Reddit mentions of Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball, Large

I had a chunky foster who would scarf her food then cry for more. For hours.

I started feeding her out of this $8 tricky treat ball from Amazon & it worked so well. She enjoyed the play aspect (and it kept her moving!), and it slowed her down so much that she'd frequently feel full and come back to chill with me when there was still a little food left.

I've been there. Everything you don't want chewed needs to be kept it out of his reach. Hide EVERYTHING. The teething and chewing does eventually get better, but in the meantime, crates and puppy-proof rooms are VERY important. Baby gates and wire playpens are good for blocking off hazards in common areas. Keep a close eye on him for now, check his stool for potential problems (blood, irregular, or lack of elimination = drop what you're doing and go to the vet). If you see a string, don't pull it.

I know you didn't ask for advice, but here are some things that really helped with my dog:

• Kong brand toys - practically invincible, and they give the dog something to do. Just make sure you get the appropriate size. That goes for all toys.
  
  
• Hard plastic toys are hard on the teeth, but you also want to avoid soft plastic that can be broken off and ingested. Find some with rubbery plastic like the kong toys.
  
  
• Rope toys are good for supervised chewing. Replace as necessary (ingested strings are bad).
  
  
• My dog really likes to chew on antlers. The sound he makes when chewing them makes me cringe, but he loves them and they are relatively safe (supervision is still important- edit: see the important notes about them below). Avoid rawhides (they can easily cause blockages). Bully sticks are safer if you can get past the smell and knowing what they're made of (I don't find they last long, though. Antlers work better for us and last for months)
  
  
• Tennis balls should only be used for fetch, never chew toys. They wear down the teeth.. When we were in a puppy class, I saw young dogs that already had permanent damage from them.
  
  
• Treat balls are wonderful. I put my dogs whole meal into one (if you cut off the top of a water bottle, it can be used like a funnel to get food into it). It not only slows down his eating for better digestion, but it gives him something to do so he doesn't get himself into trouble. The one I linked is the one I use.

I have a border collie, and I second this. One of the best things we ever did was get a Tricky Treat ball, which we feed her in every day. We don't even have a food bowl for her anymore, because she eats all of her meals out of this. We fill it twice a day and she does an amazing job self-pacing her eating, and it immediately calmed her down. She feels like she's working for her food, and she likes being independent, and she likes to feel useful. Every now and then if other dogs are over, we feed her normally, and she does not like it. She loves going for bike rides, but I've found that teaching a new trick does just as well at tiring her out, which is great in bad weather. She's like a person: she needs to feel like her life has purpose in a way that I haven't experienced with other, non-border collie dogs. Another easy thing to do in bad weather: play fetch up and down the stairs. Start with regular fetch, then start adding tricks to it. Make her sit and wait A LOT. My dog is two, and she's calmer than she was a year ago, in part because we moved a year ago to a house with stairs and windows that she can watch things from, and in part because we switched her to a grain-free kibble which solved her digestive issues, so be aware of that as an issue for lots of border collies!

I have designated morning toys for mine so I don't disturb my downstairs neighbor. Syd gets the quiet ones in the morning and the louder ones at night. I like to feed her breakfast in the omega ball or the tug-a-jug (only to be used on the carpet--how quiet this is might depend on the dog). The Orbee tuff is good too, but doesn't fit her whole meal. My dog will also chew through a rawhide in no time, nylabones can be a good alternative.

Out of curiosity, how is he playing with the kong that makes noise? Throwing it on the ground? That's what mine does, she'll grab it and toss it in the air so that it comes down with a thud.

Wow aha. This sounds like my corgi puppy (female) a few weeks ago to a tee. She is now 15 weeks old.

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I know you already know what I am going to say, but the little habits will fall away pretty quickly as he gets used to his new surroundings! At least it happened that way for me!

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For the zero chill, I started forced nap times every 2 hours. She mellowed out pretty hard after that. They don't know how to self-regulate their sleep and a lot of the bratty behaviour is because they're overtired and overstimulated!

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The eating of everything seems to be a common tread as well.. unfortunately that one hasn't gone away for me yet - I hold her leash REALLY tight (or even her collar) while I pick up her poo to make sure she doesn't eat it - gross. Apparently they grow out of this .. still waiting. Also, snails have become the new best thing to eat.. ugh.

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As for the nipping, I found that yelling "OW!" really shrill and sharp, then storming away and closing the door behind me was super effective (and honestly kind of fun). My corgi is an attention fiend, so she learned pretty quick that nipping results in a loss of attention and play time.

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Lastly, my corgi pup did the EXACT same thing with her kibble.. I tried soaking it in broth, even that got boring. So, I got her a treat dispensing toy and I load up her entire meal into it, she now LOVES her kibble. Corgis love a challenge, they're smart dogs. Maybe give that a try? It's a $10 investment on Amazon (https://www.amazon.ca/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Orange/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=omega%2Bpaw%2Bball&qid=1552483475&s=gateway&sr=8-1&th=1)

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Best of luck! And don't hesitate to message me with any corgi puppy problems!

Aww! What a little smarty pants.

