Christmas Kong toy for Penny

I intended to begin this post by reporting that for the first time in Penny's 14 years I succumbed to the commercialism of Christmas and bought her a gift, but on looking back through my blogs I see that I did the same in 2011.

This time I decided it was years since Penny had a new toy, and it's never too late to liven up an old dog's life with something novel.

She loved it and immediately hunched possessively over it.

So of course I couldn't resist trying to get it from her. But no way!

After a while I could have sneaked up to steal it while she was sleeping, but she did have her paws resting on it, so I thought I'd leave her in peace.

The instructions say it should only be used under supervision, so I'll put it up on a shelf when I'm not there to watch her.

dogs don't pretend

This morning Penny completed a set of six training sessions with Jill at A Perfect Spot (great fun and we're going to enrol for the next six sessions). Penny, like the other dogs, was a 'winner' in the last activity and she was allowed to choose a toy from the box.

Well, she took so long selecting that I kind of pushed her in the direction of one I thought she would like. I waved it around a bit and of course she thought it was the most exciting one.

When we got home I put it in her toy box, wondering if she really liked it. If she'd been a human she might have pretended to prefer it, just to make me happy. But dogs aren't into pretence.

But she does like it and here's the evidence. I've picked it up and put it away in the box three times this afternoon and every time I see Penny she has it once more. Here she is guarding the house from possible intruders,  her toy at her side.

trying the Nina Ottosson wooden Dog Casino

When I was having a clean-out of all our dog 'stuff' I noticed the wooden Dog Casino puzzle I bought ages ago. The puzzle is by Nina Ottosson, and we've tried out the plastic version with mixed success. (Here's a long - really, rather boring - clip of our try-out of the plastic one.) It's been sixteen months since we used that puzzle, so in our first try I simply allowed Penny to look at it.



Then I put treats in two drawers and Penny had a go. (Wasn't she a good girl to wait so patiently?)



Next Penny waited again




while I placed treats in every drawer



and closed the drawers.

After which her patience was rewarded and she successfully conquered all the drawers.

She had the rest of her evening meal from the toy. Next time, I'll put one a 'stopper' in one of those top holes and see if she can figure out how to pull it out so the drawer can move.

I prefer the wooden version, even though the plastic version can be cleaned and this one can't.

keeping dogs intellectually stimulated

It was a pity Penny had to endure such a boring week while her cut paw healed, but it was also a timely reminder for us that walks can't be the only stimulation a dog has. It reminded us to include some other activities during the day.

This evening we fed Penny dry food (kibble), which we rarely do, so that she could work hard to get the food out of her puzzle toys - our walks are still quite short, not the hour-long rambles Penny is used to.

 We were trying out Biopet Organic dog food. I wouldn't want to feed this constantly, because it does have grains in it, but as a standby I think it seems good. We bought the food at SuperFruit, a nearby organic store.

 I wouldn't have dared to use these toys a couple of days ago, because Penny used her front paws to claw at the sections of the puzzles, but she seemed to be okay after using them this evening.

 First we tried the Nina Ottosson Dog Brick, which is an old favorite. Then Penny used the Dog Tornado. Even though it hasn't been out of the cupboard for months, she remembered how to get the treats.


 

When she had given the toy a thorough sniffing, and decided there was definitely no more food in it, she waited for more.

So we tried the Seek-A-Treat, which has been put away for almost two years! 

And she succeeded with it, which surprised me, because she didn't quite work it out at that time. 

Having noticed that the Seek-a-Treat is manufactured by 'Ethical Products', I looked at their website, and I must say I did like what they said about themselves:

We will continue to provide pet owners and their pets with the absolute best consumer value and customer service in the pet industry while never losing sight of quality, innovation, safety, honesty and humanity.

a smaller Safe Stix

Penny enjoyed fetching her Safe Stix at Warringal Park yesterday, but she no longer has it.

Today I took a friend's dog for a walk - a beautiful long-haired German shepherd - and she loved the Safe Stix so much that I let her have it.

When I went back to the shop - Murphy Brothers in Hawthorn (in Melbourne) - I bought the small Safe Stix for Penny, because she loved the medium-sized one so much that she carried it everywhere in the park yesterday, and I think it'll be easier for her to carry the small one.

Here's hoping she likes the little one just as much.

the Nina Ottosson intelligent toys are selling in Australia

Today I received an email from VCAworld.com to say they are now stocking the Nina Ottosson toys!

They said they will be receiving a small shipment of the Nina Ottosson toys this week. This is a pre-launch stock arrival so stock is extremely limited. They will be looking to launch the range early next year.

Woo hoo! These toys are wonderful.They said any enquiries can be sent to info@vcaworld.com

They've got the plastic range, and seem to offer the Dog Twister, Dog Casino, Dog Finder, Dog Tornado, Dog Spinny, Dog Brick, Dog Smart.

If you go to the Nina Ottosson site, you can check out these toys.

In plastic, Penny has the Tornado and the Brick, and they're both good.

These are not "home alone" toys, though. They need the human to be there all the time when the dog is using them.

toys to enhance a dog's intelligence

I've been talking to Johann's mum about her post regarding Nina Ottosson's toys for intelligent play and I've finally figured out a way to get one - a friend is going to bring me the Dog Tornado from Clean Run in the US when she comes over here for Christmas.

Fingers crossed that it gets to her before she leaves and that it's not too heavy!

In the meantime, Penny's still extending herself to solve the puzzle of the balls that disappear into a game I made out of pvc pipes in December last year. Because we're experiencing a drought here, we've had water tanks put in and there were some old pipes left over, so I've extended the pipe game. Here's Penny trying unsuccessfully to use the techniques that worked with the shorter version.I had to put it on YouTube because I couldn't get it uploaded to Blogger.



She thought we were going to help her, but we weren't, so she tried again - this time she gets it right. I love the way her tail is wagging throughout.

fun new problem-solving toy for dogs

I brought home a new toy for Penny today. I noticed it as I was browsing the pet shop that (unfortunately for my finances) is right opposite the place where I work. The toy is called tug-a-jug and is made by busy buddy. On the site there is a movie clip of dogs playing with it.

Penny spent ages playing with it and we made a video that includes just a little of her work on the task.
At first she used a variety of techniques that had worked for other toys and did get all the treats out. However, the walls of the kitchen might be showing a little wear and tear already - I think there might be a few chips in the plaster on the corners. The packaging does warn that it's a heavy toy and needs supervision, especially if the dog throws it around. Penny hasn't progressed to that technique yet, but I think it will come.

Later in the evening I showed her that if she tugged on the rope the treats would spill out.



When Penny first started to gnaw on it I was concerned about her teeth, as the material is very hard.( (It says on the packaging that it is made with non-toxic materials similar to those used in bullet-proof glass.) However, she quickly moved from chewing on it to moving it around with her paws, so I relaxed about that, though I think it is a toy that should be supervised at all times, rather than one for solitary play.

I like the fact that it deals with the five senses, as is advertised also on the packaging: There are holes for the scent to come out - Penny was sniffing these; the treats make a rattling noise - Penny stopped playing with it when she could no longer hear treats in it; the food is visible through the transparent material; she was pawing at it and rolling on it and generally getting stimulation from her sense of touch; and, of course, the treats tasted good!