Have toys won't play

[luzmery928]

O.k so my husband and I went to the pet store to buy some interactive toys for our B since he seemed to enjoy the plastic bottle stuffed with treats…We bought him a Kong and two interactive toys that are similar to the Kong. Champ was happy at first playing with one toy then the other and after 5 min. he lost all interest. Great!! There goes 30 bucks down the drain and my clothes and shoes are still in danger. What a little brat.

[gbroxon]

What did you put in the toys?

[Vanessa]

Sometimes you will find that the best toys are the ones that come from the home The expensive shoes, the pants you love, etc.
Everytime I do the wash I end up one sock missing. I swear my washing machine eats it. Anyway…I just tie it up in knots and give it to our little guy. He loves it and hey...It saves you some cash on those expensive toys

[jessi76]

i agree w/ Vanessa! cheap toys can be found around the house….

toilet paper or paper towel rolls are GREAT! fold one end in, put in a few treats or kibble so it "rattles" and fold the other end. let pup destroy it for the treats.

soda bottles work well too, but make sure the plastic ring, the cap, and the label has been removed. fill w/ a few kibble pieces and let pup smack it around to get them out.

boxes work good too - empty tissue boxes or other cardboard boxes. fill w/ a toy or treat.

I give my dog whole raw carrots (peeled and ends cut off) to chew on instead of buying new chew things often (nylabones, bully sticks). it's a nice treat every now and then and helps clean teeth. (makes a bit of an orange mess though!)

use your imagination, find some tubes or boxes around the house, be sure no choking hazards, and supervise, and you'll have some cheap fun!

[luzmery928]

O.k thanks. Well I filled it with treats and that peanut butter goog they sell at the pet store. ?…if he chews on boxes and things of the sort hurt his stomach? By the way I came home and the treat was missing from one of the toys...Wish I could see what goes on here when we are gone

[jessi76]

i highly doubt cardboard would upset his stomach, but as I mentioned above, there must be SUPERVISION. your dog shouldn't be ingesting toys anyways.

I never buy the stuff sold at the pet store to fill the kong - I use regular peanut butter, cream cheese, yogurt, dog food, cheese, etc….

[luzmery928]

That's wonderful news both about the made at home toys and and the food we can all enjoy. Will try those now. Thanks.

[Vanessa]

@jessi76:

I never buy the stuff sold at the pet store to fill the kong - I use regular peanut butter, cream cheese, yogurt, dog food, cheese, etc….

I actually tried the peanut butter goo for the kong and that stuff is NASTY. Super salty. No wonder my little guy hates the stuff. Peanut butter is great and tastes good too~:D

Experminent with different types of food/treats.
HAVE FUN!!!

[luzmery928]

yeah I tasted that thing too and well it was gross but I thought that was what everyone in the forum was giving there dogs..didn't think about the yummy human peanut butter, now we can both loung in front of the tv with some pb. Well just got some boxes from staples from office delivery..i'll see what I can come up with…My daughter is crafty so she can help

[Vegas]

Next time try putting it on the coffee table for them to steal. Basenjis have more fun if they think they're breaking the law.:D

[MaxBooBooBear]

@Vegas:

Next time try putting it on the coffee table for them to steal. Basenjis have more fun if they think they're breaking the law.:D

ha ha ha. You are so right! My B never liked or played with toys. But he loved to shred paper. I would put magazines (after I read them) on the coffee table or the bed, etc., so that he had things to shred while I was at work. It was part of my weekly housecleaning to pick up all his shreaded paper. He was better than a paper shreader for stuff I needed to get rid of with personal info on it

[youngandtired]

My B loves to steal stuff, usually my stuff. She goes after things she knows are Mommy's so I will chase her. Tonight I started reading a new catalog I got in the mail today and after finishing it I threw it down on the floor next to my recliner. Don't you know that my B, Sahara, the little rascal ran off with it. So I decided to ignore her and went to the bathroom and here she comes following me with that thing in her mouth, it was so funny. Well, she dropped it and that was it. No interest on my part, no running off with my stuff. Case closed, you gotta love those Basenjis!!!! haha!!!!!

