Title says it all basically. My 3yo rescue BC/GSD mix is not a big player--she has her favorites, and that's it. She only plays with anything soft and fluffy (especially if it has a squeaker/realistic animal noise), but the issue is that she gnaws on them until they get holes. She is not a rough player at all, but all her toys wind up with holes from her chewing on them. She will not take any rubber toy (unless it's like a Kong or Woof Flyball with treats) and doesn't like hard toys--trust us, we've tried many. We've also tried tug ropes, which she liked for a bit when first learning how to play after we adopted her, but she treats her toys more like babies than wants to roughhouse with them. Often she is cuddled with her favorite one of the day under her chin/between her paws. I'll link some she has liked but unfortunately put holes in, which have been delegated to our closet until I can repair them. Thanks in advance :)

This llama is one of her favorites, along with this hedgehog, this duck, this dinosaur, these seahorses, this bear, and this sloth.

Edit to add: she won't eat any stuffing that comes out, she's very good about that. And again, she's not intentionally tearing them open, she doesn't enjoy that type of play. We've tried the JW Holee and she wouldn't even look at it, same with a traditional herding ball lol

I have a ~16 lb chihuahua something cross (got her from the shelter) and Im having a hard time finding the right dog toy for her. She likes tearing things apart but I cant afford to buy her toys everyday. Ive tried those toys for aggressive chewers and she doesnt like chewing on hard things very much. I got her a squeaky bone but she doesnt like it very much. Do you have any suggestions for toys or am I doing something wrong? I have a box of dog toys she doesnt like very much. Thanks!

Does your dog turn his head when he hears an odd noise? Does your dog bury their food with your pants? This is the thread to ask why.

Please keep this thread to non-medical issues only.

She has a Kong bone that I can put stick shaped treats in and they last about 15 minutes, without the Kong dental sticks are gone in seconds. I am thinking of getting a non-fabric rubber squeaky toy but I’m afraid she will rip it apart, like she did to a small basketball.

I know she would keep at a challenge until she got it but then I’m afraid she would scratch and bite and chew until it is a pile of plastic bits.

Yes I do walk her a lot, and she has a very large yard with squirrels and rabbits to chase. Although she has started to dig under bushes and chew and rip off their stems so I have to watch her carefully.

I recently got back into Supernatural and I have a dog. I would like to teach him some fun tricks based on Supernatural, does anyone have any ideas? So far he only knows touch, sit, lay down, spin and paw. Thank you in advance!

My 21 pound boy is a big chewer. He LOVES to tear apart his stuffed toys as fast as he can. Problem is, when he tears them apart, he also eats them. I am usually quick to react and take the bit out of his mouth but, I have found fabric pieces in his poo before. I do put his toys up (usually) when he is done playing with them but, I work from home and sometimes he BEGS and cries for a toy. He knows where I put them so, he runs to his chair next to me and to the shelf and back again. Repeat until he gets tired (about 5 in).

I used to give him 6" bully sticks - the thinnest ones I could find. But the vet told me that his teeth are starting to show wear already, and he's only 3.5 years old. Not good. He enjoys hide type chews but he goes through a typical sized one in an hour. Same goes with frozen Kongs and peanut butter, etc etc

He would chew and tear all day if he could - even after a walk. Are there any durable, edible dog toys that don't damage his teeth?

Thank you! <3

Hi everyone,

I have never been able to figure out what this behavior could possibly mean and why he does it. I am just so curious to hear what others' thoughts are.

Background: - Border collie lab mix. - Got him at 9 months old from the shelter, he is now 12. - We never trained him to do this, he does this on his own. He has done it the whole time we've had him.

The bone tour is a weird behavior my dog does when he gets cow knee bones. When we get them he is so excited. He then has to show it around the house and does the following: 1. Takes it into his mouth and goes outside. 2. Pretty quickly comes back inside. 3. Does a loop on the lower level of the house. 4. Goes back outside for longer this time. One time, I caught him just looking out at the yard with the bone just sitting in the grass next to him for 5 min. 5. Comes back inside with the bone. 6. Does another loop around the lower level of the house whining this time. 7. Finally settles down and starts chewing on the bone.

I think he is just excited for the bone and I guess wants to show off where he will eat it. But it is always in this order and I don't know why he starts whining or does most of the tour twice.

Just a silly behavior that I felt like sharing. If you have any thoughts about what it could mean, I would love to know.

My cats are going to be witches. Get it? Bc of cat familiars?

Anyway, I can’t decide what my dog should be. There’s not really an equivalent of cats/witches with dogs. So I’m here for inspiration.

