New Toy Poster from Coonhound Companions!
Click to download PDF.
Click to download PDF.
We all do it; we get our guilty little pleasure out of going to the pet store and picking out a new toy for our dogs. There are balls to toss, stuff and hide in a puzzle.
And squeak? Every imaginable squeak and squawk can be squeezed out of hedgehogs, bunnies, chickens and more.
Tug toys, pull toys, throw and fetch toys, and is your dog bored? Need something to chew other than your favorite chair?
Toys. Our choices are endless, we love to pick them out and bring them home to our best friend. For some, the squeak can be de-squeaked in 15.5 seconds and stuffing shredded into a zillion little tufts all over the rug.
And squeak? Every imaginable squeak and squawk can be squeezed out of hedgehogs, bunnies, chickens and more.
Tug toys, pull toys, throw and fetch toys, and is your dog bored? Need something to chew other than your favorite chair?
Toys. Our choices are endless, we love to pick them out and bring them home to our best friend. For some, the squeak can be de-squeaked in 15.5 seconds and stuffing shredded into a zillion little tufts all over the rug.
Toys loved to "death" :)
Some toys get a good sniffing over and a poke with a paw and nothing more. There is always one that becomes the favorite toy, the go-to toy when your dog wants to play with you, he dashes to get it and drops it at your feet.
It begs the question (excuse the pun), who are all these toys for? Some dogs will happily play by themselves, but what they really want is for us to PLAY with them. Play can be a positive interaction of give and take, helping us bond with our pets and providing great teaching moments. Fetch, “come back” fetch it again. Give or out! “really I promise to give it back to you,” and you do. Tug “gentle, good boy!”
It begs the question (excuse the pun), who are all these toys for? Some dogs will happily play by themselves, but what they really want is for us to PLAY with them. Play can be a positive interaction of give and take, helping us bond with our pets and providing great teaching moments. Fetch, “come back” fetch it again. Give or out! “really I promise to give it back to you,” and you do. Tug “gentle, good boy!”
Do you want to play?
Some dogs, especially shelter dogs have to be coaxed and encouraged to play - they may not have ever had toys in their life or had the chance to learn how to play with people. When we adopted our Black and Tan Coonhound, Olivia, she had gone from being picked up as a stray, to a shelter, to a foster home. In her foster home she played rough and tumble chase with a large Malamute; one coveted toy between them – a tug rope. I think that it could have been any shared article. It clearly looked like a game of this is mine, chase me if you can!
Olivia showed no real interest in any store-bought toy. They piled up on her bed. If I moved one to another room, I’d find it back on her bed the next day, but it was rare to see her play with one. It was more of a gentle nibble, nibble, chew, chew and then she was done. I emailed her foster mom and asked her if Olivia ever played with toys there. (That’s how I learned of the Malamute play). She thought about it and said, “You know, you’re right, I never saw Olivia play with any toys in the house, but when I cleaned out her crate after she left, I discovered that she had been taking toys and hiding them under her bedding.”
Olivia showed no real interest in any store-bought toy. They piled up on her bed. If I moved one to another room, I’d find it back on her bed the next day, but it was rare to see her play with one. It was more of a gentle nibble, nibble, chew, chew and then she was done. I emailed her foster mom and asked her if Olivia ever played with toys there. (That’s how I learned of the Malamute play). She thought about it and said, “You know, you’re right, I never saw Olivia play with any toys in the house, but when I cleaned out her crate after she left, I discovered that she had been taking toys and hiding them under her bedding.”
The rope toy that I went out and bought from a store because Olivia loved to play with it in her foster home. It remains unused, she's just NOT interested. Perhaps if I dressed up as a Malamute, and ran around the yard with it she would change her mind.
Hum, I did try that - just not the same... woof?
Airplane Ears
Six years later, Olivia still piles special toys in her bed and all of the overflow toys that I bought her over the years are stored in a basket on the floor. About once a month, she suddenly dashes over to the basket, gently pulling out one toy at time – seemingly taking inventory of her adopted largesse.
Good night and sweet dreams.
Thank you to all of you that sent in pictures of your goofy hounds for our Toy Poster. Now, go out there and spread the word about adopting these loveable hounds! Do you know any shelters that would like to download these posters to help find homes for our coonhounds? Send them the link: http://www.coonhoundcompanions.com/index.html
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