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Community Corner

Save With Cheap Pet Toys

Don't have money this holiday season for pet toys? Make your own interactive dog and cat toys and games.

Confession: I hang my dogs’ stocking on the chimney with care. The Labs will stare at it all during the holiday season, hoping for sweet treats and fun toys. Well, probably not, because I anthropomorphize my dogs. A lot. But I like to think they are hoping and wishing.

Many pet owners will feel the economic pinch this year, and may cut back on the all-out animal gifts. But there are cheap toys and sweet tricks you can provide your pets. If you cannot go to the pet store for that $50 stocking stuffed with catnip, or the peanut butter-filled dog bone, that’s okay. Your animals won’t care.

Here’s a fun, cheap, interactive toy for your dog that will give him a body and mind workout. The materials are inexpensive, if not already stuffed in the back of your bottom kitchen cabinet:

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  • Cookie tins from the dollar or thrift store
  • Tin snips or can opener
  • Duct tape
  • Yummy, smelly treats

Cut several holes in the bottom of the cookie tins. Wrap the sharp ends of each hole with duct tape to prevent cuts. 

Your dog should be on a sit-stay while you prepare the “toy.” This builds excitement and anticipation for the game. Put a few treats in one tin only, then securely put the top back on so that it won’t pop off if your dog pounces on the tin. Put the treat-filled tin on the floor next to a tin that is empty. Release your dog to “find” the tin with the treats.

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Your dog might bat the tin around the floor, he might paw at it, or he might sit or lay down next to the scented tin. As soon as he’s successful at the “find,” open the tin and let him eat the treats inside.

You can make this game more difficult once the dog catches on. Add another empty tin to the mix, scatter the tins around the room, place them in a line or in a circle, or even hide the tin with the treats. Pair the command, “Fido, Go Find!” with the activity.

Put a personal article, like a glove, inside the tin with the treat. Fade the treats, and wait for the dog to find the tin that hides your scented item.  Always praise your dog before you let him have his “presents.”

Stop the game before your dog gets bored during the session, and he’ll continue to look forward to using his nose.

This is a great mind game for older, more infirm dogs that cannot run after a tennis ball or take long walks or jogs. Even young puppies can be taught the “go find” game; this technique is a variation on training given to puppies being trained for bomb and narcotics detection or search and rescue jobs.

Cats love a good game just as much as the family dog; they are just more selective and refined in their approach to interaction or play (well, mine were. Your mileage may vary.)

The best, cheapest, most fun toy to give your cat is an empty paper bag or cardboard box. Put a little catnip in an after-holiday shirt box, and your cat might actually believe she is now the Queen of all things cardboard. In your house, she probably is.

This holiday season, the best gift for all your pets is time with their owner.

Whether you sit and watch your cat pop up out of a box, or lay on the floor and let your dog sniff for the treats in your pockets, quality time for the animals doesn’t have to cost money.

If you have a favorite cheap trick or inexpensive treat you’ve made for your pets, let us know!

Linda Rehkopf writes about dog care, training and animal welfare issues for East Cobb Patch. Decatur Patch decided to share her ideas with local readers who might be shoppping this weekend.

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