If he eats too fast you should try a ball like this. He won't be able to break it open so he'll have to roll it around and can only eat the food as fast as it comes out (which is not very fast).

My advice? Crate train from the very start. It'll give your dog his own space and give you relief from those tiny teeth when you need it. :)

Puppies bite. A lot. Don't be disheartened by it.

Dogs like rewards. Check out positive rewards training like the kikopup channel listed in the sidebar. It'll save you a lot of frustration. I personally find this list of kikopup videos easier to navigate.

Dogs don't know how to walk on a leash until you give them direction. Don't expect him to walk next to you and not sniff everything in front of him. They don't know not to pull and sniff constantly. Teaching heel indoors before you ever need it outside is a lifesaver.

No pushing your dog's nose into an accidental pee. That teaches nothing and makes your dog think you're an unpredictable whacko.

Exercise, exercise, exercise! No forced leash running until he's fully grown, but until then, keep him from getting bored by getting him lots of play time. Training exercises require a lot of focus on his part, so that'll tucker him out too. Treat balls for feeding are super fun and herders seem to love them.

Be his best friend. The quality of his life depends entirely on you. No tying him to a tree out back and going on with life as if he doesn't exist.

Good luck with him. Add a pic to this thread once you get him so I can aww over him. :)

You say she doesn't like toys. What about food? There are all sorts of puzzle toys now that dispense food, ranging from obvious ones like kongs to treat dispensing balls to more elaborate puzzles.

How about field trips? Getting out in public, seeing and smelling new things, will be mentally stimulating even if she can only walk slowly, even if she lays down to watch the action. For example, during nice weather, go grab coffee and set up a bed under the outdoor table for her to lay on. Even if she can't walk and run for an hour every day, she can still spend an hour outside with you sometimes.

Also, for the sake of walking on slippery floors, some people to use dog boots with rubber bottoms. They're generally sold for winter wear, but people use them for boating and older dogs to give traction. If your dog tolerates them, or if you're willing to spend some time counterconditioning to help your dog enjoy them, that could be an option sometimes.

My dog is obsessed with his Tricky Treat Ball. It is consistently difficult for him and he's constantly picking it up and running to different areas to try and get more food. I LOVE it.

I have also tried the tug-a-jug, but my dog doesn't care for it and it's REALLY loud on hard floors. REALLY LOUD.

My Boxer is a connoisseur of puzzle toys. In Minnesota, it gets way too cold for us to go on long walks to curb his energy, so I engage his brain when it becomes a frozen wasteland outside.

I feed Keenan out of a large Kong Wobbler -- he gets at least one meal a day out of this. It takes him about 30 minutes to work out all the kibbles.

IQ Treat Ball is great for pets that work out puzzles super quickly. This is a fairly difficult toy. Be warned, if you have hard floors, this is loudest thing ever. It's also the perfect size to get stuck under sofas with legs.

Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball is easier to roll around and get kibble sized treats out of. It's also a pain to fill and clean. We don't use this one much.

Everlasting Fun Ball is also hard to fill and difficult to clean, but it's tough. When Keenan is on my last nerve, he gets something super delicious in this and it keeps him occupied until he gets frustrated with it.

Monster Mouth is really tough to get things out of for pups. I'll stuff full sized milk bones in this and leave just a tip hanging out so he can try to pull it out. It keeps him pretty busy, but he gets frustrated by this one quickly.

Buster Food Cube is brilliant in design--you can make it easier and harder to get food out of by twisting the opening. This was Keenan's first puzzle toy and when he figured it out, he got a lot of enjoyment "hiking" it through his back legs at a hard surface to make it bounce off and spray kibbles around. It's loud on hard floors. So loud my ex SO threw it away.

I also pick up random puzzle toys at the store when I see them. I can't find accurate representations on Amazon. Most of them are soft/silicone that you can bend to open and put treats in. Keenan likes his big football one because he knows the yummy, big treats go in that one.

This sounds a lot like boredom to me. Is it possible to get the dog out exercising more? Other things that may help are training classes to get him to think, or doggy daycare (nothing tires my guys out more than running with other dogs all day). Something that you can use indoors to help tire him out is a flirt pole. It will cost about $10 in supplies, and if you follow the "rules" that site lists then Pikachu is getting mental and physical stimulation, and you barely have to do anything.


Other than that, you might need to babygate off a section of the house - kitchen or bathroom, and get him used to being left in there. It's easier to keep one room spotless than it is to keep an entire house. Make sure to get a few puzzle toys this is a favourite of my dogs or a kong to freeze his lunch in to keep him occupied.

Good luck!

Not the OC, but I've used the IQ Treat Ball and Omega Paw ball with success!

I also recommend a snuff mat, especially if you'd rather keep your floors kibble-free! Not necessarily recommending that specific brand of snuff mat as I think snuff mats generally work the same, just wanted to show you the product. :)

Here's my list:

Kong - you can stuff it with peanut butter or canned dog food (and even freeze it!) to give to your pup. Super helpful for crate training and just for keeping the pup busy for a couple minutes.

Kibble ball like this one - keeps the pup from scarfing down it's whole meal in 20 seconds. Also - you can enjoy your coffee in the morning without worrying what the pup is getting up to.

Training treats (eg Zuke's) are great for clicker training - they're small so your pup doesn't get too many calories from training sessions

Harness and long lead (30 feet or so) - really handy for tiring the pup out. You can walk through a park/field or whatever, and the pup can zoom around and get some of their puppy fuss out.

Nature's Miracle for accidents - it's an enzymatic cleaner and works really well for getting the smell out of the carpet (and keeping them from viewing that spot as a bathroom next time!)

For the toys - it's really helpful to split them into 2-3 groups, and rotate which group is out every week or so. Otherwise they can get bored of all their toys

*This article is my go-to for crate training. It has lots of ideas for games to build up a positive association with the crate, and helps you work up to leaving the pup alone.

We used this:

https://www.amazon.ca/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Orange/dp/B0002DK26M?th=1&psc=1&source=googleshopping&locale=en-CA&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_z3sgvu8cr_e

Really helps slow her down... Although now every orange ball she nudges with her nose hoping kibble will fall out.

My dog has good luck with this treat ball:

http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M

However, when she used this one, she got similarly frustrated, and would even angrily pounce at it.

http://www.amazon.com/StarMark-Everlasting-Ball-Medium-Large/dp/B003YHB8DO/ref=sr_1_2?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1427208454&sr=1-2&keywords=treat+dispensing+chew+ball

The second ball had these little rubber pegs that stopped the treats from easily falling out, so I cut one of the pegs off, and now her kibble falls out more easily. She likes it more and doesn't get mad at it. =)

I showed my dog how they fell out, pointing to the hole and then holding it upside down. I did that enough that now I see Luna trying to hold hers different angles with her head so the hole points down. She's a smart pup!

I have this treat ball as well as a similar one that is weighted at the bottom. They're good because my dog has to interact with them to get the treats, and it's completely random, so she can't figure out the puzzle and do it the same way every time. I have a Kong and similar toys that can be filled with food as well. I like to freeze peanut butter or pumpkin in them so they take a little more work. I'll usually rotate out the toys through the week so they don't get bored.

My dog (also big, about 110lbs) also sometimes eats REALLY fast... I know about bloat (I used to have greyhounds and according to my vet at the time the breed is particularly susceptible to it) so I'm pretty careful about feeding him. No exercise immediately before or after feeding. I very unthinkingly took my dog for a run once immediately after feeding him a big raw meal, and the poor guy threw up everything he'd eaten halfway through the run and was just miserable all the way home. (He'd also managed to drink some pretty foul ditchwater before I dragged him away, and something in the raw meal might've disagreed with him... I'm back to high-quality kibble because raw feeding was just way too involved for me.) That put the fear of the baby Jesus into me and I've been REALLY careful about his feeding ever since.

One thing I like to do when my dog is REALLY excited about dinner and I can tell he's about to wolf it down is put his food in a treat ball. I'm not really a fan of the traditional buster cube but I got one of these Omega balls and it's worked out great. Might not so much if your dog is a chewer; mine isn't, so he hasn't destroyed any of these, but just in case I do make sure he only has the ball when I'm there to supervise him. The last thing I need is surgery to remove pieces of a treat ball from his gut. :D But my dog LOVES that thing. It ensures that he only gets his kibble a few pieces at a time, and he has a grand old time pushing the thing around with his nose, then spends hours back-tracking and sniffing all over the room to make sure he didn't miss any bits of kibble. It's totally awesome.

Just a light cotton sheet or tablecloth will do for covering. If you can find it in a dark color, that would be great, but just not being able to see around her will help.

Sitting before you open the door is totally fine. Creating a routine is a great way to get her to love the crate, the more treats involved the better!
This is the treat ball I use which works great as long as your dog isn't much of a destroyer. Holds a fair amount of food. If you're not sure about the food bowl just putting in a large object or smaller upside down bowl inside the food dish can help in the meanwhile.

Outside as a family is great, I was just thinking of those time when you're worried about her peeing but would like to give her some time outside her crate unsupervised. I'm not too familiar with heat+breathing issues so you might consult your vet just to see what they recommend based on your climate and your pup.

I'm glad I could help! I just totally know how it is to feel frustrated with your dog. I'm glad she's peeing indoors less! May also just be her getting used to her new home :)

Best of luck!

Edit! Oh I forgot about the ear cleaning. Cheese whiz! Or similar consistency stuff, peanut butter works too but isn't as convenient. Smear a long thin line of it on the floor (or other easily wipeable surface). Like, a foot of it. You can even space it out a bit. While she's busy licking, you can mess with her ears. Picked this trick up from my vet and it works awesomely.

Here is a food dispensing toy. Here are some treat and puzzle toys. Kong wobbler is also pretty good if you have larger treats/kibble.

I recommend looking into crating until she can be trusted alone

I got a feeder ball and it was cheap and has held up amazingly. My dog LOVES it and I'm ordering more.

