Content
- Importance of Toys for Puppies
- Types of Toys for Puppies
- Choosing the best toy for a puppy
- have a variety of toys
- meet your puppy
- safe toys
- Fit to your capabilities
- Homemade Toys for Puppies
- sock with ball
- biting bottle
- food dispenser
If you've just adopted a puppy, you've probably already realized that playing is undoubtedly one of the things your furry friend will demand the most. So it's not uncommon for you to be wondering what they are the best toys for puppies, because on the market there is a wide variety of toys designed for different purposes.
Faced with this sea of possibilities, in this article by PeritoAnimal, we want to advise you on which are the most recommended toys for your puppy, as well as what characteristics you should consider when purchasing a new toy for your newcomer .
Importance of Toys for Puppies
the dogs are social animals who love to play, both with other individuals of the same species, as with people or other animals. Through the games, the puppies perform various learnings that will determine factors in your adult life, such as self-control, proprioception and adequate interaction with others. In addition, it is also a means of exercising, socializing and leisure.
For this reason, toys play a very important role in your puppy's development, as you include them in play sessions, whether with you, other dogs or alone, enrich this activity, providing much more variety of exercises and stimulating the dog's different senses. In this way it is possible to avoid boredom, satisfy curiosity and learn new things.
Types of Toys for Puppies
There is a wide variety of toys for puppies. The main ones are as follows:
- toys to fetch: Dogs love to play chasing moving objects, as this is part of their instinct. Therefore, the most varied toys were designed to be thrown and chased by your puppy. From classic balls (made of rubber, fabric, with lights, etc.), to stuffed animals and even flying saucers.
- tug of war toys: This section highlights all rope toys designed for two individuals, such as two dogs or the owner and puppy, to pull on each end of the rope. This type of play satisfies many puppies, tiring them with physical exercise and, following the correct educational guidelines, prevents the puppy from developing a protection problem with the toy, as he associates sharing with something fun.
- chew toys: These toys are usually made of strong materials such as hard rubber, which makes them difficult for most dogs to break. Thus, they are designed for your puppy to be distracted and spend long periods safely chewing on an object suitable for him, preventing him from doing this with something inappropriate.
- toys with prizes: these toys are designed for your puppy to be distracted by playing alone, while being rewarded for it with food. This keeps your puppy entertained, mentally active, and also helps him learn to be alone, preventing him from developing separation anxiety if used properly. These are usually nippers or quest toys such as the Kong or dispensing balls.
- intelligence toys for dogs: Intelligence or interactive toys were specifically designed for your puppy to learn to solve a challenge and earn a reward. In this way, your puppy will be stimulated and, learning through trial and error, will know how to deal with the different situations of lesser or greater difficulty that you propose to him.
And if you also have adult dogs at home, we recommend reading this other article by PeritoAnimal about types of toys for dogs.
Choosing the best toy for a puppy
If you are wondering what kind of toy you should buy to take better care of your puppy, we advise you to consider the following points:
have a variety of toys
dogs usually get bored easily if they only have one type of toy, because as soon as they meet it and it doesn't bring them anything new, their curiosity will make them explore other objects that may or may not be suitable for them.
Therefore, as a tutor, you must have a wide variety of toys that provide different types of stimulation and entertainment to the puppy. This way, you can vary the toy and offer your puppy several options, with which he will always have fun playing with you or alone.
meet your puppy
Also, among his toys, he certainly prefers some more than others. Therefore, it is important that you observe what kind of toy and what features seem the most fun for your puppy, to get to know him better and to know how he likes to play. It could be the case, for example, that your puppy loves to play tug of war but doesn't have much fun fetching a ball.
On the other hand, besides being important to know your puppy, it is essential to know how to play with him correctly. In this other article we explain how to play with a puppy.
safe toys
While puppy toys are generally designed so that they can't be harmful to your pet, it's always better not to trust them. no doubt buy quality toys is of special importance, as these will be safe for your friend, resistant, non-toxic, without sharp or abrasive elements and therefore will hardly pose a risk to him, as long as they are not too worn (in this case, you should remove them ).
Otherwise, your puppy could get hurt while playing, or pieces could come off the toy if it breaks easily. This clearly poses a danger as he can cut himself, choke, ingest the piece and not be able to excrete it and even become intoxicated if the toy is made of harmful materials.
Fit to your capabilities
When you want to buy a toy for your pet, make sure it's right for your pet. There are many developed toys specifically for puppies, since those developed for adults can still pose too difficult a challenge for your puppy, a fact that will easily leave you frustrated and he will associate it with a negative experience. An example of this is food dispensers or biting toys (like the Kong), as those designed for adults are made of materials. much harder, or the smart toys. Also, you must buy the toy according to the size of your pet, because a large puppy will not have the same capabilities as a mini.
Homemade Toys for Puppies
If you want to provide your puppy with self-made toys, below we explain some ideas on how to make homemade toys for your puppy, easy to make, with recycled materials and that your furry will have a lot of fun.
sock with ball
If you have an old or mismatched sock and don't know what to do with it, you can give it new life as a toy for your puppy.
To make this simple toy, just insert a sturdy ball into the sock (We recommend, for example, a tennis ball) and tie the two ends of the sock.
This way, you will already have a toy with which you can have a lot of fun playing tug of war with your puppy. Also, you can play him so he can chase you.
biting bottle
To make this toy you'll just need a plastic bottle and a sock or shirt that you don't wear anymore. You must wrap the bottle with clothes and tie it securely at both ends. If there is a lot of fabric on the sides, cut it so it doesn't come loose.
With this teether, your puppy can be easily distracted and exercise the jaw. However, we do not recommend that you let him play with it unattended. If your puppy is too disruptive, he may break it, so the toy will need to be removed so he doesn't get hurt.
food dispenser
To make this simple prize-dispensing toy, you'll need a bottle, a stylus or other cutting tool, and duct tape.
You must make holes of different sizes in the bottle, where the food and/or prizes you want to put inside the toy will come out.
For safety, these holes should be coated with Scotch tape, so there is no risk of your puppy getting cut with the plastic in the bottle. Below, we provide a video showing more details on how to make this homemade food dispenser: