Ian Dunbar's amazing e-book, After You Get Your Puppy (I will most likely write a review later), recommends using chew toys to dispense your puppy's daily amount of food for the first few days at home. He wants your dog to become obsessed with chewing their toy (instead of your shoes, furniture, etc.)
What better way to reinforce his chewing than through intermittent reinforcement? Your puppy chews and food comes out. VERY reinforcing! This will also give your doggy a job and help with separation anxiety (if given when you leave for the store, work, etc.)
We plan to do this with Oso II (although, I am checking on the safety of leaving him/her with a toy when we are at work for a few hours).
Ian Dunbar, recommends stuffing a typical kong the following way in Before you Get your Puppy, p.80.
1) Squish a small piece of freeze-dried liver in the small hole in the tip of the Kong so your puppy will never be able to get it out.
The original Kong - some reviewers said heavy chewers went through it in a couple hours - but they said that for the extreme too. Since, we don't know if Oso II will be a big chewer or not, we'll try it. I think someone said you can send in your broken one for a replacement if it is destroyed right away.
Freeze Dried Liver - not sure how many oz this is, but Dunbar recommends it for potty training, meeting strangers and putting in the chew toys. It has good reviews.
2) Smear a little honey around the inside of the Kong.
3) Fill it up with kibble.
4) Then block the big hole with crossed dog biscuits."
On my shopping list:
The original Kong - some reviewers said heavy chewers went through it in a couple hours - but they said that for the extreme too. Since, we don't know if Oso II will be a big chewer or not, we'll try it. I think someone said you can send in your broken one for a replacement if it is destroyed right away. Freeze Dried Liver - not sure how many oz this is, but Dunbar recommends it for potty training, meeting strangers and putting in the chew toys. It has good reviews. Dr. Sophia Yin recommends "throw[ing] your dog's food bowl away." She says naturally dogs spend hours searching for food in the wild. She says to save food for training or treat-disbursement toys.
Kong Dental Dog Toy - This has less reviews, but also no reviews of doggies ripping it to shreds immediately. I really need to see Oso II before getting all these. He may be a candidate for some of the less durable ones.
Premier Busy Buddy Funny Bone - This one looks great! It's supposed to be safe for even the biggest chewers. I'm pretty sure we'll get this one for when we are at work.I'm sure there are more, but it seems like a lot of them aren't good for strong chewers. I will have to continue this search later. Until then....
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