Amazon link $10

My girl absolutely loves her treat ball. Keeps her busy for hours as she chases it. She loves to try and stick her big snoot in the hole to get the treats out (she never can get them out that way, but that doesn't stop her from trying lol). I'd say it's probably a really good toy for a dog not too interested in toys because you get the added bonus of treats and it keeps their mind busy. Here is the link to where I bought mine.

We like to use a puzzle ball that takes small treats instead, so that the dog does not eat too much between feedings.

> Can you suggest a puzzle feeder that works well?

I have had good luck with wobbler toys like the one the other user suggested. I got this ball which is super cheap and takes forever to get the food out of. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002DK26M/ The downside of the ball is that it goes everywhere. The upside is that it holds a ton of food and is genuinely difficult to get kibble out of, even for me.

> Also, how do you freeze liquid in it? I tried to stuff the hole last night with PB and dry food and poor stock in there and it just drained right out

personally, I've never tried this. Off the top of my head, I might put some peanut butter in the bottom of a coffee mug, plug the small hole of the kong from the inside with about a tablespoon of peanut butter, put the small side of the kong into the peanut butter inside the coffee mug. In my mind this makes the kong stand up straight and makes a plug for the stock. Maybe freeze the peanut butter plug for an hour or so to help give it a good seal? Sounds difficult, but I can definitely see the appeal for a low-calorie long lasting treat.

> Also, how do I feed him for good behaviors? Anytime I get up he follows me so if he were playing by himself he would stop as soon as I moved, so would he still associate it with the good behavior?

this is where a clicker really comes in handy. first you "charge your clicker" by clicking and treating and clicking and treating until when he hears a click he expects a treat. Then you train with the clicker so you click as close to the moment that the dog takes a desired action as possible. So, for sit, right when the butt touches the ground. This helps to "mark" a behavior. Always give a treat for a click, but the click abstracts the marking of the behavior from the reward for the behavior. Once that is all well ingrained, being able to click for playing alone becomes way more possible.

> And if I had the food just sitting by me he wouldn't leave me alone because he knows it's there.

The clicker is great here too. Click for when he starts to ignore you, and then toss the food somewhere else (maybe his mat/towel that you are working on "go to mat" with?). Over time, he learns that ignoring you gets him good stuff too. This is hard for the human, to be both inattentive and giving attention, but it pays off like crazy.

Hope this helps. If you're interested in the clicker stuff, this is a good video to get started with. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPDOrEEsAJ8&t=1m55s As a final piece of information, my first trainer was certified with the Karen Pryor academy, and I learned a ton from her. Good luck!

I got one of these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002DK26M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The large fits a cup of food. Its also become kind of a game pushing it around, and is still small enough that she can pick it up to get it out of corners.

Fulfill her retriever side by doing just that, retrieving. In addition to long walks, try playing fetch with a frisbee or tennis ball. I also like giving mine a treat ball to keep him busy/entertained/thinking.

It depends on the toy, and the dog. You do want to supervise them at first, to make sure that they won't just chew it to bits; most dogs are smart enough to figure it out after a little encouragement, but some try to chew the toy(s) open. A Kong or something frozen in a block of ice like /u/ifragbunniez suggested would be good, or here are a couple others I found:

http://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-Kibble-Nibble-Dispensing-Medium/dp/B001F0RRUA - $11.87

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002DK26M/ - $5.32

I have this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M

It's soft plastic so it can handle being knocked around a bit - which is good, as Lucy has figured out the most efficient way to get treats out of it is to knock it down the stairs again and again. I think a hard plastic model would be smashed to smithereens by now.

It doesn't open up so it's hard to clean, I fill/drain it with water a bunch of times to try to get as much food residue out as I can, then pour boiling water into it every now and then to sterilize what's left.

We have this one which is AWESOME:

http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1419201598&sr=1-1&keywords=roll+treat+ball

Use it for breakfast and dinner on rainy days when he doesn't get in his usual hike. Takes about... 8 minutes? But he has a lot of fun with it!

We have three not including Kongs! She gets bored easily lol.

This is my favorite one because it's really easy to change the difficulty and it's too big to get caught under the furniture.

You can change the difficulty on this one too by closing it more tightly but is pretty easy

And this is the easiest one out of the three we have but she still really likes it.

There are like hundreds more to choose from! Someone posted this and I'm probably going to pick a couple from there, too.

Tuffy makes some good stuff. We have a number of them. I just picked up the large sheep, it's almost as big as she is. Great for tug. She will chew the ears off. But in 14 months she's only got through 1. There's bones, bully sticks, balls etc to distract her also.

These are the favorites:

http://www.tuffietoys.com/
https://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-Buddy-Twist-Treat-Small/dp/B0002I0RLW
https://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M

I've posted this before, and it's a great list! Originally posted by u/manatee1010 and I have tried several:

I keep this list of brain toy links handy to send to friends who get dogs. It's getting pretty long...

Toys that get stuffed with food and frozen:

• Kong Classic (15-20 minutes) (it sounds like Watson is lukewarm toward this… have you tried mixing a spoonful of canned food in with some kibble and freezing it?
  
