What this meant to us was that suddenly the squeakers in squeaky dog toys didn’t matter for her. Reason being is that these plastic squeakers all seem to come in sizes bigger than her mouth (some bigger than her head)! But, safety was a huge concern. With her delicate health and fragile little body, we needed to make sure her surroundings were completely safe for her – this included all the current dog toys scattered about. What we found was that Pet Stages makes some awesome, non-squeaky dog toys and in different sizes. We had some of their toys for the bigger dogs in the past but seeing their tiny ones, almost cat toy size, just made us all smile. All are made with textures, fabrics, rubber, string or rope that keeps our dogs (and puppies) interested. With Nova teething, these different textures are great for her. When we did further research on this particular group of Pet Stages dog toys, we noticed that some can be put in the refrigerator or freezer to be cooled and used as “real” teething types of chew toys that even human babies would love!!

Anyway, we appreciate any and all of the dog toy companies that consider the size of the dogs these days along with the safety factors for them too. Here (above) are some of our favorites of the Pet Stages safe puppy toys that we have at the house (and office) for play!

Every dog at DogToyStuffz has their personal rescue story but, for us, this one is still hard to believe.  After safely partying New Year’s Eve and driving home New Year’s Day at about 2am, my son, out of the corner of his eye, on a pitch dark night, sees a little creature jump from the sidewalk into the street.  Not only is the night black but so is this tiniest of creatures. Having stopped our car many times to help so many dogs, cats, turtles, misc fowl creatures from certain death, this night was no different. But this little thing was jet black and unimaginably small. I am amazed my son even saw her on the dark street. She was so tiny, had anyone actually hit her with their car, they would have maybe thought they hit a rock. She would have looked like an oil spill and no more!

The next day was a holiday weekend and all our local vets were closed. As we always do, we checked the newpapers, shelters  and various lost animal online listings and no one had called and asked about a little black pup. It wasn’t until Monday that I was able to connect with the vets. No one had reported any black puppy missing, so, the next day I took this little thing to our vet (whom I love – he’s such a great guy, kind, caring and only doing it for the animal’s well-being). Amazingly, at apparently only 6 weeks old, little Nova checked out nicely. He could hear a slight heart murmur, but at this very young age it can be normal to have a little hole in the heart – that is part of how momma helps baby breathe while she’s in her stomach. But we will watch!

Little Nova only weighed 1.4 lbs. I still can’t believe how tiny she is. In the picture below she looks like a little black smudge between Sydney, 65  lbs, and Zeus, 110 lbs.

Welcome Nova to the family at  DogToyStuffz!

Did you play with the Chick-fil-A Cow Appreciation Day event? Maybe, you’re thinking a little more fun like sexy belly dancer or the devil look!

       

I want one of those glow-in-the-dark ones – see the video below – but I don’t know that they make ‘em for dogs! [sigh]

Halloween Street seems to have quite an inventory of halloween costumes. So, if you find something you like… buy it at Halloween Street then… take a picture, we’ll post it here for fun. If you don’t find anything fun, let us know we will try to find out from them if what you need is actually available.

Oprah Winfrey is one of those wonderful celebrities. A few months ago Oprah added to her pack by adopting a couple of shelter puppies. We are sad to report that the adopted puppies were both diagnosed with the deadly parvo virus. One of the puppies didn’t make it, but one of them did. This month, and next, Sadie will help Oprah out with alerting the public to all sorts of animal needs both for dogs as well as for humans!

Tomorrow, May 15^th, Oprah will air her TV show and dedicate it to the dogs. Actress, Glenn Close will also be on. She is a huge dog advocate – we know this from the FetchDog.com website she is affiliated with! Both celebrities will be promoting all sorts of topics around puppies and dogs. Our favorite one, for the moment, is on the topic of service dogs. A wonderful organization, called Puppies Behind Bars, focuses on helping dogs and people. The puppies are actually behind bars with prison inmates. The inmates are trained to raise these puppies to become service dogs for wounded US veterans. We love the intertwining of needs and issues all addressed by this one program.

Anyway, to help promote the Puppies Behind Bars organization, we wanted to give you information on how and where you can help the dogs and people involved in these projects.