Anyone ever try putting the dog bed in a small tent for thunderstorms? My dog shakes. He gets trazadone but can’t relax. I thought maybe the covering over his head would help.

Any automatic ball launchers that launch a XL ball? I've looked all over online and can't find one at all.

I am having rotator cuff surgery and will not be able to play frisbee or throw my dogs favorite XL Chuck Ball it with the launcher for possible some time. Even though I'm having just my right arm done, the stress of tossing the ball with my left may be difficult and cause pain/tear on the right. I hate the idea that my dog will not be able to go play fetch as we do it 3 or 4 times a day and typical do two walks a day as well. So trying to come up with any idea I can to keep her active.

Treats are not an option, she hates treats.

I have a 8 month old puppy. And she can chew through everything. She came from a shelter but we think she is a type of hunting dog, and man does she love to destroy her toys. None are safe. Heads and arms ripped off. Chew toys ripped to pieces. Kongs (black one and frozen at that!) have chucks taken out. Nothing is safe.

I keep trying to find something she can chew on that’s not all food - I don’t want her to get fat with hip problems. But the harder the toys to chew on, the more I worry about a broken tooth. Even if I’m watching her all it will take is one wrong bite….

I bought a yak chew bc they said easy to digest but now I’m wondering if it will be to hard to naw on. Advise?

Out of curiosity, I have a family member who has a dog that they are very attached to, mostly due to not having any kids so their dog is like their kid. They take their dog out constantly for walks, which is great for the dog and them in terms of exercise but makes me wonder if it's training their dog to not have to "hold it" very long?

They work from home right now and use their breaks as additional dog walking time, if I had to guess their dog is going out every 1 to 2 hours (besides overnight). I only know because of witnessing first hand when I visit or they visit. Any time they think the dog "looks sad/bored" they feel bad and take it out.

Their job will not be at home forever and I'm just wondering if this has trained their dog's bladder and could cause an issue in the future whenever their work from home job ends? (Medium/large adult dog for reference)

Hi, im currently trying to train leash pressure for my 2 month old bichon puppy. I have a harness and he would barely move when the harness is on. Usually he would follow me everywhere in the house without harness. But with harness, he will barely move. I feel it is because he is uncomfortable with it.

For example, he would follow me down the stairs without harness, but with harness he refuses to go down the stairs until i opened the front the of the house, in which he would finally go down.

Im thinking of using a collar to help him train on how to behave on a leash. What are your thoughts on this?

Hi,

Last Friday I took my dog, Murphy, to the groomer. Murphy is a 13-pound poodle mix, and a bundle of energy and joy.

For the few days after the visit he was fine. But since Monday he has been acting differently. Notably he spends most of the day in his crate, where he usually only goes at night to sleep. He also does not want to jump on the couch or bed, which previously he did all the time. He seems hesitant/scared to jump up and requests he be picked up onto the couch or bed. He also has been far more on edge, for example startling very easy at noises he didn’t previously scare from.

For background he is anxious but he has never acted like this. The groomer is reputable and well rated, but I think this time may have been traumatic for him. I plan on finding a new groomer, but in the meantime how can I help Murphy feel better.

Please ask any questions for further clarification.
Thank you!

Does your dog turn his head when he hears an odd noise? Does your dog bury their food with your pants? This is the thread to ask why.

Please keep this thread to non-medical issues only.

About a week ago, one of my neighbors lost her dog. The next day she made some posts online about this and included information such as her phone number and her dog's name, age, breed, and photo.

In just a matter of three to four hours after making a Facebook post about it, she received a message from someone that claimed they found her dog. They then sent a photo of her dog...or so it seemed anyway.

When I talked to my neighbor about this she believed the photo was real at first, but there were tell tale signs that the image was AI. They then demanded payment via an app before she got to see her dog. (Red flag!) I told her it seemed to me this person took the real photo of her dog from her social media post and used an AI image generator to generate a fake and then used that to bait her into a scam.

The neighbor in question is an elderly lady and not well-versed about AI, but thankfully she took notice about a small patch of brown fur on the AI image that her real dog did not have.

Thankfully, two days after he disappeared my neighbor spotted him in her backyard and took him back in. He was okay!

With how rough losing a pet already is, scammers are using this as a perfect vulnerability to exploit people and using AI as a tool to help. If you ever lose your pet, this is just a reminder to be cautious about responses you receive and to scrutinize any photos from internet strangers before taking things further.

Stay safe!

Good morning. I have a 70lb mixed breed (husky, lab, Rottweiler, and others) she is five years old and a smart girl. All except for walks. We have done training, used harnesses and finally settled on the gentle leader about four years ago.

