Kong Dog Toys Really Are Indestructible and Fun

We've been married 41 years. We both grew up around dogs and have had dogs most of our married lives.

Eleven years ago, my husband and I adopted two of the largest dogs we have ever owned. Actually they own us and have us very well trained, but that's another story. They are Chesapeake Bay Retriever mixes and weigh over 60 pounds each.

With big dogs, you get big jaws and big appetites. Apparently, dog toys are on our dogs' menu of preferred foods. At first, we gave them the hand-me-down toys from our previous dogs. Big mistake, since our other dogs were all smaller with less massive jaws. Stuffed toys disappeared in under five minutes. Chew toys fared no better. When we ran out of toys, we made the rounds of the local pet shops, explaining our situation and need for indestructible toys that would withstand aggressive chewers. None of the toys they recommended, survived for long.

Our budget was being depleted as quickly as their toy supply. Although the packages say that dogs should be supervised while playing, one of the reasons for providing toys is to occupy the dogs while we are at work so they don't chew the furniture instead. There had to be something they could play with safely that wouldn't break our budget.

None of our friends had dogs as destructive as ours so they couldn't recommend toys as tough as our dogs.

Fortunately, several months after we got these dogs, we got a computer with online capability. I researched tough dog toys and one of the sites that came up was the Kong site. The story behind how the Kong was invented was reminiscent of what we were going through. Joe Markham's German Shepherd, Fritz had been damaging his teeth by chewing on rocks. While Joe worked on his Volkswagen Bus, he noticed that Fritz enjoyed chewing on the hard rubber suspension device. Joe spent about six years finding the right compound, shape, and size to market to other dog owners.

We were reluctant to spend any more money just to be disappointed but we finally took a chance on one of the hard rubber snowmen shaped dog toys. We were thrilled with the results. Eleven years later we still have the original Kong and have bought several others in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Many Kongs are hollow and can be filled with the dog's favorite kibble or spread or a spread made by the Kong company. You can get Kongs that float. Our retrievers really love it when we throw these in the pool.

We have felt comfortable giving Kongs over the years as gifts for puppies and full grown dogs of all sizes.

We believed in them so much that a few years later, when I started up a dog site online, they were one of the products I sold.

Here are links to a few of the many styles of Kong toys available.

http://www.healthypets.com/kongballmed.html Medium Kong Ball $4.99

http://www.vetdepot.com/Kong-Toy-Blue-Medium-15-35-lbs.html Blue Kong for medium size dogs $6.79

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/184-1382740-4532649?asin=B000WEOSCU&AFID=pricegrabber_df&LNM=|B000WEOSCU&CPNG=pets&ref=tgt_adv_XSP10001 Refillable Kong for small dogs $6.29

http://compare.ebay.com/spid/29568368?fl=380192952712<yp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=vl&sort=PricePlusShippingLowest Air Kong football for medium size dogs $17.99

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200387704220 Kong Jump N' Jack for large dogs $8.17