Thread: Kongs

Yes, you know the ones. You stuff them with whatever tickles your dog's fancy. For us, it's broken up treats, peanut butter, and tiny slices of cheese. Bandit loves these things, and will carry them around with him even if there's nothing left inside! He's a tough chewer and his Kong is one of the few remaining toys he has. Anyone else use these awesome toys, and if so, what you YOU stuff them with?

I have one of the round ones (below). The kind pictured in Hound Bound's post doesn't even slow her down...too easy :-/. To make it tougher enough for her, I put a small (toy-size) milk bone on the end w/ the smaller hole, and fill it up with Kibble (fits just under half her dinner in at once), then add a little water from the faucet to get the kibble damp. Then I spoon in a tablespoon or so of yogurt, and wedge two more milk bones across the big hole entrance so that it's all snugly stuck in place. Then I freeze it for 2-8 hours, depending on how much time I have. After she eats the first cup or so of her dinner, then I give her that...even with all that prep and the fact that it's a solid block, it rarely takes her more than 5-10 minutes to break it open and clean it out.

But hey, that's 5-10 very entertaining minutes for us both

Your picture didn't show up for me :-/ But your dog sounds steadfast in getting those treats! Luckily Bandit isn't one of those dogs that finishes his Kong and then goes crazy for lack of something better to do. He's a good lil' boy 'til he finishes, and then [for the most part] he's sweet afterwards. He knows the Kong is a treat :P We give him one every so often, just not every time we leave the house [thankfully he doesn't get too bored while we're away]. He also likes apples. I would be inclined to throw some of those in there, except for the fear that he may not get to them before they start turning bad :-/

We have a couple small kongs for Dakota but she doesn't really care for them. I imagine if they were constantly stuffed with goodies she'd be more inclinded...but she has a slight weight issue from time to time so that in and of itself really isn't a good option for her. I can't stuff it with kibble either, lol. She won't work for something she gets everyday.

I do love kongs though - they are great toys for most dogs. We use them all the time at the shelter. It really helps take the edge off of staying in a cage all day.

Biscuits in a Kong don't last long here. Esther quickly figured out that, by dropping the Kong down the stairs a few times or throwing it against the wall, she can make the cookie crumble and fall out.

I've had better success with stuffing chunks of Natural Balance meat rolls into the Kong. That keeps her busy for hours.

I usaually dab a little bit of peanut butter over the small hole. Then I drop some kibble in and put a couple teaspoons of yougurt (most of the time mixed with peanut butter, or bananas or both), then more kibble, more yogurt and some type of big biscuit in the end. Then it always goes in the freezer. If not, it ends up taking twice as long to make it as it does for them to empty it. Daisy takes the longest. It's like a big tootsie pop for her. Sandy is the mega chewer. We got the black one for her, so it takes her about twice as long as it was with the red ones. Chewie is our tosser. After Sandy finishes hers, Chewie is still tossing, so her and Sandy race to see who can clean up the kibble first.

Frozen kongs are great. That's what we use at the shelter because not only will it offer the dog more hours of stimulation but it opens more doors for possible stuffings. You can use kibble, canned food, gravy, yogurt, peanut butter...whatever. It's really nice.

I've never tried freezing Kongs, either. Do you just give it to them straight out of the freezer, or let it thaw for a while?

Originally Posted by Shaina

I have one of the round ones (below). The kind pictured in Hound Bound's post doesn't even slow her down...too easy :-/. To make it tougher enough for her, I put a small (toy-size) milk bone on the end w/ the smaller hole, and fill it up with Kibble (fits just under half her dinner in at once), then add a little water from the faucet to get the kibble damp. Then I spoon in a tablespoon or so of yogurt, and wedge two more milk bones across the big hole entrance so that it's all snugly stuck in place. Then I freeze it for 2-8 hours, depending on how much time I have. After she eats the first cup or so of her dinner, then I give her that...even with all that prep and the fact that it's a solid block, it rarely takes her more than 5-10 minutes to break it open and clean it out.

But hey, that's 5-10 very entertaining minutes for us both

I have the one you have. Cassie spends forever trying to get stuff out. I fill it with tiny treats (but not ones that will roll out when the Kong tips) and peanut butter. Sometimes I freeze it, others I don't...but she loves it either way!

Originally Posted by Hound Bound

I've never tried freezing Kongs, either. Do you just give it to them straight out of the freezer, or let it thaw for a while?

I just give them to her right out of the freezer.

Originally Posted by snow

So how do you clean your kongs?

I've heard you can put them through the dishwasher without any problems.

Originally Posted by Dakota Spirit

I've heard you can put them through the dishwasher without any problems.

Yup, top shelf. Done it dozens of times without any problems.

I must have a dozen of the original kong shapes here ranging in size from the large red ones to the blue/white floating size.

Buck loves them and will play for hours with one - without having to add anyting to it. He likes throwing them around. I also have one shaped like a dumb-bell that he likes to play with.

When Tessa was young she would howl and bark when I left for work. I used to put a small amount of kibble in the kong, seal it with peanut butter and freeze it. I'd give it to her immediately before I walked out the door. She was so busy with the kong she forgot to be upset about me leaving.

I also like the Natural Balance meat roll, I cut small pieces add peanut butter stuff into the Black Kong's freeze and serve. This is what one does when they need some quiet in an otherwise chaotic house. LOL

I got one for Eddie when he was younger. He never cared for them honestly and they never kept him occupied for more than a few minutes. I put kibble in it and he would get it out within seconds flat. I tried peanut butter and yogurt frozen and not frozen. If it was frozen he wouldn't mess with it until it thawed. If it wasn't frozen he'd just pick it up and drop it several times trying to get the peanut butter or yogurt to squirt out. He does like to take it outside with him on occasion to pick up and drop in the yard because it does a weird bounce that he likes...that's about it.

Uallis actually does like the Kong and he gets it every night before I confine him. He prefers peanut butter in his Kong and it keeps him busy for a long time. He also plays with it without anything in it but I don't really like for him to do that as his Kong is a "night time only" treat. I want to get him another Kong and stuff both of them so he will have double the fun!!

As for cleaning, we don't have a dishwasher. I soak them and use a brush used to clean baby bottles (I don't use it to clean baby bottles ) to scrub the inside.

I use the kong stuffin treats for Snoopy. He goes crazy for them. I haven't tried the peanut butter and kibble mixed in the kong as he isn't really food driven and most times he is so lazy that he won't attempt to get the rest of the treat thats in the kong, only the part sticking out. lol

We stuff them with the kong stuff in the spray cans. They like PB flavor the best so far.