First off, forget about fetch, huskies are not fetching dogs. At least not mine. They are pull on the leash, destroy anything, eat through your wall, dogs. Yes, the wall. So, in order to keep your dog entertained, you’re going to have to lose any preconceptions of what you think a dog should play with and get to know your dogs’ personality. My 2 huskies are polar opposites. What one likes, the other could care less about, and vice versa. Of course there is one exception, anything that holds food. In no particular order, I’ll go over a few toys that my boys love both together and individually. I’ll try to include how each of them reacts to each product and the longevity of the products; this will probably be noted in minutes for most. I won’t waste anyone’s time with toys I don’t think your dog will enjoy. Honestly, I’ve probably tried just about every type of toy out there. And if it didn’t make the list it’s probably in the trash can.
Hide-A-Squirrel
At just over $11, the hide a squirrel dog toy is probably one of the most useful toy to date. This fun little bugger comes with 3 squeaking squirrels and a fuzzy house for them to live in. Both of the huskies and the hound enjoyed this toy. While the squirrels have a life span of 2 minutes once they’ve been plucked from their humble abode, there is real value in the enjoyment the dogs receive in rummaging through the little house to investigate if there are any survivors. After your living room is covered in animal stuffing this toy has not out lived its usefulness.
After the usual stuffing clean up, the deceased squirrels can be returned to their home to await another round of hunting. While they won’t get the same attention to destruction at before, the anticipation that there might be a live squirrel never seems to fade. You can guarantee that every time you stuff the squirrels back in their home, they’ll make their way back to being scattered about your home. As a bonus, you can also buy refill packs of squirrels to keep the excitement fresh. This toy is a permanent fixture to the toy bin.
Balls
You have a 50/50 chance of your dog enjoying a ball. My red husky, Smokey, is my only dog that likes balls. He will not play fetch with me. However, bounce that bugger one time and he will play with it for hours all by himself. Now there’s a catch, he does not like the dog toy balls you get from the pet store. He only likes real tennis balls. I don’t understand fully why, but when he was a puppy, he found a tennis ball in the back yard that I have no idea where it came from. He would play with this ball by himself, throwing it in the air and batting it around for hours.
He had it for a little over a year before one tragic event. He was playing as usual and bit down on the ball
like he had done a million times over and it broke in half. Immediately he began to whimper as if he were a child that lost his best friend. It was full on depression! I bought every ball I could find trying to cheer him up. After acquiring an armada of balls I found that the actual sports tennis balls were the only thing he would enjoy. If a ball is what you’re after, I recommend starting here.
KONG Classic Dog Toy
Did I mention that huskies are smart? This interesting toy offers your dog a treat while keeping him busy for hours. Unless your husky is like my black husky Spaz. While the other 2 dogs are content with batting the toy around for hours for the quarter sized treats that fall out of the opening periodically, Spaz, in his destructive genius, has figured out how to unscrew the container that holds the treats for a quick reward. This did take him several months to figure out. But never the less, he can do it without fail now. If you have a patient dog, this is a real winner. If you just want to test your dogs’ intelligence, give it a go. Either way you can’t go wrong.
KONG Stuff-A-Ball
This is not a toy! It’s a plain and simple treat disguised as a toy. You can use the Kong cheesy spread with this in the ridges or the Classic Kong biscuits. Fair warning, the cheesy spread will get everywhere. The dogs love that stuff. But, it takes deliberate planning and delivery to keep your floor from becoming a slobber fest. I don’t recommend the cheesy spread on the days you don’t want to mop; you already have to vacuum everyday just owning a husky. Now the biscuits, on the other hand, are great for this toy. However, Smokey is too lazy to crunch down on the rubber ball hard enough to break the biscuit up to gain access to it. Capitan of destruction, Spaz, however, crunches right on through to get those treats. When the treats run dry it’s time to remove the toy as Spaz will try to make the hole larger for future easy
access.
KONG Cozie Toys
What more is there to say beyond that the dogs love these toys. By dogs, I mean Spaz. However, these are one and done toys. Interestingly enough, I have never heard a squeak from a single one of these toys once Spaz has gotten a hold of it. With surgical precision, he opens the guts of the helpless stuffed toy and removes its squeaky little hearts. If you’re not watching him, he will devour it swiftly and silently. If I am not going to watch him, I will take the squeaker out before I give it to him.
He loves it just the same, or at least destroys it just the same. The small incision does not affect the live span of the toy either. The life span of these toys are still approximately 15 minutes. But he loves them, and how can you say no to that face. I never give the toys to him directly. They always go into a toy bin that they have free access to which must be refilled daily. I know there is love because of the level of hoarding that ensues after a fresh batch arrives.
Although I could not get a picture of Spaz, the black husky, here is a picture of Snoopy the Hound who also enjoys devouring the KONG Cozie Toys. Snoopy loves to rip the stuffing out just as much as Spaz. Strangely, Smokey has no interest in stuffed squeaky toys. Go figure!
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