Kong & Peanut Butter

Re: Kong & Peanut Butter

I haven't been on this board long enough to know what the majority thinks of this, however, I have been hanging around the justlabradors forum long enough to know alot of people on there stuff their kongs. Here is a post someone on that forum put up with suggestions on Kongs. I dont go that far but have stuffed a Kong with kibble and sealed it with peanut butter. It all depends on how you feel about what you feed your dog. Also, just a note, I wouldn't use yogurt for a puppy. From what I have read it is not good for them to get too much calcium while still growing. I could be wrong but I just didn't in case.

WeHeartLabs

Re: Our Best Advice
« Reply #39 on: September 19, 2006, 12:48:53 PM » Quote

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The beauty of KONGS
Kongs and similar thick, solid rubber toys. These multifunctional, super-durable toys are ideal for chewing, games of catch, toss and retrieve, and other forms of play. They are appropriate for dogs of all breeds and sizes. These toys come in various sizes and weights, but all use a rubber that "gives" a little, minimizing the risk of tooth damage. The hollow varieties are extremely versatile and functional: they can be stuffed with soft foods, kibble and biscuit bits for a long-lasting distraction. They can even be used in place of a food bowl at mealtime. These are extremely durable, long-lasting toys even for strong, dedicated chewers.


Why Stuff a Kong?
Dogs are animals that are genetically programmed to hunt for their food. Part of
the reason there is such a prevalence of behavior problems in pet dogs is that they
have so little mental challenge or work to do: their food is given to them for free.
Zoos have had some success in decreasing behavior problems and improving the
quality of life of many of their predator and primate species by giving them
problems to solve in order to obtain their food. This same environmental
enrichment concept can be applied to domestic dogs, who thoroughly enjoy finding
hidden food and unpacking stuffed chew toys.


Stuffing Suggestions

Many people’s Kong stuffing efforts consist of inserting a few dog cookies. This is
scratching the surface of the creative food acquisition challenges you can cook up
for your dog. Here are a few pointers and principles to bump your Kong stuffing
prowess up to the next level:
· The level of difficulty should be appropriate to the dog’s level of experience
and temperament – is he persevering or a “giver-upper.” Any increases in level
of difficulty should be done gradually, so the dog succeeds while developing
perseverance. In other words, start easy and then make it tougher
· Easy stuffings are: loose and incorporate small, easy-to-fall-out pieces
· More difficult stuffings are: tighter, with some big pieces that take concerted
effort and hole-squishing to get in (and thus will be difficult to extract)
· You can employ a matrix (peanut butter, cream cheese, canned food, toddler
food) to hold the smaller bits in and give the dog side-polishing challenges
· You can wrap a stuffed Kong in an old cloth diaper or clean rag and/or enclose it
in an old margarine or other container (try Quaker oatmeal cardboard
containers!) to increase the level of difficulty through “nesting”
· Hide regular stuffed or nested Kongs around the house so the dog has to hunt
around to find them before unpacking them
· Give him all of his food this way, especially if he is a particularly “busy” dog
· Stuff meat, mashed potatoes etc. in it and freeze. Or, plug the small hole with
peanut butter and fill the cavity with broth, then freeze this to make a
“Kongsicle” (note: this can be messy – best to give it to your dog outside!)
· Stuff cheese cubes in and then microwave it briefly to nicely coat the insides
· Clean your Kongs regularly with a bottle brush and/or in the dishwasher

The Kong manufacturer makes an easy-to-use edible Stuffin'. Of course, you can make your own stuffings with healthy and tasty items you may already keep at home. For example: combine kibble with peanut butter...cottage cheese...low-fat plain yogurt...low-fat cream cheese...mashed white or sweet potatoes...steamed carrots cut in bits and mixed with one of the above, or even mashed...mushy brown rice...moist dog food...raw foods diet...whatever healthy foods your dog likes

Recipe Examples

Tight (more advanced) Stuffing
Layer 1 (deepest): roasted unsalted cashews, mild cheese chunks, freeze dried liver
bits
Layer 2: dog kibble, cookies or Liver Biscotti, Cheerios, sugar-free/salt-free peanut
butter, dried banana chips
Layer 3: baby carrot stick(s), turkey and/or leftover ravioli or tortellini, dried
apples, dried apricots
Pack as tightly as possible. The last item in should be a dried apricot or piece of
ravioli, presenting a smooth “finish” under the main hole.
“Lite” Version
For cashews, substitute crumbled rice cake; for freeze-dried liver, substitute
Caesar croutons; for peanut butter substitute fat-free cream cheese
Yogurt- fill and freeze for a great way to cool off, or if the dog needs to be kept quiet- ie after a surgery,
or for mouth injuries this is a great way to get cold on the area.
Ice chips

i pretty much fill the top half with peanut butter, and the bottom half with treats. if i only put a dab, mikko would be done in .5 seconds. he is an expert PB eater (he cleans the PB jars so i can recycle them ) BUT this is a very occassional treat, so the high calorie content is okay. when i was leaving him a kong everyday, i would freeze a mixture of non-fat plain yogurt, with a smaller amount of PB and freeze it, that way he didn't gain weight.

there are tons of good things you can freeze in a kong. we've done the yogurt/PB mix- you can add bananas to that. we also freeze chicken broth with treats in it- just make sure to seal off the ends(we make these in ice cube trays and keep in the freezer for the really hot days). cheese is also a good one that you can really smoosh in there.

Dante was ho-hum on the peanut butter but goes nuts when I put canned dog food in one (Freeze it over night and give in the morning when I leave for work)

Re: Kong & Peanut Butter

I'm curious what method you all use to clean all the residue out of the Kongs and keep bacteria under control? Someone suggested the dishwasher, but I'm not going to do that for a variety of reasons

My thought was to just use hot water and a scrubber on a stick, but I haven't found one small enough to fit into a Kong.

ETA: LOL I just read novarobin lengthy post (thanks for that info) and it suggests the dishwasher and a bottle brush. I'm still interested to hear how the rest of you have been cleaning the Kongs

Thanks Six

If you get it right after they finish, hot water works good. I used to leave several kongs for Brenna to work on while I was at work. By the time I got home the residue inside was dry and caked on, so it would take a little more work but not much...I still usually used hot water, it just took a while sloshing it around in there time and time again.

I've also noticed that bamboo makes a 'toy cleaning brush' of course the word kong is not on there but it is shaped to perfectly fit in a kong. I haven't tried it, but it looks pretty handy.