The 7 Best Toys For Blue Heelers in 2021
Also known as Australian cattle dogs, blue heeler is an extremely intelligent breed that was initially bred by the settlers to guard and herd their cattle. These pleasant canines are highly preferred as affectionate companion for families living in Australia, and their temperament allows them to be kept in households with children. If you are looking for the best toys for blue heelers, then you should first get basic information about this breed and its personality traits, so that you can engage them in a stimulating activity that keep their adrenaline levels up.
#1 KONG
KONG is a trustable name in the dog toy industry, and for good reason. The Classic Dog Toy from KONG is designed to provide your pooch with plenty of mental stimulation. The toy can be used for playing fetch outdoors. It also makes a great toy for stuffing with treats. Stuffing a toy with your dog’s favorite food and then letting it figure out how to reach its food is a great mental stimulus. It also keeps your blue heeler occupied for quite some time.
Pros
- Multi-purpose toy; can be used as a fetch toy outdoors or as a puzzle toy.
- The toy is designed to mentally and physically engage your blue heeler. This makes it great for keeping your blue heeler active and healthy.
- The toy is dishwasher friendly, making cleaning easy.
- The toy has been approved by vets and trainers from across the world.
- The toy comes in multiple sizes
Cons
- The toy is made for “average chewers”, meaning it is not a tough toy.
- The toy has a very strong rubbery smell to it.
Contenders For The 7 Best Toys For Blue Heelers in 2020
- KONG
- TRIXIE Gambling Tower
- TRIXIE Move-2-Win
- OurPets IQ Treat Ball
- West Paw Bumi
- SPOT Seek-A-Treat Shuffle Bone Dog Puzzle
- KONG Tug Toy
#2 TRIXIE Gambling Tower
This is a tricky toy designed for dogs that like thinking. The Gambling tower is designed to stimulate your dog’s mind. The toy challenges your blue heeler by having it work for the treats that are kept inside of it. Your blue heeler must tug on the toy’s ropes in order to reach treats that can be placed inside of it. The toy has a large base that keeps it from getting toppled over.
This toy is ideal for intelligent dog breeds that need mental stimulation. It can also be used to keep your pet busy when you cannot give them attention.
Pros
- The toy provides a beginner level mental challenge that will engage most dogs.
- It is designed to be hard to topple over. Your blue heeler will not be able to find a workaround to solve the puzzle.
- You can install or remove the toy’s cones in order to increase or decrease the challenge.
- The toy is made with durable plastic, making it hard to chew through.
Cons
- The toy is not suitable for larger breeds; their snouts won’t fit through the hole at the toy’s base.
- The toy can present a choking hazard for larger dogs.
This is a puzzle toy that is made for intelligent pooches. If your blue heeler seems to find most puzzle dog toys easy, this one should keep it occupied for a while. The toy consists of multiple interactive elements. Your blue heeler can play with them in order to reveal hidden spaces where you can hide treats.
The toy’s puzzles are great for mentally stimulating your Australian cattle dog. They can keep your dog occupied for a long time and help them improve their cognitive behavior.
Pros
- The toy is made from durable plastic.
- It provides an advanced level of mental stimulation. This makes it ideal for intelligent breeds.
- The toy is well-designed and can help keep your dog’s stress levels low through mental stimulation.
- This toy is not only for dogs. It can be a fun toy for cats and birds as well.
Cons
- The toy can present choking hazards for larger dogs.
This toy is a slow feeder designed to give your cattle dog a challenge during eating time. This ball can be filled with treats and dry food. As the ball gets pushed around, it slowly releases food from a small hole.
The toy offers a great challenge to reward ratio. It also encourages your dog to move around and exercise. The ball even has an interior disc that can be adjusted to increase or decrease its level of difficulty.
Pros
- This toy provides a fun and rewarding challenge for your pet.
- You can adjust the level of difficulty with the help of its interior disc.
- The toy can be disassembled and cleaned really easily.
- Ideal for cattle dogs that need to have their diet controlled. It encourages slower and healthier feeding habits.
Cons
- The toy isn’t durable, a chewer can easily break it.
- Its easy disassembly makes it possible for your dog to open up the toy as well.
A multi-role toy that can be used for tugging and fetching games. The toy can be used by two cattle dogs at once, or you can use it to play with your dog. The toy is made from durable, BPA free material that is FDA compliant.
This toy’s material is stretchy, this adds an additional layer of interest for your pet. They can tug and pull on it for long periods of time. It is designed with gentle chewers kept in mind
Pros
- The toy is great for interactive play sessions with your pet.
- It comes in a large and small size; you also get to choose from multiple colors.
- It is made with non-toxic ingredients. The toy can even be recycled once its life ends.
Cons
- This toy is not recommended for larger dogs since it isn’t tough.
- The toy has a simple design, your dog might grow bored of it soon.
This simple dog toy puzzle has a body made of wood. The toy features a puzzle feeding design that requires your dog to uncover treats. The toy has spaces where you can hide treats for your dog. In order to get to them, your pet must uncover these hidden spaces. It provides a fun and rewarding mental challenge for your pet.
The toy’s wooden construction makes it an eco-friendly product. You also don’t have to worry about any harmful chemicals that your dog may ingest when playing with this toy.
