Dog toys are meant to be chomped and chewed and tossed and
crushed. They’re supposed to hold up to all manner of romping, rolling, and
rumbling.
How does the Boots
& Barkley 5” Brainteaser Toy take real-life dog play?
This fascinating plaything for pooches, sold
at Target stores, looks like a lot of fun. It’s bendy and bouncy and
colorful. Essentially, this clever polyester toy is a soft woven sphere with a
little plush bumblebee dangling inside, tempting curious canines to try to
extract it.
The Boots & Barkley 5” Brainteaser Toy, which retails
for $6.99, requires no batteries and is marketed as non-toxic.
All that sounds pretty good.
Personally, I coughed up the cash, hoping to please my
brand-new puppy with a perky plaything. That’s a fair amount of kibbles, but
the product appeared appealing.
Immediately, my little Border Collie/Labrador mix took to
the toy like a little kid on Christmas morning. She loved it.
She fetched and pawed and bounced the thing all over. She
stuck her nose through the woven straps and played with the little bee.
Then what happened?
Here’s the drawback.
Puppies chew. OK, that’s no news flash, but perhaps the
folks at Boots & Barkley didn’t plan on the degree to which this natural
phenomenon may occur.
Puppies chew a lot.
In less than an hour, the stretchy multi-colored polyester
fabric covering the straps that formed the ball was frayed. I was picking sharp
shards of white polyester lining out of my puppy’s mouth.
This product reviewer purchased the product described and evaluated here, and the reviewer has no prior or existing relationship (either familial or professional) with the creator, manufacturer or marketer of the product.
The fuzzy little bee, presumably intended to remain inside
the sphere (as the brainteaser) was already on its own on the floor.
Apparently, my puppy is cleverer than the dog toy designers expected a dog to
be.
The $6.99 Boots & Barkley 5” Brainteaser Toy was already
trashed. What a disappointment.
Image/s:
Title image adapted from product promo
photo – fair use
Additional photos by LAN/Fad to the Bone
– all rights reserved
