Bionic Ball – Medium (Review)

I have to share this little gem I got at the Love Your Pet Expo back in 2011. Mom was talking to the vendor (sorry don’t remember the name) and they said that this was a great ball because it bounces in different directions because of it’s shape. This Bionic Ball is a very thick rubber with a large hole in the middle and ridges along the edge, these make is bounce in random directions when it hits the ground. I have to say, I love it! This ball is always loaded and ready to go in my tennis ball thrower because it is one of the few heavy duty balls that fit.

Well I have to admit, this is a size medium which is supposed to be for 15-35lb dogs, but if you want to use the tennis ball thrower that is the size you need, otherwise I still would not hesitate to grab a large or x-large if I see one, well I would ask Mom to get it for me, she is a sucker for the look.

Pros:
Heavy duty!!
Bounces unpredictable directions
Fits in tennis ball thrower

Cons:
Not found at the big pet stores so you can’t get a feel for it

Recommend:
YUP! If you love to fetch balls, then grab this in medium, if you just like to carry balls then it would probably be best to grab their recommended size.

Price:
Approx $6 for medium size from Amazon

Bionic Ball

Bionic Ball

Bionic Ball

Bionic Ball

Bionic Ball

Bionic Ball

Remember to brush your teeth! Dental Bone Review

Since it is Pet Dental Month I wanted to share my favorite way to brush my teeth. Nope, it doesn’t involve a toothbrush or one of those finger brushes, it’s a treat! Mom gets these Checkups Dental Bones from Costco and I get one everyday after dinner. I like these better than the other “Kirkland Dental Chews” that Costco offers. It’s not a matter of taste its the size. For a big mouth like mine those small chews are gone fast and don’t really make it to many parts of my mouth. With the Checkups they are larger and take me longer to chew. Due to the size I tend to work harder at it and I think more teeth end up touching it. Texture wise I think I would say its chewy, basically it doesn’t just break apart when chew, your teeth have to sink into it and work it apart.

Pros:
Great for big dogs
Tastes great
No Corn, Wheat or Soy (they make me itchy)

Cons:
Even in broken in half, too much for smaller dogs (bag lists smallest dog weight at 20lb)
Costco seems to always be running out!

Recommend:
Yep, taste great and even if they only take a little bit of plaque off, it’s better than nothing.

Do they really work?
Not sure, I am not a doggie dentist, but the vet has always said Trey and I have pearly whites and healthy gums.

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Checkups Dental Bones

Dogbon Dog Bone Review

I thought I would share with you one of my older toys, my Dogbon Rubber Chew Bone.   Most of my older toys only lasted because they were at the bottom of the toy box or they are truely durable.  This toy falls under super durable and super fun!  It is a semi-clear rubber bone, looking at it I would normally say it is nothing special but to me it is.  It’s special to me because it makes fun sounds, well it doesn’t, I do!  Normally when I chew on my Nylabone there is just a standard grinding sound, but when I chew on this I manage to make a squishy squeaky sound sound that sounds like two pieces of wet rubber rubbing together.  If I am not in the mood for Nylabone but want to chew this is my first choice, I will dig to the bottom of my chew toy box just to find it.  What is nice is after all this time I only have teeth marks on it, no chunks missing yet.

Pros:
Durable
Fun Colors
More give than a Nylabone, but has taken more bites
If you drop it on the floor, being rubber it does less damage
Much like a Kong but a little more slippery texture (probably why I can make my funny sounds)

Cons:
Harder to find, as of now I only see a small one listed on Petsmart’s website and none on Petco. I think I got mine at Petsmart 2 years ago.
A REALLY HARD chewer might kill

Recommend:
Yep, although I haven’t killed mine I could see a bigger mouth that wants to kill it would take off chunk unlike a Nylabone, but if toys like the Kong toys work for you then this should.

Price:
Approx $12 from petprojekt.com

DogBon Dog Bone

DogBon Dog Bone

Kong Series- 1 My First Kong

These next couple weeks I am planning on doing reviews on just Kong products. As a chewer, Kong products are usually on the go-to list when looking for new toys.

How best to start off this series of Kong, but with my first Kong. That’s right, mom kept it! What better for a puppy than a pacifier aka Kong Binkie. Now this Kong is designed for puppies because it is a soft rubber that normal chewers would decimate in short time. Since this is a softer rubber and puppies are chewers make sure you do supervise the little tikes, afterall we grow so fast and it’s only a matter of time until this soft rubber is too soft. Not long ago Anderson Vet Clinic posted to their Facebook page about a chunk of Kong they had to remove from a dog that tore one apart and swallowed.

So here is a picture of mine, you can’t really see it but there are a bunch of teeth marks down at the bottom which was mom’s cue that it was time to get an adult Kong toy. The real shocker is how I didn’t chew off the handle, what was I thinking. But that does bring up a bad side of this toy, I can see that handle coming off with baby chewers and being eaten, so once again SUPERVISE US!

Pros:
Great for puppies
Gives pups something positive to chew on
CUTE!

Cons:
The handle could be a weak point to chew off and swallow.

Recommend:
Yes! But only while supervised. Actually I would recommend the classic shaped Kong Puppy over the Binkie for safety reasons. If you go with the Binkie make sure you watch the wear on this toy, once you start seeing good teeth marks, its time to take it away because it wont be long until that handle is gone.

Price:
Approx $9 from Petsmart.com

My First Kong

My First Kong

Nylabones or Prison Shanks?

I wanted to show you a collection of what mom calls the best chew toy for me, my Nylabones or as I call them, my prison shanks.

Me and My Prison Shanks

Mine!

I am very hard on my toys unlike my brother Trey, so mom likes to make sure I always have these around.  Mom and Dad said, before me they never knew Nylabones actually wore down like these.  Prior to my arrival in the family anytime Mom or Dad saw a used Nylabone there was nothing more than a few teeth marks, but I showed them.  I have to say I really recommend these for hard chewers like me, they work great for those times when you are really bored, want to play tug-o-war or need to get a human’s attention.  I find if you drop that giant Galileo on their feet it wakes them up and if you spend the time to sharpen them to a point, they make a great poking stick as dad calls them prison shanks.

They have different types of Nylabones, for me I get the “Chew” or “Dura Chew”, which are like hard plastic however they are actually made of Nylon (hence the name).  They also have edibles and other types rubber ones but Mom doesn’t get those for me.  Since they do wear down be sure to toss them when they get small enough to become a choking hazard, I have a feeling at least one of mine will be disappearing soon for that reason.

Pros:
Perfect for hard chewers
Available in different sizes
Available in different flavors (once again BACON!!)
Typically Lasts a Long time

Cons:
Not for everyone, Trey didn’t like these until I came along and he still only chews on them when he knows I want to.
Can become choking hazard once worn down or if you get one that is too small.  I personally like the Giant and Souper sizes for my doberman mouth.  Although that “Galileo” one is a bit to big.

Recommend:
YES!  Well yes for us powerful chewers.   My personal recommendation, BACON flavor, although the beef and liver are good too.  Now if only Nylabone would come out with a horse hoof flavored ones, that is my 2nd favorite treat made by horses, my 1st favorite I always get yelled at for eating.;)

Where to find:
Nearly any pet store but Amazon has really good prices and mom always puts in an order for me if she is ordering something else.  If you are not sure what size is best for you I recommend going to the pet store first to get a real idea of how big they are.  To big and they wont get chewed on, too small they might be a choking hazard or chewed up too fast.

 

Nylabones

My Nylabone Collection

Nylabones

I can’t resist!