Pet/Companion Animal Tips

[Darcy]

For dogs who play with other dogs, jump fences, or hike off-leash, I recommend Break-Away Collars. They could save your dog's life.

What are your pet/companion animal tips?

[bnett]

For those that like to play disc with their dogs (a true passion for my aussie and me), I love the discs from the guys at HyperFlite. My dog will puncture most normal discs with the first catch, but the Jawz discs last forever!

Regards,
Brian

[Nana8]

For dogs who play with other dogs, jump fences, or hike off-leash, I recommend Break-Away Collars. They could save your dog's life.

What are your pet/companion animal tips?

Great point, Darcy! This is a fabulous product and saved the life of our now 16 month old Jack Russell terrier, Libby. She was in the car with our 14 y/o diabetic Wire Fox Terrier, Ollie. He was not doing well on his insulin adjustment and we had stepped out of the car to fill the gas tank. We were right next to the car and watching both dogs. Libby was trying to get our attention and was bouncing back and forth when her leash caught on one of the seat belt connections. For a horrifying second she dangled over the back of one seat and then her collar broke away! We would never put a different collar on our babies!

PS - Both pups are rescued.

[Darcy]

Great point, Darcy! This is a fabulous product and saved the life of our now 16 month old Jack Russell terrier, Libby.

Wow! It seems like a lot of pet owners have had this experience. I've always used break-away collars for my cats, but never thought about it for my dogs until recently. Glad Libby is OK.

[Darcy]

For those that like to play disc with their dogs (a true passion for my aussie and me), I love the discs from the guys at HyperFlite.

Any tips on teaching a dog to play disc?

As far as toys go, my (dogs) favorite is West Paw Design. Nice stuff made in Montana.

[bnett]

Any tips on teaching a dog to play disc?

As far as toys go, my (dogs) favorite is West Paw Design. Nice stuff made in Montana.

Agreed, these are great toys. I have two of the Hurleys for tug, and they're pretty tough.

My pup also likes the Planet Dog toys, which manage to be at least as tough but are quite a bit more pliable.

As far as training disc, the guys at Hyperflite have a great DVD and a fun book. The best advice I received was to learn to throw well, otherwise your pup will get frustrated.

BTW, one of the best books on living with dogs: The Culture Clash, by Jean Donaldson.

Brian

[pretzelb]

For those looking for durable toys, the Tuffy dog toys are pretty good. We found we need something rated between 8 to 10 on their scale for our dogs. I tried to find a link to the company but only came up with retailers. Our dog Georgia likes to get to the insides of any stuffed toy but these will last a very long time with her. She did eventually get one of them but it took months and not minutes.

I am about to pick up a Ruff Wear backpack for our problem child Hope so I should be able to review it in a few weeks. We have a Ruff Wear coat for Georgia and we like it's quality.

[bltkmt]

As far as toys go, my (dogs) favorite is West Paw Design. Nice stuff made in Montana.

Thanks for that Darcy...just ordered a bunch of stuff for my Carson.

[Darcy]

Thanks for that Darcy...just ordered a bunch of stuff for my Carson.

Let me know what you think of the toys! For the first time ever, I have a dog who likes toys. It's fun to figure out which toys he likes best, though I am trying not to spoil him! He definitely needs toys, otherwise he'll find a sock or shoe of mine and walk around with it. Never chews or destroys it - just walks around with it.

We plan to make folding dog bowls out of fabric in our factory in the coming weeks. If they're cool enough, we'll sell them on the site. We'll see!

[bltkmt]

Another great toy I found recently, for those with dogs that tend to destroy toys is http://www.muttmops.com/. My dog loves this thing, and it is pretty darn indestructible.

[Nana8]

Wow! It seems like a lot of pet owners have had this experience. I've always used break-away collars for my cats, but never thought about it for my dogs until recently. Glad Libby is OK.

Thanks, Darcy! Libby is wonderful!