# how to get dog interested in a kong?



## Happyday (Jan 31, 2013)

I heard so many great stories about kongs. i bought one 6 months ago for my dog. I have put peanut butter.... i have put canned food and all he does is lick it for like 2 minutes and then it's not interested anymore. 

i also bought ball with a hole in it where you can put in treats. kind of like a kong except it's a ball and you can use it to play fetch etc as well. Only time he is interested in that one is if we play fetch with it. lol

 can anyone give me advice on why my dog doesn't seem interested in a kong? i thought all dogs love kongs. lol 

any tips on what kind of toys that would keep dogs entertained while iam not home?


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## RoughCollie (Mar 7, 2011)

Aidan was not interested in a Kong until I layered the contents with bits of liverwurst.


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## cookieface (Jul 6, 2011)

Not to ask a dumb question, but are you sure he likes the food you're putting into the kong? My dog will eat anything, including crud off the floor, but definitely likes some things more than others. Also, how tightly are you packing the food into the kong? I find that if the food is firmly stuffed so that it takes too much work to get out, my dog will give up unless it's something she really wants. Is your dog normally food motivated? If he isn't, he may never like the kong or other food toys.

I don't know about other toys for entertainment. Most involve food (google "interactive dog toys" or "nina ottosson"). I've been looking at the Kyjen mystery tree because I'd like a non-food interactive toy for her. 

All that said, I think most dogs sleep when they're alone (unless they're prone to general mischief and should be crated / confined or suffer from separation anxiety). Most days, I don't think Katie moves more than a few inches on the bed during the day.


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## Titan84 (Apr 19, 2012)

Sorry for the obvious question, but do you freeze the Kong? Both of my dogs love their Kongs but they're really only interested in them for what's inside. Once they've licked all the PB/whatever out of it they aren't too interested anymore. They don't really "play" with the Kong much. 

Try freezing it if you haven't already (a couple hours minimum, but the longer the better). If you have already been freezing, then you could try something different inside the Kong. If that doesn't work, then I don't know. Maybe your dog just isn't a fan for whatever reason.

As for toys to keep dogs entertained while they're alone? There's not much I really trust. But I'm a bit on the paranoid side when it comes to my dogs. Kongs (the black "Extreme" ones) are about the only thing I feel comfortable leaving mine alone with. I'd definitely avoid any kind of rope toy, stuffed animal, bone, etc. Too much of a choking hazard IMO. Honesty, as long as your dog is getting proper exercise when you are home, I wouldn't worry too much about him being bored when you aren't home. I'd rather have a bored dog in a safe environment than the other way around.


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

Dogs respond differently.

Esther, my Plott hound, will do whatever it takes to extract anything I put inside a Kong. I was greatly impressed (because I would not have thought of it) when she dropped a Kong down the stairs a few times to break up the cookies inside so they'd fall out through the hole. When stairs were not available, sh'ed throw it against the wall.

Molly, on the other hand, has a very short attention spam and will give up quickly if it takes too much effort. 

Neither dog seems to do much other than sleep in the sun when they're home alone, so we don't worry too much about toys to occupy them.


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