[Maschka1]

I was curious if anyone had any good suggestions for those puzzle or treat dispensing toys. I started to feed my kids their kibble in them and they are really enjoying it, except they are so darn easy!
We have a Kong Wobbler, a Tug-a-Jug and a Hol-ee treat ball, but they figure them out so fast and I am worried that they may be getting bored with them. Plus My frenchie doesnt eat as much food as the other two, so I am looking for something that might slow her down so she doesnt think she needs to steal the Doberman's toys.
My youngest Dober-girl thinks the whole world is a puzzle (she is constantly trying to find the switch or button on everything she encounters- she is sure everything needs to be activated in order to perform a higher function. lol)

So any ideas or toys you guys have found to be stimulating and interactive enough to occupy the brilliance of a Doberman brain? or that dont just take brawn to get the food out (that is the bulldog's method- just hit the thing harder and more food is sure to come out):roflmao:

 

[KCFilley]

I'll be curious to see what others come up with too. I have a large rubber ball with a maze passageway inside but it's too easy and the treats seem to fall thru fairly fast. I also have a Star Mark dispensing toy that's adjustable but it's hard on my woodwork, especially when Joe starts beating it around. We save that for outside.

It doesn't dispense food but my guys seem to like the Everlast toys with the hard treat insert and they seem to last fairly long. The treat is probably not healthy at all and the replacements are expensive. I also like to smear peanut butter and yogurt inside a kong and freeze it. Taylor likes Antlers and they all like raw knuckle bones from the butcher.

 

[faranim]

We fall back on the frozen peanut butter filled kong most of the time. I have yet to find any sort of puzzle toy that looks like it would work.

 

[Zeblar]

I too have the Kong Wobble and I can hand on heart say Odin has never ever lost interest in it. Whenever we give it to him, he attacks it like no tomorrow until he has got all the treats out. Its kind of funny when he can't get that last one but can hear its rattling around inside when he punches it about the floor!

Here in Germany we can buy a lot of intelligence toys but we haven't tried then, I have always wanted to though, have yet to convince the hubby to buy one haha maybe something like this could be what you are after?

Intelligenzspielzeug für Hunde - Shop - Fressnapf
(Sorry its in German but you can see the designs and whatnot!)

 

[Maschka1]

Thanks for the link, Zeblar, some of those look like fun. Now I just have to find those in the US

I recently started working with a behaviorist and she suggested using these types of toys, instead of bowls, to feed the dogs. She is a big fan of them. The dogs seem to really enjoy it. I have also heard that it can be good for the older dogs to help with dementia symptoms (like when older people start to lose their mind, and we tell them to do more brain teazer puzzles). Anyway, My 8 yr old has been showing some potential minor signs of the early stages of dementia, so I want to do anything I can to help him prolong its onset.

I have used frozen Kongs, too, but I am looking for something that is more interactive and can be used in loo of feeding them in a bowl.
thanks for the ideas.

KCFilley-Where did you find the star mark toy? I have never heard of that one.

 

[ajp240]

We use this toy: Amazon.com: Jolly Pets Monster Mouth Dog Toy: Pet Supplies It is harder than the average one to get the treats/food out of. I don't know if you could feed an entire meal out of it, since the one I have fits about 1/4 cup of food in it at the most. It keeps mine busy for awhile though. It isn't what I would call an intelligence builder, but it wobbles around a little, and they can get quite obsessive over it!

 

[KCFilley]

Here are my guys' chew toys that are fillable. The one on the left says Star Mark is the mfgr and it's called a Bob-A-Lot. I bought it at Petland. The blue and orange ones are the Everlast that I fill with a hard chew. It will last the girls forever but Joe can make it through in a couple of evenings. He's a relentless chewer.

Here's a link to most of the fillable chew toys we have. Interactive treat dispensing toys for dogs

I fill these with peanut butter; frozen yogurt; cream cheese; Yummy Chummies (salmon treats); Texas Hold 'ems (lamb); and Royal Cain Bulldog kibble. I don't feed Royal Cain but I use the kibble as it's larger and stays in the toys better.

 

[lestat1978]

Ivan has and still loves the Kong Wobbler. However, he's an expert at unscrewing it and then chewing on the plastic threads.

The Everlast Treat Ball is a joke. Ivan can easily squeeze the thing the right way to have the treat discs pop out. A lady at the store warned me her dog did the same thing all the time. Should have listened to her.

Any of the dispensers that have the little rubber "fingers" that hold the treats in don't work either. He'll just rip the little rubber fingers off so that the treats fall out.

The Kong Stuff-A-Ball and regular Kong hold up well and Ivan does use them, but they aren't his favorites.

 

[MeadowCat]

Shanoa loves the Kong Wobbler, but it doesn't last all that long. I've found the Buster Cube takes her longer to get everything out. It's kind of loud and obnoxious, but it's one of my top choices for food dispensing toys.

Not to derail, but how's it going with the behaviorist? Shanoa just had a recheck with ours today, and we're doing some playing around with meds.