[Vanessa]

@youngandtired:

My B loves to steal stuff, usually my stuff. She goes after things she knows are Mommy's so I will chase her. Tonight I started reading a new catalog I got in the mail today and after finishing it I threw it down on the floor next to my recliner. Don't you know that my B, Sahara, the little rascal ran off with it. So I decided to ignore her and went to the bathroom and here she comes following me with that thing in her mouth, it was so funny. Well, she dropped it and that was it. No interest on my part, no running off with my stuff. Case closed, you gotta love those Basenjis!!!! haha!!!!!

Ha! SoooooTruuueee! I've nicknamed our puppy to "Bandit" He takes anything that isn't his…Just the other day I walked away from my food and he decided to help himself. I was in my office..I realized something was wrong when I heard silence. Silence + Basenji = TROUBLE :p He ate my dinner. But he was so good at acting like he did nothing. The only way I could figure out was his breath! hahahha:rolleyes:

[Vegas]

My first and most clever basenji would do a bait and switch. He loved cappucino. My father would always come home with one after work, and Mowgli would immediately set his eyes on the prize. Once he ran to the back door, and began scratching frantically like "I've got to poop right now! 911! 911!" My dad ran to the back door to let him out, and Mowgli ran the opposite direction around the house. While Dad was wondering, "What happened to Mowgli? Where'd he go?" Mowgli had already stolen the cappucino off of the end table, and ran into another room carrying it (without spilling its precious contents mind you). He had it behind a couch ferociously lapping up the contents. By the time Dad realized what had happened it was way too late. Now he had to find where the little shite was hiding before he could get his cappucino back, and let alone administer the appropriate admonishment. He would bait my Father away from his cappucino using various methods over the next year or two(interspersed of course, he wouldn't want to look too obvious). It took a few times for Dad to finally overcome Mowgli's supreme trickery!

He would also stalk up on people reading the newpaper in the living room. It really offended him when people would park their face behind that much paper, completely ignoring him. So, he'd sneak up ever so quietly right in front of them, and right when they were lost in the troubles of the war, or political battles he would remind them what was important in life. HE WAS!!! He'd snatch it out of their hands, and take off running with it, as it was torn to shreds under his fast basenji feet.

I've had Dogs since Mowgli, but he was truly my "once in a lifetime" dog.

Vegas

[jenwilson]

Hollie likes her Kong, but only when there's food/peanut butter in it. I don't invest alot in stuffed toys, because she destroys them. There are a couple of stores here where I can buy $1.00 plush toys. It's worth a $1.00 just to watch her "kill" the squeaky inside, destuff it and then continue to play with the "shell" of the toy.

[Vegas]

@jenwilson:

I don't invest alot in stuffed toys, because she destroys them.

That's "gutting" of toys has got to be an instinctual trait. The way they stand on it with both front feet, grab hold, and riiiip back. It is fun to watch, but usually over in short order.

[luzmery928]

That is funny becuse I always say that my B only wants what he can't have. Once we give in and give him wha he wants, he looks for something else to steal..Our own little clepto…we are so pround..hahaha

[Miche]

LOL @breaking the law! That says it all!
My only caution about using items such as shoes or socks might be it's hard for them to know it's NOT ok to steal your laundry and everyday shoes. I try to find the fuzzy stuffed animals they like to throw around and maul (again: NOT ok if you have kittens/cats). B's are hard to engage in play at times–they don't consider it a worthwhile occupation of their time if not fully challenged. Chasing and running are fun to them--try and incorporate some of that?

[luzmery928]

Yeah well does chasing and running after them when they take a hold of whatever they know they can't have count?..I mean it, he is such a little clepto. I give him all his toys and boom he comes back in and strecthes those little paws (by the way I've never seen another dog do this before) and will attempt to take whatever he wants. I've given him his own undergarments to rip up (the ones already ruined by Mr. Champ) in order to avoid it taking me 10 hrs to fold the laundry. I do believe u r right, he loves the chase more than the actual item.

[Skeate]

@Vanessa626:

Sometimes you will find that the best toys are the ones that come from the home The expensive shoes, the pants you love, etc.
Everytime I do the wash I end up one sock missing. I swear my washing machine eats it. Anyway…I just tie it up in knots and give it to our little guy. He loves it and hey...It saves you some cash on those expensive toys

I recently tried this out. I found a couple of my husband's old socks and tied them in knots together. This is now Dacia's favorite toy! And she hasn't managed to rip it up yet like she does with stuffed toys.