One is going to the Puppies Behind Bars site and donating directly:

The other is with some great new dog and puppy chew toys. They are called DogTags and they are chew toys for both puppies and dogs. And, you know our dog and puppy safety concerns! These dog chew toys are made with safe all natural, non-toxic rubber. What’s also cool is that they are molded using the same shoe molds used to make the soles of military boots. We like that connection!

FetchDog is donating $2 of their proceeds from sale of each chew toy. Pretty nice!

Oh, and if you have a special project or item that helps our dog and puppy community, let us know, we’ll gladly create a post about it at DogToyStuffz.com.

Including the puzzle part to this sort of interactive dog toy can lend itself to occupying your dog or puppy’s time away from destructive things and help keep them calm too. And, if you have to leave your dog or puppy home alone while you are away then you’ve got a little bit of a distraction with these toys for a happier fun time for him or her instead of a crying, whining pup.

Some top tips for creating your own interactive dog toy treat puzzles:

1) Frozen Toy Treats – We prefer not to use small ice cube trays unless you have a very small dog or puppy because they are so easily swallowed without much ado. Get a plastic bowl and scatter in a few treats put a layer of water, about ½ full and freeze, and a few more treats, add more water and freeze completely. Take the frozen treat out of the container and leave outside with your dog or puppy! You can put other dog toys in the ice if treats aren’t your desire.

2) Treats in a Bag – Place treats in a paper bag and tie closed. Keep your dog toys safe and DO NOT use plastic or non-digestible bags if eaten. This works for inside and outside but beware the possible torn paper mess and the possibility that the dog will eat the bag too. We suggest brown paper bags as they can be digested. Note that allowing your dog to destroy a bag to get a treat might suggest he or she will go for any bag!! And a special side note – do NOT put the cat in the bag!

3) Hide-and-Seek Treats – Inside the house you can hide little treats in a variety of places just consider dangerous or breakable places that might not be good. Stay away from electrical outlets, wiring and plugs. Don’t place treats around breakable items. We stick to ground-level hiding places so no one is climbing to get their treats. Outside, mainly watch around plants that you care for and things that could be knocked down or hurt your dog. Digging can come from your dog looking for more so watch that. Hide the treats when your dog or puppy isn’t around and let them in or out when you need them entertained.

4) Digging for Treats – This one can be done if you have a place, dirt box or sand box where you are ok having a mess. We’ve created dig boxes using a children’s low hard plastic wading pool, filled it with sand and hide treats. Yes, there can be a mess no matter how well contained it is but it works nicely if you have a digger. It can make a digger out of a dog who isn’t naturally one – so watch that too!

5) Sometimes non-homemade is the way to go, it can be safer for your dogs, puppies and your household.
Lately we’ve been noticing a lot of special attention going towards the Nina Ottosson’s Interactive Puzzle Toys for Dogs. They really are kind of special, originally designed as wooden dog toys, they can also be found in plastic form. These toys are interactive, hold dog treats, and the puzzle part is very cleaver. You don’t need to put in a lot of treats, just small potions, in the special slots if doggy weight is of concern. We have three of these Nina Ottoson interactive dog toy treat puzzles but she has others to choose from as well. We featured some of these dog and puppy interactive toys in an article on Interactive Dog Toy Puzzles with Treat Reward posted in February.

So much, lately, have we been talking about having to be eco-friendly but also being economy-friendly too! Solar power, energy efficiency, recycled goods, remanufactured products, biodegradable items – all of which help the environment but also help our pocket books.

At DogToyStuffz we are committed to safety and protection of not only our dogs but everything around them. So, you’ll start to see a lot of additional hand-picked dog toys with eco-friendly aspects in mind. We’ve had the Planet Dog’s Orbee Glow Ball for a while and we love it. It’s not only made of recyclable materials and non-toxic but Planet Dog is putting 100% of the sales towards their Foundation which supports canine service programs.

We’ve found tons of recyclable eco-friendly, dye-color-free dog and puppy toys. We also have general dog stuff that is all similarly green and eco-friendly. We’ve ordered a few from our dog & puppy toys list and we hope you’ll like our selection.

If you and your dogs have special eco-friendly toys and other dog stuff that uses green, recyclable or recycled materials, let us know. We’ll try to feature it here at DogToyStuffz.com.

