Want to save some money, recycle seemingly useless stuff, and try out your crafty side on your pooch? Here are a few ideas for do-it-yourself dog toys that help the environment and provide easy enrichment and mental stimulation for your furry friend.

As is the case with any pet toy, think of your dog’s safety first. Supervise your dog when he’s playing with toys and regularly inspect them for damage. Discard or recycle toys that are deteriorating so your dog doesn’t accidentally swallow a piece.

Plastic Bottle Treat Toy: Oh the ubiquitous empty plastic water bottle. I know you’ve got some lying around waiting to be recycled. Before you dump them in the recycling bin, let your dog have a go at them. Put a few treats in a 16-ounce or larger size bottle, cap it, then toss it for your dog. He’ll chomp on it, bat it around, and do anything he can to get those treats out. Supervise your dog when he plays with this to prevent choking. Discard the bottle cap as soon as he gets it out.Take the bottle from him when he gets the treats out to prevent any injuries from splinters.

Sock It To Me: Put some dog treats in the toe of a sock and knot the sock on itself close to the toe end. Put that sock inside the toe of another sock and knot the second sock on itself. There you have it – a homemade treat puzzle toy!

Vin plays with homemade cereal box toy

Braided Tug Toy: Got old socks, old towels or old fleece blankets? Any of those can be used to make a strong tug toy. Fleece makes a particularly strong tug toy. Cut three strips of fleece. Each should be 2-3 inches wide and 15-24 inches long depending on the size of your dog. Braid the strips together as tightly as you can and knot the ends securely. You’re ready for endless tug matches with your dog! You can also braid three old sport socks together or lengths of old towels together to make this toy. Soaking the toy in beef or chicken broth (then letting it drying completely) will make the toy even more enticing.

Tennis Ball Fun: Drill a hole in a tennis ball and another on the opposite side. Thread a long piece of thick cotton rope through the holes so the rope goes through the ball. Knot the rope securely close to the ball and knot the other ends of the rope. Fetch or tug anyone?

Stuffed Stuff: If your dog’s like mine, it doesn’t take him long to practice his dissecting skills on new stuffed animals. One minute he’s racing around with the stuffed animal in his mouth, and the next, our living room’s a mess of stuffing and the poor teddy bear is decapitated. Save the stuffing and the squeaker, if it still works. Stuff an old sock with stuffing and squeaker, sew up the end, and your dog’s got a brand new stuffed toy. Instead of using actual stuffing, you can stuff the sock with the other old socks or leftover fabric. If you’re feeling extra creative, stuff scraps of fabric with the stuffing and squeaker and sew it up in interesting shapes. You can also restuff kids’ old stuffed animals. Remove plastic eyes, noses and other pieces that could be a choking hazard. Keep an eye on your dog whenever he plays with any squeaky toy and take the squeaker away from him as soon as he’s removed it from the toy.

Rover Recycles: take an empty cardboard box. Cereal boxes and egg cartons work well for this. Put a few treats inside, then tape the box closed with masking tape. You can also put food-stuffed Kongs in the box before you tape it up. Give the sealed box to your dog and watch him tear it open with gusto to get at the treats. When he’s finished, your box is already shredded/broken down and will take up a lot less room in your recycling container.

Got other ideas for homemade dog toys? Please share them in a comment.

What do good manners and playing with your food have to do with one another?

Everything . . . if you’re a dog!

One of the best and easiest things you can do to enrich your dog’s life and lay a foundation for polite dog behavior is encourage him to play with his food. Food puzzle toys abound – nifty contraptions into which you stuff food or treats, and give to your dog to “solve” so he can eat what’s inside.

Kong, Tricky Treat Ball, Tug A Jug (L-R)

He might have to chew on the toy to get the food out (as in the case of Kongs and Busy Buddy toys); nose, bat and roll the toy around to get at the yummies inside (e.g., Buster Cubes, Tricky Treat Balls); manipulate puzzle pieces (Nina Ottoson’s interactive toys); or come up with a combination of moves to work the puzzle (e.g., Tug a Jug). The point is he’ll need to use his brain and sometimes his brawn to devise a winning strategy.

Feeding your dog from food puzzle toys has many advantages over bowl feeding. Working food puzzle toys:

• Is fun! Not every food puzzle toy is a hit with every dog, but with the wide variety of available toys there are sure to be a couple that get your dog’s groove on.
• Helps dogs eat more slowly than if they were gulping food from a bowl. Eating more slowly helps avoid bloat, a serious and often fatal ailment.
• Staves off boredom. Boredom breeds undesirable behavior like excessive barking, fence fighting and destructive chewing. Besides, living in a perpetually or mostly bored state must be a serious drag for a dog. Food puzzle toys gives dogs mini mental workouts and are a good antidote to boredom.
• Burns doggy energy. Don’t you wish you had your dog’s energy? Without daily outlets for that energy, dogs find other things to do with it. All too often, those things are activities humans don’t appreciate. Interactive toys provide outlets for some of dogs’ mental and physical energy.
• Satisfies the urge and need to chew. Many interactive toys require chewing action to get the food out. Chewing keeps teeth, gums and jaw muscles healthy and is a natural behavior that many dogs really love, especially pups and adolescents. Directing dogs towards acceptable chewies – like food puzzle toys – is essential when teaching dogs to keep their teeth off of your stuff.

If your dog is already a food puzzle wiz, mix up the types of puzzle toys he plays with. Some puzzle toys (like Kongs) can be frozen after stuffing to make solving them tougher for dogs ready for more of a challenge.

Get creative with food stuffings. You can layer different ingredients; alternate wet food with dry; mix wet food with dry dog food before stuffing the toy; or mix an extra special treat with the rest of the food (like the prize in the cereal box).

Does your dog have a favorite food puzzle toy? Do you have a favorite “recipe” for food puzzle toy stuffings? Please feel free to share in a comment.

During a recent consultation, a client mentioned that though her 6 month-old shepherd mix loved to play tug, she’d decided the game was taboo. She’d heard that tug would make him “aggressive.” I’ve heard this concern from loads of dog owners. But fortunately, it ain’t so.

Aggressive behavior is usually caused by fear, stress or anxiety, not fun and games. In fact, many expert dog trainers (such as Jean Donaldson and Pat Miller) maintain that that tug, if played by a few simple rules (see below) is a fabulous game to play with your dog for lots of reasons.

Tug is a wonderful energy burner for dogs and something you can do inside to burn some of that doggy energy. Vinnie’s an especially high-energy dog; I suspect that on rainy days, if not for tug, we’d both go a little bonkers.

Tug is a great legal outlet for dogs’ natural predatory instincts. Instead of shutting natural dog behavior down, tug allows dogs to redirect their energies to the game.

If played by the rules, tug teaches your dog to control his jaws even when he’s really revved up, and is fabulous impulse control training. Your dog practices calming himself down when he’s in a state of high arousal.

Tug offers lots of lovely little real-life training moments for real life rewards – another tug match! It provides an appropriate safe outlet for puppies’ and adolescents’ natural desire to mouth and play bite. Perhaps best of all, tug is FUN for you and your dog and deepens the bonds you share.

