Tennis Balls Good or Bad?

[doggiedad]

if you're going to throw a stick i suggest throwing
it side arm so it doesn't stick in the ground. if your dog
over runs it he could hurt his mouth. if you throw
the stick side arm you have more of a chance of the stick
landing flat.

Originally Posted by PatternDayTrader

I dont even know how people can afford tennis balls.
My dog will ruin a normal tennis ball in less than 5 minutes, and the giant "kong" balls only last about 45 minutes of fetch, before they are in pieces.
Lately ive just been finding a stick about 2inches around and about 2 ft long and throwing that...

[PatternDayTrader]

Originally Posted by doggiedad

if you're going to throw a stick i suggest throwing
it side arm so it doesn't stick in the ground. if your dog
over runs it he could hurt his mouth. if you throw
the stick side arm you have more of a chance of the stick
landing flat.

Thats how i throw - I get a better "fling" on it sidearm. We used to use tennis balls but somhow the rubber ends up broken into little pieces inside the green cloth exterior and the kong balls split at the mold seam.

[mvarnell]

The "pet safe" tennis balls are made with a different fabric that is non-abrasive. If you feel them next to a regular tennis ball you can tell the pet ones are much softer to the touch. I use chuck it rebounce balls and my GSD has never torn one up, I have had them dry rot before wearing out.

[sashadog]

Originally Posted by mvarnell

The "pet safe" tennis balls are made with a different fabric that is non-abrasive. If you feel them next to a regular tennis ball you can tell the pet ones are much softer to the touch. I use chuck it rebounce balls and my GSD has never torn one up, I have had them dry rot before wearing out.

Sticks scare me because of a horrible incident that my trainer went through with her dog. The stick stuck in the ground and impaled her, luckily she pulled through but it scarred me for life. But after that I won't throw a stick for my dogs... paranoid, probably.... But... The orange chuck-it balls are amazing!! Sasha uses them like bubble gum and we've never had one break and she is extremely hard on toys. Tennis balls used to only last two throws before she crunched them in half. Racquet balls were too hard. But those chuck-it balls are amazing!! Highly recommend!! Oh, and they bounce like none other

[PaddyD]

Tennis balls are too small. Fetching and running with them are dangerous.
Long sticks are dangerous because one end can catch on the ground and drive the other end into their mouths.

[Davey Benson]

There are worse things for dogs than chewing tennis balls - USATODAY.com

[lrodptl]

There are worse things for dogs than chewing tennis balls - USATODAY.com

I know of no dog that has ever choked on a tennis ball,though a couple of people here say theirs have. My dogs go through nearly 100 tennis balls a year and catch one about 100 times a day,every day. 5 dogs-total of about 50 years of life-100 times a day. About 1,825,000 chances. No dental issues either,they don't chew them non stop.

[lrodptl]

Originally Posted by Davey Benson

There are worse things for dogs than chewing tennis balls - USATODAY.com

Beat me to it.

[Davey Benson]

This is the teeth of my rescue dog. She was wrecked by her previous owner. This is why you don't cable a dog 24/7 to a tree out back of your house.



A thousand tennis balls couldn't have done the damage that being cabled up to a tree all her life has done...

Since I have had her, I have never see her chewing on anything, so I know it's not a obsesive compulsive thing.