[midnight mojo]

I've been looking at these puzzles for a while and wondered if anyone has experience with them? I found a pretty good article from Whole Dog Journal that reviewed several of them but would love to hear from anyone who has spent time playing with them.

 

[tirluc]

i'm gonna try the "Dog Brick (plastic)" one over the next few days....my neighbour has it and said i could borrow it....i'll let you know how it goes w/ my crew (one at a time)....

 

[MrsJohnnyG]

They are in my Amazon shopping cart (and have been for a few weeks) but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. They seem perfect for my pups who love problem-solving. I will read that article and will probably end up buying one... let us know if you do too and how your pup likes it.

 

[midnight mojo]

I didn't realize they were even on Amazon! I was looking at getting them from olivegreendog.com or smartiedog.com. At roughly $50 per they are kind of pricey--I'm wondering how well they hold up. I'd also like to know if they would be manageable for a very small dog (4 lbs). I've read some reviews on sites in the UK where people talk about them being a little stiff for the dog to manipulate but they didn't mention how big their dogs were.

 

[MrsJohnnyG]

I checked my shopping cart and it looks like Amazon just sells them through a third party... thanks for sharing the links as well as what you've heard about them.

 

[CrazyDog]

Hummm, I've never heard of them till now. They look like lots of fun! I bet Lula would love them...........

Lula has a buster cube and a couple other treat finding toys but she has figured out how to get the treats out in seconds now.......... Maybe these will take her longer to figure out.......

Sorry I'm of no help to your questions but thanks for the links and info....... I'm going to check them out. If I get one for Lula I will post a review.

 

[tirluc]

hey, just tried it w/ Lacey....i didn't do anything except fill it, put it on the floor and let her figure it out....a little "unorthodox" in her methods (didn't exactly follow the rules) but she got them all out in 2 min and 27 sec....here's the vid...



i'll try the others here, as well, and let you know....

 

[midnight mojo]

Well she looked like she enjoyed herself! Do the pieces move pretty easily?

 

[tirluc]

yeah, they do....the bones were a little hard to nose out and i think that's why she just used her feet (but, she's always been very "handsy").....but the doors slid pretty easy, your little one should be able to do it ok....might even have an easier time w/ the bones as the nose is smaller and can get between the gaps better....

 

[Westhighlander]

yeah, they do....the bones were a little hard to nose out and i think that's why she just used her feet (but, she's always been very "handsy").....but the doors slid pretty easy, your little one should be able to do it ok....might even have an easier time w/ the bones as the nose is smaller and can get between the gaps better....

That's a lot of money for roughly 3 minutes and I assume she'll get it done faster and faster. They looked so promising.

 

[pamperedpups]

That's what I'm thinking, West. Hiding treats in boxes, blankets, sandboxes, etc. takes my dogs longer to figure out, is less predictable, and way cheaper!

 

[tirluc]

this is Lacey we're talking about here, tho....the blanket, box, etc didn't take her but about 30 sec at most....when it comes to puzzles, Lacey has always been quite quick to figure them out....Tir, Titch and Saoirse, i'm guessing, will take considerably longer....they just aren't puzzlers like Lacey....i don't even think a maze would stump her for long.....

 

[hulkamaniac]

For 2.5 mins of fun it is a little pricy. I paid like $15 for my tug a jug and it takes my dog at least an hour to an hour and a half to figure it out. He's not the sharpest tack in the box though.

 

[pattymac]

I got the dog spinny and it took Bayley no time to figure it out. I only give it to her the odd time when she's really bored.

 

[MrsJohnnyG]

That's a lot of money for roughly 3 minutes and I assume she'll get it done faster and faster. They looked so promising.

Hmm, maybe I'll spend $20 on a good game of chess for them instead.

 

[tirluc]

i do agree that it is way over priced...even if it took the dog an hr to figure out, it's a lot.....i do think i'll stick w/ the box, towel, etc since i doesn't take mine that much to figure out.....or, maybe the whole point of these is not for your/my dog to figure out how, but for you/me to teach the more "civilized" way of doing it w/out pushing the whole thing around....but, i thought that most games like this were for the dog to figure out not be taught....oh, well, glad i borrowed it and not paid for it.....

 

[Skeeski]

I'm glad I found this thread. I was just going to spring for one of these at Wet Nose tomorrow. By the looks of it, it's not taking any ones dog too long to figure it out, I'll just have to use my head and make something a little more challenging lol. Thanks for the info everyone

 

[PawsPup]

Have any of you guys tried this version of the Nina Ottosson toys?

http://www.pet-supermarket.co.uk/erol.html#1030X44116


Any thoughts?

Paws

 

[hulkamaniac]

Hmm, maybe I'll spend $20 on a good game of chess for them instead.

One of these days I'm gonna teach my dog to play chess.

 

[baxterboy]

They are pricey, but my dog really likes them. I save them for when I am at work. Just makes me feel like he's getting a bit of mental stimulation when I'm gone. But, Baxter is a little 7 lb. havanese. Not very 'handsy' so it takes him longer to get the bones out. The toy gives him about 15 minutes or so of hunting.... The spinny is the easiest. We have the tornado which is the hardest---- not so hard that he hasn't figured it out, just it takes him longer