Pros
- The toy is made of wood, making it an environmentally friendly product. You also won’t have to worry if your dog ends up swallowing bits of it while chewing on it.
- The toy can provide loads of stimulation for dogs of all sizes.
Cons
- The toy can be a little too easy for some dogs.
- It can be easy to flip over, letting your dog “cheat” and get its treats.
- Some people have complained that the toy’s edges are sharp.
This toy is a great product for people who have multiple blue heelers. As its name suggests, this toy is supposed to be tugged and chewed on. Its form factor allows two blue heelers to play with it at once. You can use it to have an interactive play session with your pet as well. The toy’s material is durable yet stretchy. The stretchiness makes it fun for your dog to pull on. It can also serve as a chew toy that can keep your dog’s teeth in good shape
Pros
- The toy provides a great degree of physical stimulation for your pooch. Your dog can bite tug and chew on it all it wants.
- You can use it to have interactive play sessions with your pet.
- The toy is available in multiple sizes.
- It is exceptionally durable; even larger dog breeds have a hard time damaging it
Cons
- The toy’s simple design can make it boring for your pet.
- The toy is overpriced.
The Importance of Fun Toys For Blue Heelers
You should know about the demands and requirements about a particular breed before acquiring it, because you don’t want to make it depressed and lonely at the end of the day. They are never content with staying inactive throughout the day, because they have strong energy levels that allows them to perform vigorous exercises and running sessions in the park. Your pup can easily become bored of a monotonous routine, which in turn can make them take part in destructive activities to take out their frustration. You don’t want your dog to misbehave and show signs of agitation at an early age, and it is always better to keep on introducing new chewable dog toys that keeps them exerting their energy. They would easily reject a mediocre toy within the first few days, and would find other places to find fun as they have extraordinary stamina and endurance.
What Toys Do Blue Heelers Like?
The uncanny intelligence of blue heelers allow it to be self-reliant rather than constantly depending upon getting stroked or petted by their owner. But that doesn’t mean that they don’t strive to get appreciated by their human or get timely rewards for their accomplishments. In order to ensure that this breed reaches its full potential, you have to be calm and patient while performing their training sessions as they would gradually become accustomed to it. It can be a difficult task to suit an engaging toy that fits the active nature of blue heelers.
The toy you introduce to your pup should be able to cater to the herding instincts of the breed, so that they can grow up by slowly acquiring their built-in personality traits and behavior style. The toy should involve some sort of physical game, which in turn would provide an outlet to burn their pent up energy.
How to Choose Suitable Toys For Blue Heelers?
Rather than being tempted to purchase cheap dog toys for blue heelers – which can potentially contain hazardous material and chemicals inside them – it is highly recommended to go for high-quality playing items for blue heelers. Because of their excessive chewing habit, they can easily destroy a soft object made out of furry and smooth fabric. If your dog has a habit of swallowing foreign objects, then you also have to ensure that the size and dimension of the toy is big enough to prevent any choking hazards. Many blue heelers have a tendency of gulping down anything they run into, and the owners should always stay alert and cautious about removing all the small items from the household to prevent any mishap.
It is always safe to go with products made from rubber because of its long-lasting material, and you can keep it in your pet kennel without having it under your constant supervision. The rubber film can easily withstand substantial amount of bite force without breaking apart, and it can definitely last for a long period of time.
Finding The Best Toys For Blue Heelers
Herding balls seem to be most appropriate toy option for blue heelers, as it ensures to keep igniting their herding instinct and it helps them maintain a balance throughout the day. Once your blue heeler is given the opportunity to chase and control a large ball, he or she would be relieved to practice their natural instincts without having to take part in other activities that might put them off sometimes. The hard protective layer of these giant balls is virtually indestructible, and it can retain its shape for many years to come. Your pup would finally be able to use its claws and teeth on something that is not stationary, and they can chase it down whenever they feel the urge to do so.
Motorized dog toys for blue heelers are also great solutions to control the herding instinct of blue heelers, as they have the opportunity to navigate into different directions as they try to catch the items. These electronic toys can be operated from an app on your smartphone or a dedicated remote – which makes it easier for you to mobilize the toy within the set boundaries of your household.
Features And Factors to Look For in a Potential Toy For Your Pup
From the size and weight of the toy items to their manufacturing material, the owners have to thoroughly analyze market to bring safe and fun toys. There should be no protruding bodies in the item you select, as that can potentially hurt your pet’s eyes or other delicate parts of the body.
The type of coating a certain toy has can tell a lot about its health implication and safety standards. If the coating is treated with flavor, then that can potentially hurt the digestive system of your pooch. If your dog is able to taste an interesting flavor, he might be tempted to swallow it up – which can dangerous.
It is highly recommended to purchase the best toys for blue heelers that are dishwasher friendly, as that would allow you to maintain high levels of sanitization and cleanliness at all times. You can never predict what places and surroundings a particular toy has been taken to, and before giving it back to your canine companion you should properly disinfect it. The toy should also be highly entertaining, because insufficient stimulation can result in boredom for your pet. Make sure to keep things interesting by bring new and exciting toy items every week.