She doesn’t pull in the leader but spends a large part of the walk trying to get it off. It’s stressful for both of us. This has gotten worse over the past few weeks where she is constantly pawing at it to be removed. I correct her and we keep it on. But three steps later, she’s at it again. It used to be once or twice a walk, now it’s almost constant. I’ve tried going back to the harness but after a few days, she’s pulling me down the street.

I’m looking for suggestions on systems to try to make our walks more enjoyable for both of us.

Thanks

Hey I just adopted my dog from a rescue shelter about a week ago. She’s overall a good dog. However she’s kinda mouthy. I’m trying prevent her from biting me or it getting that far. I’m on a tight budget right now, I can afford a trainer.

This thread is where to get emotional support with all things related to death and illness with your dog. This is also a thread where you can seek assistance with deciding whether it is indeed time.

This is not a thread to seek anecdotes with medical care. All rules involving medical questions and anecdotes remains the same for this thread.

If your dog has passed, you can still post here for emotional support or you can create your own thread tagged with one of the RIP flairs. Be sure to review the rules of our flair guide. It is up to you how you choose to grieve.

My dog has a sprained shoulder so we have been carrying them up and down the stairs for two weeks now. I was coming up the stairs and tripped on the second or third step with my dog in my arms.

I was carrying him with his head towards the left and his butt towards the right and I fell kind of towards the right and forward, and he was placed hard on the steps a few above where I fell. I BELIEVE he landed on his feet and kind of ran into the front of the steps with his legs from the impact.

He appears to be walking normally knock on wood, including the strained shoulder side, but I am just panicking completely that I could’ve hurt him or injured him. I did not fall on him. I just think a little bit of my weight and the force of the fall pushed him into the front of the steps. He immediately got up and ran away, startled obviously before I could even get up.

Any thoughts to ease my panic as I continue to watch him?

Just wondering how successful folks have been with using weighted vests, pheromone sprays and other non-medicinal hacks for their anxious pups.

My 2.5 year old poodle mix is the sweetest little guy, but for about a year or so we’ve noticed a few instances where his anxiety seems to go through the roof.

In the car during non- highway drives he whimpers and whines (no sick or accidents). We try giving him treats, bringing one his favorite toys but results are mixed.

At the vet and as during grooming he shakes like a leaf. Hes otherwise sweet energetic little guy always begging for play sessions and following us around to house.

TLDR: Just wondering how successful folks have been with using weighted vests, pheromone sprays and other non-medicinal hacks for their anxious pups.

My husband just started a new job as a therapist for a prison and now we’re having to leave our two dogs home alone. One is older and is used to being home alone but our younger one (2 year old Great Pyrenees german shepherd mix) is used to going into the office with him as she’s done that 3 days a week since we got her at 3 months old. 1 day a week she would go to doggy daycare and Fridays he was working from home. She is very attached to my husband. Thankfully my work is close to home so I’ve been going at lunch for potty breaks but checking my backyard camera I can hear her barking constantly and it breaks my heart. In the afternoon she gets a popsicle to help keep her entertained but still hear lots of barking. Both pups go on 3 mile walks most mornings as well. Any advice? How long will it take for her to adjust?

I’m looking for bed recommendations to put in my dogs crate. She’s a rough chewer and recently started destroying her bed, like having way too much fun in her crate ripping apart her bed.

For those who are going to say “just don’t put a bed in there” I have reason not to follow this route.

I adopted her in January and her bed has been in her crate since then. She has not touched it until the past couple of weeks. She is on full rest per vet’s orders, so I think the combo of not feeling herself and her exercise needs not being met is really upsetting her lil terrier brain. I really want to keep her comfortable. Also, not having her needs met makes it incredibly hard for her to settle outside of her crate. She only sleeps in her crate.

If there’s a rougher bed that might survive better than the one we have now, I’d love to hear it. Even anything that isn’t necessarily marketed as a dog bed - if it’s worked for you please share!

I am thinking ahead to Thanksgiving travel. I have two teenagers (13 and 15) and now a 15 week old golden (so 22 weeks at Thanksgiving). We own a 2017 Subaru Outback. The drive will be about 2+ hours.

And looking towards the future when the pup is full grown--we road trip 8+ hours to Maine every summer, sometimes 3x a summer, and various winter ski trips to Vermont/western Mass (3-5 hour drives). Is a full size golden in a harness and two adult size teenagers too much for one backseat? Given that the human children already complain that there isn't enough room, I am going to guess that it's a tight fit. I don't know how we fit all our gear and a crate in the trunk (and we already have a roof box that is full to the gills when it is just the 4 of us traveling).

If we get a crate, what do you recommend? I've been in a few car accidents so car safety is really important to me. A new car is not in the budget.