Best Dog Toys & Enrichment

Pros

• +Hollow center takes peanut butter, wet food, or kibble — freeze it and a 5-minute treat becomes a 30-minute project
• +Natural rubber has real give, so it's gentle on small-dog teeth while still surviving determined chewers
• +Unpredictable bounce makes solo play genuinely engaging, not just a chew session

Cons

• −Fresh out of the package the rubber has a noticeable smell — it fades within a few days
• −Power chewers who shred everything should step up to the black KONG Extreme instead

Pros

• +Wide opening holds a full small-dog meal — soaked kibble, wet food, yogurt, banana — and freezes beautifully
• +Far easier to fill and actually clean than any narrow-cavity toy; fully dishwasher-safe
• +Soft, flexible Zogoflex is gentle on teeth and safe on floors and furniture

Cons

• −Roughly 50% more expensive than a KONG Classic
• −Wide opening means an easy payoff for smart dogs unless you freeze it or use the two-piece trick

Pros

• +Teething-formulated soft rubber is gentle on baby teeth and sore gums
• +Same stuffable, freezable design as the Classic — frozen stuffing soothes teething better than anything dry
• +Erratic bounce makes it a solo-play toy even when empty (for dogs that go for that)

Cons

• −Deliberately soft — a precocious power chewer can gouge chunks; inspect and retire as needed
• −It's a stage toy: plan on replacing it with the Classic once adult teeth are in

Pros

• +Wishbone shape lifts the ends off the floor — small dogs can grip and reposition it easily, which most bones fail at
• +Real bacon flavor runs all the way through the nylon, not sprayed on the surface
• +Dramatically longer-lasting than rubber toys or edible chews — typically months of use

Cons

• −Hard nylon carries an inherent tooth-fracture risk for very aggressive chewers — if your dog cracks marrow bones, ask your vet first
• −Not edible: it must be retired once your dog raises rice-grain-sized nubs or shaves the ends down

Pros

• +High-bounce natural rubber core makes erratic hops that flat-out beat a tennis ball for chase appeal
• +No abrasive tennis-ball felt — kinder to tooth enamel over thousands of fetches
• +Floats, so lake and pool retrieves don't end in a lost ball

Cons

• −It's a fetch ball, not a chew toy — a dog left to gnaw one at leisure can eventually compromise the rubber
• −Ball-obsessed dogs don't know when to quit; you are the off switch on hot days, especially for flat-ish faces and long-backed breeds

Pros

• +Hunt-and-extract gameplay taps straight into terrier and dachshund burrow-hunting instincts
• +Three toys in one: puzzle log, fetchable squirrels, and a squeaky plush for solo play
• +Refill squirrel packs sold separately, so the log keeps working after casualties

Cons

• −It's plush: a dedicated shredder will eventually open a squirrel and pull stuffing — supervise and confiscate casualties
• −Squeakers must not be swallowed; retire any squirrel with a breached seam