8 Durable Dog Toys For Your Super Chewer
- Melissa Bigknife
- Aug 3, 2024
- 6 min read
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Raise a virtual hand if you’re tired of buying so-called “indestructible” dog toys only to have your dog tear them to shreds in a matter of a few days, heck, minutes! Taco (our 100-pound Doberman) can ruin some of the most durable dog toys a matter of hours or MINUTES. No joke.
Well I’ve got some news for you. There ARE some legitimate, long-lasting dog toys out there that we’ve found beat even the Kong Extreme dog toy (you know, the black one). Every time we come across a new toy that we think might hold up, we buy it and give it a try. We have tried everything from ChuckIt to Kong to Tuffy and more often than not, we’ve been met with disappointment. But every once in a while, we find a good one! Below is what we’ve found to be truly durable dog toys.
Hands down, these are the best rubber chew toys we have EVER had. One of Taco’s favorite things to do is chomp for hours on a soft rubber ball, meaning we need an ultra durable, yet malleable ball that can withstand the non-stop chomp.
These balls have stood the test of time. We had our first set for about 7 months before he successfully destroyed them. We consider this life span to be equal to “indestructible” when it comes to Taco's jaw strength. We went from 7 minutes to 7 months!! That’s definitely a win in our book!
The balls are hollow and have a hole on either end to prevent it from getting suctioned to their mouth or restricting breathing. We like the 3-inch balls and they are perfect for throwing, chewing, and bouncing. We prefer the standard ones as opposed to the Chew King Supreme balls, which are a tougher rubber. We’ve found that Taco actually has an easier time destroying the “Supreme” balls since the rubber has less give.
Bonus: If your dog loves to play fetch, check out the Chew King Ball Launcher that is made specifically for their balls.
West Paw makes good products and their prices align with their quality. If left to their own devices, our dogs can tear apart these toys pretty quickly, but they tend to be more durable than most of what we’ve found. That said, because of the price, we use them for specific purposes (like puzzle treats) and allotted time periods only.
We got hooked on West Paw because we found a black version of this Hurley Bone on sale at our local Marshall’s. That original Hurley Bone lasted us over a year with both Mika & Taco. They loved that thing and chewed on it pretty often. We have since purchased a normal colored one that did not last quite as long, but I still recommend their products because I think they are some of the most durable toys we’ve found. I can’t seem to find any more black rubber ones though, so if you ever come across some, let me know!
West Paw also specializes in stimulating “puzzle toys” that we love. They can be filled with yummy treats and frozen to entertain your pup for hours. Here are a few of their puzzle treats we love:
This is a great toy for puppies that they can grow with! It’s soft rubber, so good for teething, and is actually pretty durable. We had one all through Mika’s puppyhood and it even held up with Taco until he was almost a year old. I know I talk about how Taco puts most toys to the test but he actually learned most of those skills from sis. She is the original toy assassin so the fact that this lasted so long with her is worth the mention.
Like the Kong Ring I mentioned above, we had one of these for both dogs as puppies. I can’t remember exactly when we tossed it but it’s definitely worth the buy for puppy teething and beyond. The ends of the bone also have holes & grooves so you can shove some larger treats in there to entice them to play more.
These are some of our favorite chew toys that don't require 100% supervision. Our dogs tend to like them over Nyla Bone and they last a solid 6 months to a year before we need to replace them.
Disclaimer: most vets do not recommend toys and chews that are this hard for fear of tooth damage. While I get that, if you've gleaned anything from this post it's that we have a hard time finding toys that withstand any time in Taco's mouth and the bottom line is we need something that will satisfy his urge to chew. If not, dogs will always find something to chew – shoes, furniture, baseboards or walls. So for us, this is an understood risk.
6. Elk Antlers
These are our other favorite “hard” chew toy. They last forever and our dogs love them. We prefer to get the ones that have been split down the middle or a mix-pack like these from The Antler Box so the marrow center is accessible. That’s what keeps the dogs interested in it and I feel a little better about them chewing on it all day because it’s a little more porous and softer on the inside. As for size, the bigger the better. We mistakenly bought the wrong size recently and Taco chomped it into a bunch of small shards almost instantly. With the correct size, these probably last us about 3-6 months.
Durable Plush Toys
It’s definitely important to give your dog an outlet to completely shred a soft or plush toy every once in a while. When you do, here are my suggestions for you. These obviously aren’t going to last as long as the above, but I can assure you they will last longer than the toy you’re getting in your monthly Bark Box.
While these toys don’t last forever, they tend to last a good few weeks, maybe even a month or 2 in our house. What our dogs usually do with these toys is immediately put a hole in it and try to pull out as much of the insides as possible. It’s almost like they don’t like the squeaker that is also, for some reason, a requirement for all dog toys. Once they are happy with a certain level of gutting, they will continue to play and chew on the ‘carcass’ until we take it away.
The DuraForce brand is created by the same team as Tuffy, so both are similar quality but DuraForce seem just slightly more durable. The fabric of these toys is sewn multiple times & are edged with a nice, durable webbing. I should also note that either of these brands’ toys are machine washable, however they never last long enough to need a wash in our house.
These are a great option and usually don’t have stuffing inside (yay for not having to clean up loads of stuffing for the next 3 days). Like Tuffy & DuraForce, these also last a few weeks to a few months.
In Conclusion
As a general rule of thumb, we stick with anything from Chew King, West Paw, Luma Bone, and Elk Antlers. For durable plush dog toys, we like Tuffy, X, and the nice firehose toys.
I hope that one (or all) of these options works for you. As we find more Taco-proof toys, I will continue to share and add to this list for you all.
Is there a toy I didn’t mention that you think is awesome? Drop it in the comments below! Taco & Mika would love to give it a try.
Stay tuned for our review on these toys to be added:
Goughnuts “virtually indestructible” toys
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