  
• Zogoflex Toppl Interactive Treat Dispensing Dog Toy (this can be a stand-alone toy, or if you get a big one and little one they can fit together and dispense kibble) (15-20 minutes)
  
  
• Starmark Pickle Pocket (my big dog really likes this one… we put cheese in it) (20-25 minutes)
  
  Kibble dispensing toys, hard material (good for carpeted areas)
  
  
• Bob-A-Lot (~10 minutes… this one can be adjusted to make it harder)
  
  
• Tug-A-Jug (10-30 minutes, depending on the dog)
  
  
• Magic Mushroom (10-30 minutes, depending on the dog)
  
  
• Kong Wobbler (~5-10 minutes)
  
  
• IQ Treat Ball (~10-15 minutes)
  
  
• Pet Zone IQ Ball (this is the ONLY toy my dogs can’t get all the kibble out of. They’ll usually persist for half an hour or so before they give up)
  
  
• Buster Cube (I think this has several difficulty settings… my guys now don’t have one of these, but my dog when I was growing up had one. I’d guess this is probably a 20-30 minute toy depending on difficulty and what you load into it)
  
  
• Treatstik – I have NO idea how long this one takes to load, but it’s on my to-purchase list because it seems like it’s one of the longer lasting toys on the market. If anyone has/gets one, I’m super interested to hear about it!
  
  Kibble dispensing toys, soft material (good for hardwood/tile/laminate)
  
  
• Barnacle (this can be stuffed like a Kong as well… I lost this one when I moved but I think in terms of kibble dispensing it was shorter lasting, maybe 5-10 minutes)
  
  
• Tricky Treater (I REALLY like this one; super easy to load and clean, lasts 10-15 minutes)
  
  
• Tricky Treat Ball (another super easy one… <5 minutes)
  
  
• Planet Dog Orbee-Tuff Snoop Treat Dispensing Dog Toy – this one just arrived yesterday so I don’t have a solid rating of its durability yet, but so far it seems great… easy to load, takes the dogs awhile to empty, and super duper quiet.
  
  
• JW Pet Company Treat Puzzler Dog Toy (this one is super easy for them to empty… I’d say 3-5 minutes)
  
  
• PetSafe Busy Buddy Kibble Nibble Meal Dispensing Dog Toy (this one is okay, not my favorite… I didn’t like that I had to make a decision about cutting it immediately after opening. It takes ~5-10 minutes to unload)
  
  
• Starmark Treat Dispensing Puzzle Ball - this one is new! I almost bought it the other day but haven't yet; I think it's most similar to a Buster Cube in terms of adjustable difficulty, it's just a softer material.
  
  Time-release kibble dispensing toys (good for work days)
  
  
• the Foobler is great because it works on a timer that rotates to the next of six, ¼ cup food hoppers at set intervals of time (you pick, the options are 15-30-60-90 minutes), which makes it last way longer than most of these toys. This is hard plastic.
  
  
• CleverPet – this has a December release date. I’m way pumped about it and have been in touch with the company… hopefully I’ll be getting one of the first models off the line!
  
  Lastly, there are also these two that I haven’t tried yet, so I’m not positive how to classify…
  
  
• Starmark Crunching Barbell
  
  
• Starmark Treat Crunching Multiball
  
  
  ETA: If you have any others you like (or don't like) that I've left off this list, please chime in!

The Kong Wobbler and Bobs-a-lot are great toys. I also use a Tricky Treat ball a lot. My dogs also really love the Snoop.

You could also try the Tug-a-Jug, Kibble Nibble, or Buster Cube.

My pup was just like yours-loves sticks and anything made of wood! Unfortunately, I don't have too many suggestions for the wood replacement. I gave my pup a few of these when he was little, but after reading the Amazon reviews I would possibly reconsider that decision. He enjoyed them, however, and you can do some research and make your own decision!

As far as a puzzle game I highly suggest the Omega Paw Ball. My almost 1-year-old pup recently figured it out and has been loving it. The Kong Wubba is also good, but with my pup I noticed that the Omega Ball requires a bit more finesse and concentration, rather than the Wubba which mostly sent him into frenzied batting episodes.

Hope some of this was helpful!

I have a papillion chihuahua mix who just turned 2. If it were up to him I would play fetch all day long. When I need him to keep busy independently, I have a couple things I try:

Bully sticks. Sometimes he's into it, sometimes not. Depends on the day. Some days he'll chew on a bully stick for over an hour.

Puzzle toys like these:

http://www.amazon.com/Outward-Hound-41008-Flapper-Training/dp/B006ZTTSOE/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1463561315&sr=8-16&keywords=dog+puzzle

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004NSVIRY/ref=twister_B009NMOZKM?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1463561410&sr=8-25&keywords=dog+puzzle


I also rotate his toys, he loves digging through and discovering the "new" toys.

Other times I put him in his crate. This is usually when he's had exercise and play time, but is not calming down any time soon. It's funny because it takes about 5 minutes before he's fast asleep in his crate!

Not exactly a toy, but sometimes for meals I hide little piles of kibble around and let her sniff them out. Behind table legs, inside an old shoe she plays with, inside a box. She loves it.

