What does everyone put in their kongs for their puppies?? I am always worried about upsetting their stomachs and you have one person say to put this in, another say no those people are crazy I would never put that in a kong for my puppy.
Willow is on dry and wet food so I just mixed this in then froze it as she would get an upset stomach if I put anything else in her kong. Dry food alone just comes out too quick.
I use Kong treats as well and always have a few ready to go in the freezer. I soak Rosie's kibble in water for a few hours in frig (makes it bulk up and is soft) and put some of that in Kong, then usually layer it with either some yogurt and banana, apple sauce, canned pumpkin, strawberries or I use canned food that is smooth such as Wellness 95% Chicken. Sometimes I'll use a bit of peanut butter at the end. I would say that at least half to two thirds of the Kong is made up of her kibble and the rest is only to add flavour and interest.
Soft cheese spread, peanut butter, wet or raw dog food, mashed banana - all soft and lickable options. For more difficult Kongs, anything you can only just get inside there, is going to take a lot of effort to get out. You need to be looking at the healthy treats available and thinking about the size of the openings in your food toys to choose the right-sized stuff. I like the Yak Nuggets - which are cubes - or Fish4Dogs dried fish skin treats (or similar), Soopa make coconut or papaya which are bendy - bendy things are great because you can get them in easily and then they expand and are not so easy to get out. Nylabones make a Healthy Edibles range and the Small size of those would probably just about fit in a medium Kong. Making Kongs is an artform: Too easy and it will be done in 3 seconds and not worth the time it takes to make. Too difficult for the individual dog and they will give up before it is done. I like to put one 'difficult' thing in, and then a few easier things and finish with something lickable around the rim. That way they get reinforced for their efforts and will try harder for the difficult thing...
I don't think you can go wrong with tinned (or raw if that's what you feed normally) meat - they find it delicious, it's nutritionally balanced and not expensive. Peanut butter/cheese/ other treats is probably fine if you're not giving a lot. Frozen is more challenging and stops them throwing lumps of meat around your house if feeding indoors.
Yes I freeze them. It lasts way longer. She can spend at least 15/20 minutes on a large Kong. I also have these flower shaped Kongs in yellow and filled and frozen last her a half hour. I have used cottage cheese as well.
Yes, you can give Yak nuggets to puppies. No, you don't need to microwave them - they are not hard like the Yak bars, they are soft and puffy - like puffed rice. They have already been microwaved. You can freeze anything wet and squishy you put in a Kong to make it last longer and to help soothe gums during teething.
