The debate on to buy or not to buy dog tug toys is long not over yet and doubtfully soon to be over. If you request the opinion of a selection of dog experts for their opinion regarding dog tug toys, each will give you a different individual answer.
The most concerns raised relates to the aggression of dogs and the provocation of unruly behaviour that may result from playing tug with the animal. The argument is endless as to whether the type of breed or the temperament of the individual animal or the tug play itself is to blame. However, the majority feels that the way in which you play tug with your dog is more important whether you should be playing tug of war at all.
Deep beneath the fur coat of your beloved best friend the heart and instinct of a wolf remains. It does not matter for how long we claim to have domesticated dogs, their instinct remain.
In order to prove that playing tug of war with your dog does not influence the relationship between a dog and his owner a proper study was conducted in 2002. At the end of the study, the conclusion was made that playing tug with your dog does not aggravate or inflicts aggression or have a negative influence on your relationship.
Now that you know it is safe for you to play the tug game, you need to keep the following in mind before you go out to buy the tug toy.
You don’t want to have a dog tug toy that unravels easily. Especially if it is a small dog with teeth packed closely together to prevent strings to be caught between their teeth. Your choice of dog tug toy should be of good quality and have reasonable durability. Don’t play tug with your dog, no matter how small, with clothing or household items at all. By allowing that, you teach him that it is acceptable to drag your socks around and rip the couch apart.
Our friends with the smaller and sharper fangs are risks when it comes to chewing the tug toy. As a rule, larger breeds of dogs don’t invest too much of their time chewing. Another defining factor will be the grip that both of you will have on the toy. Remember there is always a possibility that you can yank one of your best friend’s teeth by pulling to hard.
Apart from buying the right dog tug toy, you need to ensure that it is used in a safe manner for both you and your K9 companion. By no means you must allow your dog to hang down in the air as he clutch on to the tug toy with his mouth as this is very harmful for their teeth and jaws.
In the event where the animal starts to act too vehemently, immediately let go the toy and walk away. Make sure your dog understand that using the tug toy is a form of play. When you want to play take out the toy and once the game is over put the toy away again. Do not leave the dog tug toy lying around.