Now that Easter is almost here, I’m sure there are a lot of folks who are traveling out of town. Who is going to care for your pets? Are you taking them with you? Great! And if not, have you prepared your pets for your absence?
We have 4 dogs and making sure that they have had enough exercise not to be disruptive and destructive are a priority. When we are home, we love being outside and naturally our dogs love it too, but when we are away, if we don’t ensure that our dogs are active we will usually come home to something broken. Yes. Even things we thought were indestructible, like the staircases and window ledges, have had large chunks of wood bitten off. So if you have active dogs who need a little more stimulation here are our best recommendations to keep them busy and mentally challenged.
1.) Beef Knee Caps — we buy our pet food from a small shopkeeper who is passionate about having all natural / organic everything for pets. He is also up to date whenever large companies purchase smaller companies and when recipes get switched out for cheaper alternatives. We love this guy and the fact that his wife is a holistic vet just adds so much credibility to his passion for pet food and pet products. We first learned about the knee caps from him and that not only would they keep our crazy pups occupied, but also would clean their teeth. He forgot to also mention that dogs love them!
The teeth cleaning effects of beef knee caps are really something worth mentioning. I wish I had taken before and after photos, but we didn’t initially buy the knee caps for their teeth cleaning abilities. We bought them to keep our dogs occupied. But then I noticed Penny, our 9+ year old, with whiter, cleaner teeth and her breath smelling so much nicer, it hit me that knee caps are also effective in scrubbing teeth. It’s amazing stuff! Expensive (around $2+ per knee cap) but definitely worth it especially if it saves you a trip to the dentist for teeth cleaning (ave cost $ 400+).
Why should you buy organic? Same reason you should buy organic meats for your own consumption. The antibiotics that they pump into the cows are a huge cause of concern and could be the reason for the high levels of antibiotic resistance. Again, you might be spending more money upfront to buy organic, but you will be saving more money in the long run because you and your dog will be healthier.
2.) Kong Extreme — we have to buy the “extreme” version as our dogs, as mentioned above, are destructive and will destroy pretty much anything and everything when not given proper care. This doesn’t make them “bad dogs” it just involves an appreciation for who your dog is and what her needs are. There are actually several dog breeds, mixes and personalities that just need more activity, stimulation, and guidance. So now when we have to leave them alone for a few hours alone or a few days with a pet sitter, we are more than prepared. The Kong Extreme is a simple chew toy with space inside to put in creative treats. It takes hours for them to lick off the frozen treats and by the end they are so tired that they just fall asleep. It’s great!
What’s awesome about the Kong? Well, in our case, we can keep reusing them until… well forever, hopefully!
So here are our two favorite toys for our dogs when we have to leave them for lengthy periods, please let us know what yours are!
