What to stuff

Basically, you can stuff anything hollow which is safe for your dog to chew!

Make sure that whatever you stuff is safe (ie that it won’t shatter, splinter, harm the dog’s teeth and isn’t make of any toxic substances) and clean. We clean everything between each use – why treat the dog’s crockery and cutlery any different to our own?!

Here are our top tips for things to stuff:

Classic kongs – Hollow, conical shaped, rubberised toys, which are available in a range of sizes and rubber types to suit different size and age dogs.

Kong imitations – The success of the kong has lead to lots of similar hollow toys being produced. Make sure you’re happy with the quality of them (ie that they won’t disintegrate after a few chewing sessions) before giving them to your dog. Some also come with rubber ‘flaps’ partially covering the larger hole that the food comes out of – these can be cut to make it easier for the dog to obtain the food, or left in place to make it really challenging.

Tennis balls – When your dog has chewed into his favourite tennis ball you can use it as a fun kong replacement. Other hollow balls, especially for this purpose, are also available. The dog will enjoy rolling the ball and playing with it as they’re eating their tasty treat! – Thanks to Lilly for this suggestion.

Cardboard boxes – These are great to stuff and allow your dog a bit of ‘permitted’ destruction, just be careful that the box doesn’t have staples in it or other sharp fixings. Put the treat in the box and seal it shut. Cut small holes in the box so your dog can smell the treats and gain access to them. When your dog gets good at this you can put boxes inside boxes so there’s more of a challenge to get the treat. This is fun for the dog and fun for you to watch – the only downside is clearing up the shreds of cardboard afterwards! – Thanks to Misty for this suggestion.

Calcium bones – when the original filling from calcium bones has been devoured, we wash them out and re-use them with our own stuffings. Make sure that you bin any that are cracked or so chewed that bacteria could be lurking in the chew marks.

Got other ideas? Then please let us know so we can add them onto the site!