Tug Toys

These dogs do love to play tug of war. They use most any toy for their tug games. Even Jake's little, two and one half inch blue bone. When they tug at such close quarters they growl under their breath until the tension builds up. When he can stand it now more, Jake turns up the volume. Believe me, he sounds like a vicious little animal. Molly isn't fooled, though. Tug of war is probably her favorite game, and she's not going to be scared off that easily!

When we first got Molly, tug of war was just about the only game she would play with us. Consequently there were mostly tug toys in the house when Jake joined us about a year later. I guess he was around 9 weeks old when they started playing tug games. He was so small then that Molly would take him for a ride by running toward and over him while they were tugging something. Jake would turn around and either ride on her front paws or scoot on his bottom inbetween her paws. It was very entertaining to watch.

Almost every toy they have has at least been tested for it's tug of war value. Here are the ones they play tug games with the most.

Stuffed Animals

Those non-toxic stuffed animals that are sold as dog toys are always used for tug games in our home. The dogs seem to feel that is what the stuffed animals are for, but it's obvious to me that tug games are one thing they are not made for. Usually they last about 5 minutes. After that the stuffing is gleefully strown around the house.

Rope Toys

These toys made of thick cotton ropes were created for tugging. When I first purchased one, I got the size that looked to be about right for my little terriers. It didn't last very long at all. After a few hours the rope was shredded. So the next time I got one I picked out a large, thick rope toy. Big mistake. That was even easier for them to destroy because they could get a better grip on the individual strands. In no time at all the carpet was covered in thin, cotton strings.

The old rope toy to the left has got about 4 hours of play in it. The only reason it has lasted this long is because I supervise their play and stop them when they really start shredding it up. It seems to me that these toys are way too expensive for how long they last, so after a while I just quit purchasing them. Molly and Jake really to enjoy both tugging them and tearing them up so when I saw that my local grocery placed all their old dog toys in an 88 cent sale bin I stocked up on all the rope toys I could find. Now they still get to have their messy fun, whenever I know I have time to clean up the aftermath.

Chews and Chew Toys

I'm afraid that no raw hide toys can preside in this house without one heck of a vocalized fight breaking out. For some reason, raw hide puts too much strain on Molly's and Jake's otherwise easy going relationship. Other types of chew toys are shared and played with amiably. Latex and soft hollow rubber chews don't cut it though. They end up in at least two pieces in about 20 minutes. The hard rubber chews, like Kong chews and the chews made by Prevue give our doggies lasting tug of war pleasure. The little blue bone that they are playing with at the top of the page (it's too small to see) is made by Prevue and it's 14 months old now. It's got a few teeth marks in it and is beginning to show some signs of wear. That's one great toy. It's Jakes absolute favorite one too.

Summation:

Stuffed Animals

5 Paws - All the dogs love them and I would give them a six, but it takes me about 20 minutes to clean up the mess, and don't forget they must be supervised. Some dogs might try to eat the fluff.

Rope Toys

6 Paws - Rope Toys are made for tugging and they will last a while provided you watch and make sure that tug of war is what is played with them. Everybody gets in the game with rope tugs!

Chew toys

Chew toys come in 3 categories. Rawhide, Soft Rubber and Hard Rubber

Rawhide Chews

0 Paws - Rawhide Chews start a somewhat serious dispute every time, so they get a big fat zero in our house. However, they are durable and if you only have one dog or they don't start fights they are probably great for tugging.

Soft Rubber Chews

0 Paws - They make a big mess in record time. They aren't worth the few minutes of play they provide.

Hard Rubber Chews

4 Paws - Hard rubber chews, like Kongs, provide for lots of chewing time, but not all of my dogs like grapping something they don't have much chance of putting a dent in.