Two New Toys + An Old Stand-By

I went to Petsmart last week and saw that Toys R Us dog toys had been marked down. I couldn't resist, so I bought the second puzzle toy. (I reviewed the other one last month.) This toy is also a round, hollow box about the size of a dinner plate. There are four holes cut into the top cover. Inside those holes fit four, blue cups. Once the dog removes the cups, the entire top spins and the dog can access eight cavities for hiding treats. Like the other toy, this one has a tension knob underneath that increases the difficulty level. Non-skid pads are on the bottom so that the dog doesn't push the toy all over the floor. For giggles, I fed Jedi his lunch in the new toy. He figured this puzzle out faster than the last one, pulling the cups out right away. However, the non-skid pads are useless when the dog picks up the toy and lays it on his leg. This forces all the food to one hole, so the spinning top isn't much of a challenge either. Perhaps I should sign Jedi up to beta test puzzle toys. Maybe it'll save me some money! 

We picked up a second toy at Academy Sports for about $10. This one's called The Doggie Bag. It's a burlap sack about the size of a one-pound sugar bag. Inside is a plastic orb, about the size of a racquetball. You need to insert 3 AAA batteries (not included) using a tiny Phillip's head screwdriver (also not included) before the dog can play with the toy. GRRR. The ball is motion sensitive. When you drop or move the bag it whines, barks and bounces all over the floor for 10 seconds. It's annoying as hell, but Jedi likes it. Go figure. He'll bat the bag around until I can't stand it any more (about 5 minutes). Roxy hates this toy. When we first got it she would leave the room as soon as it started to move. Now she picks it up and throws it into the kitchen. And we thought she was the "not-so-bright" one.


On a happier (and cheaper) note, Jedi is learning to fetch. He'll bring the ball back 4 or 5 times before he gets bored. The hard part is trying to play without Roxy around. Roxy -- who never liked to fetch before now -- gets jealous and will grab the ball before Jedi can get it. Even worse, I have to hide the balls when we're done because Roxy likes to chew them in half. Bitch. Anyway, it's a beautiful day so I'm going to cut this short and go play with the dogs. How about you? Why not grab a ball and play fetch with your dog? -- K