using common items

[HeyJude]

Hi there, I am looking for some ideas on making or using common items as toys for 10 month old Kali. We do not have good pet supply shops in Mauritius and a lot of Internet companies do not send here either, also it is a hassle to collect goods being shipped here for various reasons that I wont bother to go into.

Kali has a couple of rubber dog toys from the supermarket which have lasted pretty well, she also has a half deflated basketball which she loves. We have palm trees in our garden and she loves to drag the big fronds that fall down all over the garden and also plays with coconuts that fall. So while she has a variety of things I was wondering if anyone has some other ideas for hardy and fun and safe toys that might be easily obtained.

[moondog]

Cardboard boxes with any staples removed, a car or wheelbarrow tire, plastic water bottles with caps removed, a piece of rope with knots tied at the ends (great tug toy), an old t-shirt with a knot tied in the middle, an old heavy duty sock stuffed with other old socks and tied at the end.....those are a few things that come to mind.

Dogs don't care how much you spend, they care about how much fun the toy is, LOL...and much of the time, those "found" items are more fun than anything purchased!

[Cdn1050]

Cut the legs off old jeans, tie both ends in a knot. Remember to trim any little pieces of strings off the end so the dog does not swallow it.

Plastic water bottles, the huge ones you find in the office water coolers. If you throw some dog kibble in it, makes it more interesting for the dog.

A piece of tough plastic piping that plumbers use. Makes a good fetch toy.

[Cdn1050]

A few more things, if you're able to find them in your area at toy stores or yard sales.

I find that some children's toys, the Little Tykes brand have very hard plastic and durable toys. Just be cautious of the ones you get. Like with any toy you give your dog, the must always be supervised when playing with it. I have a Little Tykes toy piano my dog likes to play sometimes. Here's a pic of an example of one. She only gets it to play with when supervised.

Toys"R"Us - Baby Tap-a-Tune Piano

[Behzy]

My dog loves the sock stuffed with old socks.. Jean legs stuffed with old shirts and then have the ends stitched up or sown.

[trish603a]

when it is really warm here, i take an empty 2 liter bottle (soda) and fill it 3/4 full with water then cap it and put it in the freezer. You could do the same with a smaller bottle as well. then when my dogs are out playing i will take the frozen bottle out with us. they have a blast! they love it because it is cold and will bite and lick at it for hours.

[Mango's Dad]

Plastic water bottles have been a wonderful toy for our Mango. She will have hours of fun and thoroughly enjoys the "crunchy" sound of the plastic. We put pieces of kibble inside and sometimes ring the inside of the mouthpiece with peanut butter (it helps keep in the kibble). Pieces of rope threaded through old tennis balls and then tied in knots. Crumpled paper on it's way to the recycle.
We had a neck massaging pillow and we removed the buzzy little massage unit which was made of hard plastic, we turned it on and put it on the floor and she will drain the batteries without losing interest.
Anything can be turned into a safe and entertaining toy, just use your imagination.
Good luck, I imagine the coconuts must be fun!!

Rich

[moondog]

Originally Posted by Mango's Dad

Plastic water bottles have been a wonderful toy for our Mango. She will have hours of fun and thoroughly enjoys the "crunchy" sound of the plastic

Yep, it's the crinkly, crunchie noise that makes those water bottles so much fun! My previous girlie, Luna, loved to pop bubble wrap....I'd give her a piece of some with the big bubbles (1 inch) and she'd keep at it until every single bubble had been popped. Bless her heart!

Originally Posted by Mango's Dad

I imagine the coconuts must be fun!!

Yeah, I think Chili could really go for a coconut!

[CanineCoach]

Molly likes anything with a human attached to the other end of it!!:bigwink:

[cerulean]

Originally Posted by moondog

My previous girlie, Luna, loved to pop bubble wrap....I'd give her a piece of some with the big bubbles (1 inch) and she'd keep at it until every single bubble had been popped. Bless her heart!

Oh, yes, Mango loves to do that, with bubblewrap, too !!!

[Diva Satanica]

I think everything I've used has already been mentioned. Empty pop bottles, jean legs cut off and tied in knots, there is one store here that sells milk in plastic jugs (similar to juice jugs, but larger). The paper towel tube thats left after the roll is done (gets shredded in minutes, but fun none the less).

[cambridge]

For summer fun we learned a trick from our zoo. This is what they do for the big cats. Take a bucket and suspend a rope through it (like a candle wick) that is wrapped with delicious meats and/or liver. Fill the bucket with water and freeze. Pop the ice from the bucket and suspend from a tree or clothes line. The dogs can smell the good meat and will spend hours playing with the ice trying to get to it. Once they do, there's dinner!

[Diva Satanica]

Originally Posted by moondog

a car or wheelbarrow tire,

Just curious Moondog, is this safe? I let my old pitbull have a car tire years ago and I got told, in no uncertain terms, that it wasn't safe and it was toxic for him....?

[HeyJude]

Thanks everyone for your replies lots of great ideas. I had previously thought of water bottles but was concerned they may not be safe if she manages to swallow a piece of plastic. I also wonder about the toxicity of rubber tyres?

Coconuts are great, when she first saw one it was the same size as her and she ran away crying, eventually she worked up the courage to bark at it until it behaved, it was so funny to watch her tame the coconuts before playing with them. This went on for weeks before she realised she could just go ahead and play without taming them first. Because they fall from the tree still with the green outer shell she rips that off and then gets to rip the husk off as well as chasing them when we roll them along the lawn - hours of fun. She is yet to crack one open.

[moondog]

Originally Posted by Diva Satanica

Just curious Moondog, is this safe? I let my old pitbull have a car tire years ago and I got told, in no uncertain terms, that it wasn't safe and it was toxic for him....?

I haven't found anything indicating rubber tires are toxic - the only caution I can find is that steel belted tires should not be used. Grinding rubber tires into a mulch is often used in children's playgrounds and advertised as being non-toxic, so I can't imagine an "intact" rubber tire would be.