She also likes her kong.

She loved the omega paw tricky treat ball when she had it ( http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M ) but recently we left it outside and a lizard moved into it, so we need a new one. It's not hard, but it was definitely a favorite.

We made a toy (I'll try to post a picture later) that's a Gatorade bottle with a rod through it. We set it up so the rod is horizontal and she paws at the bottle, makes it spin on the rod, and gets fed.

Also, a toilet paper/paper towel roll with the ends taped up is super fun to shred.

She just got what's basically a generic pickle pocket and she hasn't quite figured it out yet, but if I put something nice and smelly in there it keeps her distracted for a while.

Recently they've also had tricky treat balls which are GREAT and QUIET!

Finn plays with most of his toys on a big area rug. He knows to pick it up and take it back to the rug when it rolls off. I taught him by picking up his toys and taking them back to the rug every time they fell off. He eventually got the picture.

Even so, our favorite toys are soft rubber ones. The Omega Paw Tricky Treat ball is great, and so is the Orbee Tuff Snoop. To make the Snoop harder, you can buy another ball to put inside it.

• IQ Ball
  
  
• Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball
  
  
• Buster Cube
  
  
• Tug a Jug
  
  
• Jolly Egg (not a treat dispenser, but a good self amuse-r)
  
  
• Kong Wobbler
  
  
• Kibble Nibble
  
  
• Cagey Cube (good for sticking your dogs favorite ball or toy into)
  
  
• Kongs (if you don't have some already)
  
  
• Any Nina Ottosson toy - but they are best with supervision. There are a lot of small pieces with some of them.

My dog has some similar play tendencies and she LOVES this ball:
ttp://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002DK26M
These treats are the perfect size and not too high in calories (and they smell delicious):
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B002R8SLUY
She'll nudge the ball around for hours trying the get a treat from it, even picking it up in her mouth and bouncing it against the wall! It's made from a durable plastic. I've had hers for over a year and it's good as new. Its just the right balance of work/reward and is hands down her favourite toy.
2nd runner up is a braided rope bone for thrashing about and playing tug-o-war.

Yes, like that one. This one (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002DK26M/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1523798861&sr=8-1&keywords=omega+tricky+treat+ball) is the exact one I got because it's cheaper and it holds more food (I have a large breed pup).

I bought mine at Walmart. But here is the link for amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0002DK26M/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1410838767&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40

I definitely plan to give a clicker along with every pup that gets adopted, even though the rescue doesn't provide them (like the dog's collar, leash, and toys). I'll probably also purchase a trick ball for each pup to take home since I think they're amazing tools to keep dogs entertained and busy with a 'job'.

That's a really good idea! I wouldn't mind giving clicker lessons to new owners...I'll have to chat with the rescue about it. :o Thanks!

DIY - freeze some kibble/treats in a Popsicle, put some kibble/treats in an empty water bottle (our dog really likes the really cheap/thin ones that crinkle when squeezed), take a muffin tin and put kibble/treats in the holes and put tennis balls on top of them (we started with a mini muffin tin so the tennis balls just sat on top of the holes so they were easy to remove, then when he was good at that, we moved to a regular muffin tin)

Commercial - Kong, Kong Wobbler, Trixie Toys (lots of options), Omega Ball, Hide-a-Squirrel, Tornado

If you haven't already, read these books; I can't stress enough how much they saved our lives. Perfect Puppy in 7 Days and Before and After Getting your Puppy. They're highly recommended here and for good reason.

I love this idea! We bought this a while ago, but have up after a few unsuccessful tries. We'll use your method and go from there - thanks!

P.S. Give your golden boy a treat for me!

You've gotten a lot of good opinions, I'll throw mine in for fun :-)

First. I think you're a good dog owner and I think you can make this work.

Many people have suggested a dog walker - I think that is a great idea. I have a coworker who has a dog walker who gathers up a few dogs from his neighborhood, drives them to a park and they have 3+ hour adventures! Plus they get to spend some time riding around to pick up and drop off the other dogs, I think it really fills their dogs day. My coworker does this M-F but even one day a week would be awesome.

Second. Work his brain. I'd start feeding all his meals in a food dispensing toy he enjoys. I used all of the ones I'll link below either for the dogs I work with or my pets.

[Bob-a-lot] (http://www.amazon.com/StarMark-Bob-A-Lot-Interactive-Pet-Large/dp/B001JQLNB4) This one is pretty tough and can be left alone with some dogs

[Tug-a-Jug] (http://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-Buddy-Dispensing-Medium-Large/dp/B000KV7ZGQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1426890582&sr=1-1&keywords=food+dispensing+bottle+rope+toy) This one can be dangerous if they eat the 'rope' but I love how ease it is to fill.

[Tricky Treat Ball] (http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_3?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1426890517&sr=1-3&keywords=food+dispensing+dog+toy) This one takes my dog FOREVER but holds her interest well. The plastic is really soft so I supervise her using it (while I watch TV or brush my teeth) so she doesn't just lay down and chew at it to get her food. The other thing I like about the soft plastic/rubber is that it is pretty quiet for her to use unlike the other options I've listed.