1 – Organic Dog Toys – Of organic and eco-friendly concerns, DogToyStuffz is passionate about our dog and puppy toys. Not only can natural and organic dog toys help with pet allergies but, if digested, is a little easier on the body’s system and the eco-system. Organic dog toys also have green-living aspects of being biodegradable and earth-friendly. Look for natural fibers such as those made with cotton, wool, hemp or fleece. Ideally organic dye-free fabric are great too but a little more difficult to find in a dog or puppy toy. And … you all know that we prefer those without the plastic squeaky toy part too. It not only makes the dog toy safer but also adds to its organic and eco-friendly nature!

2 – Bugs, Pests and Flea Control – Use environmentally-friendly, toxin free, natural and organic pest control products – those are made from guave fruit, orange oil, clove oils – safe for us, our children, dogs, puppies, other pets and even birds, lizards and your water too! Flea control can be managed organically as well. Consider, organic soaps with mild insecticides, natural products that feature natural, organic ingredients such a eucalyptus, spearmint, peppermint oil, cinnamon oil, lemon grass oil, thyme oil or neem oil.

3 – Organic Dog Bedding – non-toxic, allergen free dog bedding is not only recommended for your pet but helps with human allergies especially if the dog bed is located in the house. The most popular organic dog beds seem to be those made with cotton and hemp materials.

4 – Water Control and Preservation – Learn to properly collect water. Rain and ground water collection systems are great for all aspects of green living. Water collection systems should not be used for drinking water even for your pets but can be used for bathing purposes for yourself and your dogs. Use this water for garden and lawn care too.

5 – Dog Poop and Cleaning – turn it into biofuel. Well, maybe not so easy to turn your dog poop into biofuel but they are doing it in San Francisco! So, in the meantime, stay eco-friendly here by using biodegradable doggie poop bags. We even found some eco-friendly, flushable dog waste bags. Use products that contain safe enzymes for home cleaning accidents and odor eliminators like Pure Air that is earth-safe too. Consider a doggy septic system. These use natural enzymes to break down the waste and allow it to return to the soil without any environmental damage.

6 – Holistic approach to Health – Over the years we still find that grandma’s home remedies can also help our dogs and puppies. Stomach aches, cuts and scrapes need to be attended to for our dogs as much as they do for us humans. Consider doing your research on natural and holistic remedies that avoid chemicals and preservatives. We love simply boiling chicken and rice with a lot of water (no salt or any special flavoring needed) for tummy aches and managing diarrhea and/or vomiting. If vomiting or diarrhea lasts for more than a day or two definitely seek the attention of your veterinarian. Note the natural products mentioned above for flea control for your dogs. We also believe strongly in physical therapy for certain types of care for our pets. Massage and joint exercise helps with so many ailments and helps with all sorts of recovery situations. We found some good additional information at HolisticDog.org

7 – Dog Foods and Treats – Natural and organic dog foods and treats means there are no added chemicals, no artificial preservatives, flavorings or fillings. Look for foods and treats with no butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), no butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and no ethoxyquin (cancer causing preservatives) – no added grains either which our dogs really don’t need for their diet. There are natural preservatives such as Tocopherols (vitamin E) and ascorbic acid (vitamin C) which are ok for dogs or puppies. We like those that include nutritious proteins, fats, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals. Healthy natural and organic pet foods and treats can help manage allergies, skin ailments, digestive disorders, immune system, and help maintain proper weight for a happier, healthier and long-living dog. There is a ton of information online about natural, organic foods for dogs and puppies. For training and special occasions we select from a variety of natural, organic dog and puppy treats. Zeus loves chicken treats, Sydney prefers the taste of salmon treats and Charlie will eat them all! All are considered human-grade foods – so set the table and let’s eat!

8 – Fuel Economy – Forget the car – walk the dog! A simple solution to an environmental concern – and the best for you both!

Know that this list of tips for an organic and environmentally friendly dog lifestyle could go on and on. We would love to hear your views. We may add some more later. Keeping up on health and making our environment safe for all of us, including our dogs, is a number one priority!

What are your eco-friendly concerns? organic or natural considerations? non-toxic suggestions? Do you know of special dog toys, products or supplies that others would love too? Let us know.

