Smart Dog Toys for Dogs and Their Owners

As a dog trainer, obedience instructor, and a behavioral consultant I know that many of the behaviors that dog owners consider to be problems are the result of boredom and not enough exercise. In addition, in today's busy (and often over-scheduled society) many times dogs are simply not getting enough quality time with their people. I hate to use the phrase 'quality time' because it's over used, but it does convey my point.

I often recommend dog sports and activities so people spend more time with their dog. I tell them they don't have to compete if they don't want to, but at least get the dog outside, do some training, get some exercise, and have fun together.

Well, I now have another tool in my tool bag to help dog owners. I just discovered the Nina Ottosson interactive dog toys. Well, I didn't 'discover' her in that no one else has; I just became aware of her toys. And they are absolutely awesome.

Nina, who lives in Sweden, began Zoo Active Toys in 1993. She has developed a line of smart toys for dogs and other animals that mentally stimulate the animal. She calls them, "brain exercises." The dog has to find hidden treats by pushing pieces, lifting blocks, turning disks, and a variety of other actions. On her website www.nina-ottosson.com she states, "If dogs are not provided with an outlet for their energy in the form of different types of activities or other stimulation, they can sometimes find their own 'activity' which we as dog owners often do not appreciate." Words right out of my mouth!

I bought several of Nina's toys and she was kind enough to send me several others for review. I parceled the toys out among the several trainers at Kindred Spirits Dog Training and everyone played with the toys with their dogs. Then we swapped toys and played some more.

The trainers included new apprentices through seasoned trainers. The dogs ranged from 12 week old Peaches through ten year old Riker. Breeds included Australian Shepherds, German Shepherds, Belgian Malinois, Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, Rottweilers, Pomeranians, and several mixes.

The results varied, of course, as I expected. It took some of the dogs longer than others to figure out that they needed to do something to make the treat appear. Plus, some dogs used their paws to problem solve while others used their nose. Others used both paws and their nose while some dogs developed more interesting ways to play. Bashir, my five year old Aussie, at one point got a little frustrated, picked up the toy we were playing with, turned it over and dumped all the toy pieces - and treats! - on the ground. I guess that's one way to play!

Only one dog refused to play; a Golden Retriever. His attitude seemed to say, "Nope. Too hard. Too much work." All of the other dogs learned to recognise the boxes the toys came in and would get excited when the boxes appeared.

The toys are rated from easy through difficult and some can be rated differently according to how they are played. Some of the toys are made of plastic and are brightly colored and easy to clean. For those people who dislike plastic, there is also a line of the toys made from wood.

The first toy I tried with my three dogs is called Dog Magic. It has a round flat base with indentations where treats can be hidden. Once treats are placed in the indentations, you then place dog bone shaped covers over the treats. To get the treats, the dog has to find them (you can place a treat under all of the bones or just some) and then the dog has to knock the cover off the indentation. He can paw it off or knock it with his nose.

It was great fun to watch the different reactions. Bashir is a problem solver. He thinks, tries things and if his efforts don't work, he tries something else. So with a little encouragement, he found all the treats. Riker, my ten year old, also thinks but he's also more active so he pawed, chewed, and finally flipped over the covers. Archer, my youngest, went nuts pawing and biting the covers. You'd think the dog had never had a treat in his life. I had to stop him, pull him back, calm him, and then encourage him to go more slowly - sloooooowly.

The Dog Tornado is also fun. There are four dog boned shaped levels with indentations to hide treats. To get the treats, the dog has to spin the levels. As each level spins, it reveals the hidden treats in the level below it. Archer, with his high activity approach to these games, figured this one out right away and had all the levels of the toy spinning! But then Bashir, with his thinking approach, did, too.

My trainers said they enjoyed watching how their dogs approached the toys, too. Kate Abbott has a Cockapoo, Walter, and a Rottweiler, Gina. Walter is the ultimate extrovert while Gina is quiet, calm, and studious. They approached the games in their typical manner but Kate said it was Gina who surprised her. Gina would try something, look to Kate for reassurance, then try something else. But after a few successes, she stopped looking to Kate and began studying the game. The game gave her confidence in her own efforts.

Dawn McMahon said of her five dogs, "Every dog worked differently and figured the toys out in their own way. For my really smart girls, they figured things out quickly. The Labs took a little longer but did find the treats although it was primarily through trial and error. The Golden, well, he is a pretty boy!"

Some of the games stated on the box that cats can also play. I wasn't sure about that so got some catnip and brought out Xena. Xena, a domestic shorthair, is a catnip fiend so I figured if anyone would play, she would. I hid some catnip under one of the bone pieces and waited. Xena sniffed and looked. I encouraged her as I tapped the bone cover over the catnip. She came closer, sniffed some more, patted the bone piece and sniffed again. Then she tried to lift the bone cover with a paw and when that didn't work, she made a mightly swing and pop! Off the bone cover came!

You can see Nina's toys at her website www.nina-ottosson.com. You can order them at www.pawlickers.com or The Company of Animals www.interactivedoggames.com. Jeffers Pet doesn't carry all of the games but does carry several www.jefferspet.com.