[Buster Cube] (http://www.amazon.com/Buster-Food-Cube-Large-Colors/dp/B0006G54OU/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1426890999&sr=8-9&keywords=food+dispensing+dog+toy) Not sure if the buster cube was the first of the roll around style food dispensers but it was the only one I knew about for a long time. They're pretty sturdy and challenging.

There are a LOT more food dispensing toys out there but I think the ones they have to move can be a little more exciting than a tightly packed kong they lick at. Kongs are great too, I'd just include them in a rotation of feeding devices.

Another thing you can do to make life more exciting for your dog is to rotate toys. If he has a lot of toys only leave out 2 or 3 on a given day and swap them out for toys you've kept hidden and occasionally introduce a new toy. Some dogs really love novelty.

Finally I think trick training is great. A few 5 minute sessions a day of learning a new behavior, or building on an existing behavior is a great way to beat the boredom.

Some fun tricks you can teach that you can use to make really complex behaviors are take it (hold in mouth), paw target (touch with foot) and nose target (touch with nose). You can use those behaviors along with others tricks to teach him to close doors, open doors, turn lights on and off, put things away, cross his legs, ring a bell, limp, pretend to pee (targeting with a back foot) etc.

Lastly, I'd teach him to search for hidden items in your house. I like to hide something while my dog is out going potty, then watch her search for it while I brush my teeth.

Hope those ideas for easy entertainment help some! Keep the dog, do what you can, you're doing SO MUCH MORE than so many dog owners already. I think he'd be fine if you kept him and just did what you're doing now. :-)

My dog uses this and she absolutely loves it. It's made of a soft plastic, so unless your dog will try to chew through the ball, it's pretty durable.

Have you looked into puzzle toys? What about enhancing the current toys and supplies you have as a more engaging activity for your dog?

For instance sometimes I'll put small treats and peanut butter in a couple bones and hide them around the house. I'll also use a puzzle toy like this that you can put kibble/treats inside and only the correct roll pattern will eject treats out. They make several types of toys like this in several formats, FYI. Another way to "enhance" your toys is creating more value to them pending your specific dogs value system (dog is more attracted to bones and balls inside the home rather stuffed animals and squeeky plush toys for instance.)

Try to give your dog more of a "job" to do when you are gone. This may not help pending the severity of the chewing but another tack to take is to try and understand why your dog is chewing. Is it because lack of excercise (seems unlikely) or mental stimulation (more likely the case) or something else? Try to figure out a correction for why the dog chews to begin with and you may land a better answer than to figure a "work around" or something else that doesn't identify the root issue.

Good luck!

You can also do it in the yard! Scatter the food around the grass so he has to search it out.

My dog gets her breakfast out of this ball. It's fairly easy for the kibble to fall out (until the last one, which she can never get), but she spends about 15 minutes wandering around the house rolling it and eating. Gives her mind something to do, takes her a bit longer to eat her food, and gives me a peaceful 15 minutes to drink my coffee.

There are also 'snuffle mats' you can try (basically a fleece blanket with a bunch of knots in it; lots of DIY options). All of these are fun ways to get your dog his food while giving him a bit of a challenge!

Somebody else mentioned treat balls, here's the one we have. I think my dog like the rubbery texture of it, and can pick it up when she wants to.

http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1454166849&sr=1-1&keywords=treat+ball

Also my dog loves this omega Ball. We put food and treats in it and it keeps him busy and lets him work. Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball, Large https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_W6KrybQFTNCMY

I'm not sure what budget you're working with, but with the fitness/snowboarding interest, maybe a camelbak would be a good gift! I think it'd be fun to throw in a gift or two for their dog, too. You could get a hide-a-squirrel or a tricky treat ball.

https://www.amazon.com/KONG-Gyro-Dog-Toy-Large/dp/B01GP4826S

this one is good.. but it's hard plastic, soo if your using it on a hard surface it can be a bit loud.


https://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=sr_1_6?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1500479295&sr=1-6&keywords=dog+treat+ball

this one has always been staple in my house for all my dogs, it's fairly quiet, they have to learn to push it around with their nose. my old BC used to push this thing around all day long it was great if she was being a bit of a pest!

I feed my dog out of a treat dispensing ball.

Omega Paw Products Tricky Treat Ball - Large https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002DK26M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_UjyTBbAC38X25

1. Kong Wubba Friend. Summit has the fox and it's his absolute favorite toy. He likes other wubbas too, but the fox is his favorite by a long shot. It's also super durable and doesn't have a bunch of stuffing to pull out. He loves the squeaking, the floppy tentacles, and it makes a great fetch toy as well.
   
   
2. Nylabone Prime Rib. Summit loves all Nylabones. His favorite is actually the dinosaur one, but I worry about the size of it and it stresses me out when he chews it. He loves the one we got him on sale after Christmas and I like the size. Really though, any Nylabone chew could be substituted in here. Summit loves chewing and Nylabones give him a great outlet for that.
   
