We have this problem. We can't help but give our dogs toys that have stuffing in them. They enjoy it way too much. What's that line from the movie The Rock? "I'll take pleasure in guttin' you boy?" Well sometimes that's what we think is running through their little minds while they are spreading the toy guts to as many spots on the rug as possible. Click through the jump to give us your best idea on how to de-gut your carpet!
Meet Kyla. Kyla belongs to Amber over at MyAimIsTrue. Kyla shares the same passion for degutting stuffed toys as most dogs, we just wish there was an easier way to round up the 8lbs of stuffing that comes out of them.
Obviously the easiest answer is to simply not give them toys that contain such things. But what fun is that? Sure rubber toys are nice and they don't make a mess, but the sheer joy on their faces as they rip the squeakers out and proceed to pull the little bits of fluff jammed up in arms and eyeballs just makes us giggle.
So do you have any tips or tricks when it comes to removing the fuzz from your carpet? It seems to be sticking to our FLOR carpet tiles with great abundance and although a vacuum can pick it up, it's had a tendency to cause some clogging issues in the past.
Do you have a tried and true method for keeping your carpets clean when it comes time to restore them to theirde-furred beauty? Let us know below!
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Where is that rug in the pic from? Love it.
awwww dah shweetie widdew baybeee...
personally, i wouldn't mind gutted toys one iota if it was that little cutie doing all the gutting. just don't buy stuffed toys, i guess. there are lots of rope toys and squeaky chompy toys your angel can wrastle with instead.
OOOOh be careful of rope toys. My mom's dog often eats the rope and I don't have to tell you what happens when the rope has to come out...
that dog in the picture is looking at the camera like, "yeah. i did that. so what? wanna fight about it?"
http://www.alphadogtoys.com/tough_heavy_duty_dog_toys.html
seem to sell dog toys that don't have anything in them, so rip away, but no mess.
I've also seen "indestructable" dog plush toys, I thought their name was tuff or ruff toys, but can't find them online.
I love Bostons. The look on its face is PRICELESS
I actually use an undercoat rake for dogs, just run it over the rug to collect the stuffing. Works like a charm!
i wouldn't mind if my dog did that but he ends up trying to eat it. so he can't have any toys he can destroy :p
It would be hard to care with a dog that precious.
Bend over and pick up the big pieces that'll clog the vacuum, then vacuum up any bits too small to pick up. You can buy "stuffed" toys with no stuffing. That's what we have as my two love to gut a toy too!
my dog often "crashes" after gutting her toys:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/art_chel/2098974023/in/set-72157602682957714/
Ahh... a job well-done, Kyla! Those squeekectomies can be quite satisfying, huh!
(I just sweep up all the fluff--no big deal. If it makes my puppygirl happy, then I'm happy, as long as a buy cheapie toys.))
(in englishspeak: 'as long as I buy cheapie toys.')
I would try one of the "rubber finger" brooms. They use them at the salon I good to and it works great for getting hair off of rugs.
it always is the eyeballs that go first, isn't it? :)
i'm a dog trainer with three dogs of my own, and there's a BUNCH of tips i have for this problem. i won't list EVERYTHING, but one tip i give all my clients and use myself is empty water bottles (or soda, whatever bottles) - i put pieces of kibble in it and the dogs bat it around and chew the cap off to get it all out, plus they LOVE the sound of crunching them. even my deaf great dane goes to town on them without the excitement of the sound, she just loves the crunch. i have a huge bin under my bed full of empty water bottles, and they've started to figure out how to pull them out without my help, but it's totally okay cos they PUT THEM BACK for some reason. love my guys. that, and giving a dog raw bones (NEVER cooked - cooked bone splinters and can be dangerous for them to swallow) is the natural way to clean their teeth, the marrow in the bones is a ton of protein, plus it takes FOREVER to get all the marrow out, so it keeps them busy for a LONG TIME. plushies are great and all, but why not knock out dietary needs, dental hygiene needs, AND keep them busy? (just be wary that raw bones can be bloody. you can wipe the blood off or just never ever own carpet, like i do. ha.)
DYSON. YOUR problem is NOTHING comparing to the box of shredded paper discovered by a group of toddlers during the playdate!!!
That's a pretty pose.
A good vacuum's probably the way to go. And just picking up the big pieces. You could try duct tape rolled backwards around your hand (like to get fiberglass out of your skin). works like a lint roller. I switched to this awesome silicone-rubber ball toy for my girls, they just took those plushies apart too fast to keep up. I forget the brand, but it's hollow (with a hole in TWO places!!) They chew them and chew them and they don't even show a dent. They're squishier than Kong's and stuff like that.
Cute dog. They make dog toys now that are made out of old fire hoses. They're still stuffed with the soft stuff and many of them have squeakers but they are almost impossible to chew through. you can get them at any pet supply store.
I suck up the guts with the narrow hose attachment on the shop vac instead of the regular vaccuum, works the best.
I agree with chrubo - rubber brooms are awesome. I use the Sweepa rubber broom on my rugs, hardwood floors, tile, etc. Works wonders on the kitty hair that seems to be everywhere!
Available at:
http://www.simplygoodstuff.com/rubber_brooms.htm
I know my friends have had really good luck with beanie babies made specifically for doggies. Their doggies have been unable to shred them even though they have tried. :)
Thanks guys, on the cute dog comments :)
The rug is Angela Adams and I bought it from Design Public. Love it.
That dog is SO worth cleaning up after. I have a cat that loves to rub against me and shed onto my black pants. I've found that a sponge like hair remover works. (Available in most pet areas in grocery stores.) I also keep every piece of paper that has a removable lining that comes into the house and use that to remove the fur. If your dog destroys the toy soon after getting his paws on it, maybe rolling up the area rug before he begins might help. Then you can sweep up the innards.
bostons are awesome :) mine hasnt been able to destroy the "mean kitty" toy i've gotten from target. seems like canvas material but is still soft. he's a little bored with it lately though, maybe because he can't destroy it? the "bobo's" are so cute, but definitely not so durable. got him the mummy one for halloween though.
& about the non-stuffed/soft toys - my boston was getting more worked up/aggressive with them. he loves the tennis ball on a rope, but it makes him craaazy & he gets a bit of an attitude for some reason. & i think you know bostons don't need any more help with that :) he also needed soft toys while he was teething!
my dog "the shredder" will shred anything. . .she's still quite a puppy, but I do one of a few things. Re-stuff the "beast"/toy and put the squeeker back in, that way, they have another challenge, true, there's already a hole, but they get so much pleasure from finding the "heart of the beast" aka squeeker. . .
after we've done that a few times, I sweep everything up, and about once a week I vacuum. . .sure, there seems to almost always be pieces of fluff floating around, but on a day to day basis, it doesn't bother us. . .it's just part of owning a hound. . .only when company comes. . and then everything gets sweeped and vacuumed, and defured anyway. . .good luck
My cats gut their toys too. They have a particular zebra striped "mouse" that they ripped open months ago, and when I tried to throw it away, one of them got it out of the trash and started playing with it again! I figured they must really love it, so I've let them keep it. I still find clumps of cotton every now and then, but somehow it still maintains a mostly mouse-like shape...
Angela Adams no longer sells to other businesses. They want to be known for their design and do not do wholesale anymore to other businesses. You have to reach their office in Maine.
ha ha, "indestructible" plush toys...whoo boy...my dog takes special pleasure in destroying things labeled "indestructible". which is not surprising because she has chewed through metal, 2x4s, etc....