May product review

This month we reviewed the Outward Hound Doggy Blocks Spinner Puzzle for Chewy.com

This toy has two sets of trays you can put treats in.  You can use either set or both depending on your dog's interest or ability.  The inner layer of treats in accessed by spinning the top part of the toy and exposing the chambers.  This part is adjustable to require more or less effort to spin depending on your dog.

Rotate the blue top and then fill the other chambers

 Then top with the yellow cubes

We let Lyric give it a try.  She decided this was not for her.  Maybe if there were higher value treats in it she would give it a shot.  But she's a pretty food motivated dog so based on her refusal to even try this may not be for dogs without more advanced critical thinking skills.

To get to the first set of cookies dogs can nose or paw the yellow boxes off, or if they are big enough pick them up.  Legend likes to either pick them up, or alternatively pick up the whole toy and just dump them or of knock it around until they come off.

After she gets the yellow blocks off she tends to just chew and manhandle the disk until she manages to move it enough to get the rest of the treats out.  I don't really think this is the intended use but it is effective.  My concern is that this technique may lead to tooth injury if she gets one stuck in the gap between pieces.  This may be a toy for a dog who is not quite as aggressive as she is or a less intense chewer.  But she does think it's fun and maybe if you held it down and anchored it to the ground she would learn to push the disk around instead of just basically beat the treats out of it!  I think this is a good toy for middle of the road dogs in terms of intelligence and chewing desire.  But the fact that it is adjustable is nice, although does give the impression when loosened that it it a little flimsy and may break easily.

We may give Lyric another chance with better treats and see what she does!