If you’re like me, many of the people in your life are dog lovers. Perhaps you like to buy new and fun toys for your own dog, but you might also give gifts to your friends’ dogs during gift giving seasons. After all, how can you possibly get a gift for those special people and not include their favorite canines?
There are fun and inexpensive dog toys and chews – especially during the holiday shopping season – that can be tempting to buy. But be careful! Some toys and chews can be very dangerous. Inexpensive toys made of rubber or latex can be loaded with toxins. And some common types of chews are flat-out dangerous for some dogs.
China, as a puppy, with a new toy
I learned this the hard (but lucky) way. When China was a puppy, I used to give her rawhide chews. She’d happily chomp through them with gusto and delight and beg for more. That stopped, however, when she suddenly started passing large undigested hunks of rawhide in her stool. My vet told me about the many surgeries he has performed over the years on dogs with pieces of rawhide caught in their digestive tracts. There are too many instances where the problem was discovered too late. His perspective is that you should never give rawhide to a dog that tends to swallow large hunks of food. They’re less likely to chew the pieces into small enough bits to be safely passed through their systems.
Here’s a good blog article that talks about choosing safe toys for dogs — and the Pet Research site itself is a great reference site.
So when you’re shopping for those fun pet toys and goodies — please stop, think, and make sure you’re buying safe items!
Of course, I’d love it if you’d check out the selection of eco-friendly, safe, and rugged toys on The Camping Dog Supplies website, as well….
To help you understand just how serious an issue this is, watch this news report on the subject of lead in toys and its effects. It’s scary stuff!