Follow these simple rules to ensure you and your dog are safe whenever you play tug:

• Only play with 1 or 2 designated tug toys. They should be long enough that your dog’s teeth area far from your hand. Braided rope or fleece toys are best because they’re strong and won’t hurt doggy teeth or gums.
• Play begins only when you initiate the game by offering the tug toy to your dog. Don’t allow your dog to lunge/jump/snatch the toy from you. If he does that, say, “Too bad,” or “Uh oh,” matter of factly and put the toy away for 20 seconds.
• Take frequent obedience breaks. Ask your dog to sit (or do another easy behavior) every time you offer him the tug toy. After he sits, reward him by offering him the tug toy to grab onto.
• Teach your dog to drop the tug toy on your cue. Ask him to do so randomly during tug matches.
• Teeth on skin means an automatic time out. If his teeth make any contact with your skin even by accident, immediately say “Uh Oh,” or “Too bad,” and put the toy away for 20 seconds. This will teach him to be extra careful with his mouth during tug games.
• Avoid doggy injuries. Keep the tug toy level with his shoulders and don’t jerk it around. Move the toy side-to-side instead of up and down. Keep the intensity of tug games appropriate for his age and overall physical condition.
• Safety first. Don’t allow frail people or kids under 13 to play tug with your dog. Make sure that anyone who plays tug with your dog knows the tug rules and always follows them consistently. An adult should always supervise tug games between dogs and kids.

Do you need an excuse to play? Many humans probably do. In this age of constantly-evolving technology we’re expected to do more and more in less and less time. Sometimes just scanning my Monday to-do list leaves me feeling somewhat overwhelmed.

Unlike many of us dogs need no excuses to play. Dogs love to play. They may not all enjoy playing the same games or with the same toys. But where there’s a dog, there’s very likely some kind of playing to be done and much fun to be had.

Scientists are still trying to figure out why animals play. Theories include practicing survival skills, and learning and maintaining important social skills. If you’ve watched dogs playing with other dogs or people, it may have occurred to you that perhaps one reason dogs play is to have fun. They certainly appear to be having plenty of fun when they’re at it.

If you have a dog you also have a perfect “excuse” to play. Playing with your dog yields wonderful benefits. It provides your dog with mental stimulation, an essential daily requirement for a healthy happy dog. Some games (like fetch and tug) afford your dog a chance to exercise, another daily necessity that too many dogs get too little of. Exercise keeps doggy bodies in good shape, avoids obesity and its attendant health risks, gives your dog an appropriate outlet for his energy and helps ward off behavioral issues. Depending on the game, dog play means you get some exercise too. My dog Vinnie adores playing one-on-one soccer with my husband; whenever they play they both get a great workout.

Playtime offers up lots of little training moments that help dogs practice impulse control. Play is an excellent stress reliever for humans and dogs. Play can be an especially effective way of building a shy, fearful or anxious dog’s confidence.

Doggy soccer anyone?

Perhaps best of all, playing with your dog regularly strengthens your relationship with him. Sharing enjoyable activities is one way in which people bond. Studies have shown that couples that play together enjoy longer happier relationships than those that don’t play together. As a therapist friend explained to me, doing fun things with a friend or significant other puts deposits into the emotional intimacy bank. You feel closer and happier when you’re doing having fun together.

Playing games with your best canine bud involves doing an activity together in which you communicate, work cooperatively and develop mutual understanding — all hallmarks of good social relationships. So is fun. Whether you’re playing tug, Frisbee, hide and seek, Freeze and Go Wild, or another game you or your dog has invented, hopefully you’re both having fun. (Part of the fun for me is seeing how much my dog’s enjoying himself when he’s playing!)

Life is tough. We could all use a healthy dose of frivolity and fun. So go ahead. You don’t need any excuses. Play with your dog! Play with him regularly, safely and have loads of fun. If anyone scoffs, remember that play’s underrated. You’re doing something fabulous for yourself and your dog, and deepening your relationship while you’re at it.

Do you have favorite games you play with your dog? We’d love to read about them in a comment.

Brrrr! We’ve been having a cold snap here in the San Francisco Bay Area and rain’s expected for the next several days. At times like this, exercising my dog Vinnie outdoors can be a pill. Vinnie is a wet weather wimp. He hates going out in the rain. He’d rather hold it for hours than venture out into a drizzle. We’ve tried putting him in a raincoat and enticing him with meatballs to no avail. I haven’t worked to resolve this as hard as I could have because I haven’t been very motivated. I can’t stand cold wet weather either.

