Dog Toy Recalled

TOY RECALL: If your dog plays with the “Pimple Ball with Bell” products from Four Paws Products (available at nearly all pet product stores) take it away immediately! Please go to http://www.fourpaws.com/ and click on the banner for further information. The single hole can form a suction that sucks the dog’s tongue inside. Ten-year-old Labrador cross, Chai, had his tongue amputated as a result. He has to learn how to eat and drink again. He can’t pant to cool off, so can no longer play or exercise normally. Owner Daniel Rechelbacher reports vet bills have already gone past $5000. Due to Rechelbacher’s reporting, though, the company has agreed to recall and redesign the toy. While consumer advocacy groups supervise the safety of toys and games for human children, there are no “watchdog” groups for pets. Companies do not intentionally make dangerous toys. But there’s no reporting agency for such things, and companies may not hear about injuries--or if they do, only learn of single instances and consider them to be flukes. It’s up to us to pet-proof toys. Assume any dog toy will go into the mouth, be chewed, and small pieces potentially swallowed. Cats also tend to swallow small pieces of toys and choke or become blocked inside. Some dogs (like mine!) love to play with cat toys, which also can pose choking hazards. Stuffed toys that have ears, tails, or rubber products with surfaces that protrude, or bells and squeakers can invite dogs to gnaw them off or disembowel the bell. Cats love to play with ribbons, strings, and feathers but these should always be supervised. Any kind of string-type object can be swallowed and can literally tie up the intestines in a knot and kill the pet. What toys do your dogs and cats enjoy? Have they ever had a toy-accident? What do you do to make sure playtime is safe?