Cheesy Dental KONG Delight:
3 Slices of your pet’s favorite cheese.
Any Dental KONG dog or puppy toy

A very simple and creative way to make any dog or puppy drool in delight. Just place the three slices of cheese directly into the grooves of your dog’s Dental KONG (if model has rope – make sure cheese does not get onto it). Melt in microwave for 20 to 30 seconds. Give to your pet after it cools.

Philly Steak Dog or Puppy Toy Treat:

Steak scraps
1 ounce cream cheese
Appropriate KONG dog or puppy toy

Place small scraps of steak inside KONG toy. Spread cream cheese in large hole to hold scraps.

Aunt Jeannie’s Archeology KONG (for advanced dogs):

Fill your KONG toy (the larger the better!) in layers and pack as tightly as possible. LAYER ONE (deepest): KONG Stuff’N Beef and Liver treats. LAYER TWO: KONG Stuff’N Tail Mix or dry dog kibble, Cheerios, sugar-free, salt-free peanut butter (picj a safe brand), dried banana chips, apples and apricots. LAYER THREE: carrot sticks, turkey or leftover ravioli or tortellini. The last item inserted should be an apricot or piece of ravioli, presenting a smooth “finish” under the main opening. – by Jean Donaldson

KONG on a Rope:

KONG Stuff’N Tail Mix or dry dog kibble
Appropriate KONG dog or puppy toy
Rope

Pull the rope through the KONG toy and knot it. Hang this upside down from a tree, deck or post. The small hole should be facing the ground. Fill the large hole of the KONG toy with KONG Stuff’N Tail Mix or dry dog kibble. Make the toy hang just high enough that it is out of your dog or puppy’s reach. Your dog will spend hours trying to retrieve the treats from the KONG toy. At the end of the day, take the remaining treats and give to your pet as a reward. This is advanced work for your dog. – by Ian Dunbar

Frozen Jerky Pops:

Peanut butter (make sure it’s a safe brand!)
Bouillon
Jerky Strips • Water
Appropriate KONG dog or puppy toy

Muffin tin. Smear a small amount of peanut butter over small hole in your KONG toy. Fill with cool water and add a pinch of bouillon. Place a Jerky Stick inside KONG toy and freeze. This can also be put (once frozen) in a children’s size swimming pool for a fun day of fishing for your dog or puppy. – by Terry Ryan

Simple, Tried and True Yummy Treat:

Peanut butter or KONG Stuff’N Peanut Butter Paste (always choose a safe brand, pls!)
Appropriate KONG dog or puppy toy

Smear a small amount of peanut butter or KONG Stuff’N Peanut Butter Paste inside the cavity of your KONG toy. It’s that easy! KONG Stuff’N Liver Paste, KONG Stuff’N Breath Treat or KONG Stuff’N Puppy Treat also work great. – by trainers and vets worldwide.

These particular removable squeaker dog toys can be found under the names of Kong Material Dog Toys or Dr Noys’ Dog Toys with Kong referring to their own products under both labels. It seems these soft plush safe dog toys definitely have the strong double Velcro closure that we like which allows us to remove the squeaker from the dog toy – the squeaker is in its own separate pouch. We also noticed that these particular Kong dog toys are designed with no messy filling or removable stuffing so there’s no “stuffz” that ends up all over the place if the toy is dissected.

We really like a lot of the Kong dog toys (you’ll find more below). Being that I, Zeus, am a 110 lb pretty large guy, large dog toys are what I go for! Lots of them will also allow me to play tug-of-war with my buddy Charlie. But, Kong is good to consider even the tiniest toys for small dogs. Do note that the extra-small dog toys really are extra small and great for miniature and toy dog breeds. You’ll see they have sizes from x-small all the way to x-large if needed. You can find all the individual Kong removable squeaker dog toys we liked on our Dog and Puppy Toys page so you can pick the one you like best.

We noticed some reviews suggesting replacing the squeaker with a tennis ball. We love that suggestion and the large dog toys have the room to put a tennis ball in place of the squeaker which makes us even happier with regard to our safety concerns and doggy fun. Many other reviews we’ve read seem to be nicely satisfied with their purchases of these safe dog toys. We can’t wait to give these cute plush removable squeaker dog toys a try.

We need to set a doggy play date! Bring your toys.