Given our aversion to bad weather, trips to the dog park and hikes on rainy days aren’t an option. Vinnie very reluctantly steps out for a walk just long enough for him to relieve himself, than turns and drags me back home. In the moment I’m glad to head indoors. But unless I find ways to get him some indoor exercise – mental and physical – I know it won’t be long before I have a bundle of over-the-top doggy energy to deal with.

Vinnie can be extremely creative in finding ways to amuse himself. He’s been known to turn the living room into his own agility course, leaping over the couch, racing around the coffee table, and bounding from couch to chair and back again. He might suddenly find Ted our cat, irresistible and will try his darnedest to get Ted to run, sheep style, so Vinnie can give chase. Every passerby or noise outside might be cause for a bark fest, especially when I’m on the phone or deep in a piece of writing.

Making his own rainy day fun

Vin’s creativity on rainy days sparked my own. We now have a list of tried and true indoor activities to keep him busy when the weather isn’t cooperating. These are no substitute for outdoor walks or off-leash exercise but they do serve to burn some of his energy any day, rain or shine. That’s always a good thing!

Tug. No, tug won’t make your dog “aggressive,” and it won’t make him want to control you. There’s zero scientific evidence to support these myths. Tug is a great doggy energy burner, a wonderful opportunity to get in a little impulse control training, and best of all, tug is lots of fun. To build impulse control training into tug games, ask your dog to sit or do any other behavior for the reward of you offering the tug toy. (Watch for a longer post on safe smart tug play soon.)

Hide and seek. If your dog has learned to stay while you’re out of sight, and if he comes when you call him, combine the two behaviors into hide and seek games. Ask your dog to stay as you hide in another room or behind a large piece of furniture. Then call him to come. Reward him with lots of praise and a yummy treat when he finds you.

Even if your dog’s stays and recalls aren’t yet solid, you can play this game with your dog and other people. As one person distracts the dog, the other person hides and then calls the dog’s name in a happy upbeat voice. As the dog scurries to find the hider, the other person hides. As soon as the dog finds the first hidden person and claims his reward, the second person calls the dog’s name. In no time, your dog will be racing around the house to seek out hidden humans.

Train new tricks. Pick a trick, any trick, get a bag of treats and start training your dog! Just five minutes at time, several times a day, are a fun easy way to get that doggy brain churning. Teach your dog to retrieve an old credit card to the cue, “Let’s go shopping.” Teach him to take a bow or to weave through your legs. The sky’s the limit.

Rocket recalls. Get some treats your dog loves and at least one more person to play this game. Stand about 10-15 feet apart and take turns calling your dog to come. Reward him when he does. Gradually increase the distance between the people and work up to positioning the people in different rooms of your home. How fast can you get that canine rocket to run those recalls?

Food puzzle toys. There are all sorts of food puzzle toys on the market in which you can stuff food treats. Your dog has to use his brains and sometimes his brawn to get the food out. Kong and Premier Pet Products make great food puzzle toys. Vin’s new favorite is the Tricky Treat Ball. He goes positively bananas when he sees that thing, so much so we have to keep it hidden when not in use.

For added fun, try tying a food stuffed Kong in an old sock, or hiding the toy in a room so your dog can have the pleasure of hunting it down.

Early Recycling Fun

Recycling helper. I need to think of a better name for this one. My husband came up with it shortly after we adopted puppy Vinnie, who made it known on Day 1 that he had a thing for shredding cardboard and paper. Use old egg cartons, cereal boxes or any cardboard box. Make sure no wires or staples are attached to the box. Put a few treats or a food stuffed Kong into the cardboard container. Use masking tape to tape the box shut, then let your dog have at it. He’ll have some dissection fun, burn some energy, and your recycling items will be broken down quite conveniently.

Do you have some favorite indoor canine games? Please share them with us in a comment.