3. Omega Paw Tricky Treat Ball. I love the idea of food dispensing toys and Summit does too. It keeps him entertained and out of trouble for quite a while and he loves pushing it around and trying to get the food out. He gets extremely excited whenever he sees us pull this particular toy out of the toy bin.
   
4. Chuck It Max Glow Ball. We're still working on Summit's ball drive and it is definitely improving with age (yesterday he was actually running into a lake to fetch tennis balls which was a big first for him), but I love the bond that fetch gives. I also love things that glow in the dark (we could play when it gets dark out!) and the durability of the Chuck It balls as opposed to regular tennis balls.
   
5. Kong. A treat dispensing toy I can leave with him that he doesn't need as much room to use as the tricky treat ball. I also love trying the different recipes to throw in his Kong and it is great for calming him down.

Even at my dog's worst his blood work-ups (and parasite checks) came back normal, so I wouldn't necessarily trust those as an indicator that everything is fine. That being said, my dog was throwing up blood and getting spontaneous bloody diarrhea in the house though, so those are really obvious signs that something's wrong, you would notice something like that! Unfortunately it took a long time for the vet to figure out what was wrong, but since we've gotten it figured out we haven't had a single incident, thank goodness.

Since you don't have concerns about your dog's health, one thing you can try is feeding your dog his meals in a puzzle toy. My dog is much more motivated to eat if I put his kibble in a "kibble ball" (http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-Tricky-Treat-Large/dp/B0002DK26M), but you could also look into the kong wobbler or other toys where the dog can play to get his meal out. Even sticking kibble in a toilet paper tube and pinching the ends shut is fun for my dog. He thinks empty toilet paper rolls are fun though, too.

My dog is eating Annamaet, the venison/salmon formula. He doesn't do well with chicken/turkey/duck/some fish so his options are pretty limited. Annamaet does make GF foods too if you're really into that, I used to feed the red meat formula ("manitok") but 30% protein is too much for my pup. Plus I'm not opposed to grains for dogs, I'm just careful about which ones/how much. I really love Annamaet, it's really popular here, but it's definitely not available everywhere!

If you're looking for a basic guide to dog foods, this website does a pretty great job rating dog foods. Ultimately, the best dog food for your dog is one your dog does well on, but this is a nice place to see what kinds of ingredients are present in dog foods and the potential benefits/issues with certain ingredients in dog foods: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/brand/

My dog's favorites are the Kong wobbler, Buster Cube, Omega treat ball, and a frozen Kong stuffed with a gross mixture of wet kibble and peanut butter. Personally, I like the Omega treat ball because it's soft and doesn't make a lot of noise on our hardwood floors.

We tried a few of those Ottosson dog puzzles, but my dog quickly figured out that she can flip the entire thing over and all her food falls out instead of figuring it out the "correct" way.

Don't overlook homemade toys too. I roll up kibble in newspaper, stuff the newspaper into small box, then put that box into larger box, tape it up, and let her shred it up. She loves it.

Failures were the Tug a Jug and the IQ treat ball.

Our 7mths old only eats out of these treats balls now. He seems to like the interactiveness of it. We're looking into the mats too now, since the ball leaves crumbs all over the house as he's rolling it around. Although he's pretty good at cleaning up his own messes most of the time. haha.

> was the treat something substantial that keeps her busy for the whole time you're gone, or just something regular like a dog treat ?

My pup has a slow feed bowl that looks something like this, so I used to put in some of the things that she would go crazy over, and would normally take her at least 5+ minutes to consume, like smearing a thin layer of peanut butter across all of the bowl surfaces. Be warned though, some dogs tend to have sensitive snouts and can rub their noses raw on the bowl, but my pup hasn't had that problem. You just need to find something that is truly a "high value" treat for your dog, and using it exclusively for that. My pup would go nuts over cheese, so I took a piece of old cheddar and smeared it like a crayon inside her bowl. She really liked that. Another option is a puzzle toy like this filled with something tasty (she could occupy herself for half an hour on that), or even a classic Kong with some liver flavoured spread.

> And when you say she wasn't allowed to eat the treat till you were gone - did she see you put it somewhere , how exactly does that work

That's correct! I would let her see me preparing a treat for her, and then I'd place it in her bowl so that she'd focus on waiting for the "go" command instead of building her anxiety at watching me get ready to leave (brushing my teeth, fixing my hair, tying my shoes, etc).

A quick bit of background - The first thing that I had trained her to do was to never snatch, pick up ,or take anything that I haven't specifically told her she can have - this meant toys, meals and treats. I would place treats in front of her, and she learned that she can't have it until I say so, even if I turn away or walk away. I was able to use this trait to keep her focused completely on waiting for the treats, so instead of pacing and whining that I was leaving, she would instead sit by her food bowl and wait for me while I got ready to leave. When I'd open the door and walk out, I'd give the release command "okay!" and she's make herself busy with her treat while I locked up and walked away.

I also reviewed the footage afterwards (from my home surveillance system) and after she finished her treats, she would sniff the door, whine once or twice, grumble a bit (because I'm gone), and then she'd go sleep on the couch all day.