THANK YOU, Carson, for sharing these adorable pups with The Savvy Diabetic! Carson and her sister live with dad, James and mom, Melinda … and these 2 loving doggies!
When my family decided to move in February of 2018, we had recently lost our black lab mix Cassie. Part of the deal made to appease my sister and I was that we would get one big dog and one small dog once we got to Colorado.
Joy came to us in September 2018 through Big Dogs Huge Paws, a Colorado rescue for big dogs. If you’ve seen Turner and Hooch, she’s the same breed as Hooch and comes with the slobber too. Joy loves naps, sunbathing, and looking out windows. She’s a gentle giant and is one of the sweetest dogs in the world.
We found Ollie in January 2019 through a Boston Terrier rescue. However, they aren’t sure he’s a Boston- he looks more like a Frenchie. He was rescued off the streets in Oklahoma and still thinks he’s a big tough street dog, despite being a third of the size of his older sister. His favorite things in the world are snuggles, walks, and snap peas (or any crunchy food). He also likes to jump- when he gets excited he can get about 2-3 feet off the ground!
Joy and Ollie both love to wrestle and there’s plenty of videos of them gnawing on each other. They love family movie nights or any time when people are on the couch for extended amounts of time. Both of them have become important members of the Wedding family, and I don’t think we could imagine life without them!
Why Do Dogs Like Squeaky Toys? was written by Manette M. Kohler, DVM for PetMD.com, 15 May 2020.
Just the sheer number of toy options for dogs is a clear indicator that dogs love toys. There are toys that bounce, toys that fly, toys for chewing, toys for tugging, and, probably the most interesting of all, toys that squeak. What is it about squeaky toys that gets dogs so excited and engaged?
Something that people have in common with dogs is that we love to play. “Our unique relationship with dogs is, in part, a result of our mutual love of play,” says Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists Patricia McConnell, PhD, and Karen London, PhD, authors of “Play Together, Stay Together: Happy and Healthy Play Between People and Dogs.”
Why are they so drawn to these types of toys? Is it that the sound reminds them of scared or injured prey, thus tapping into their “wild” side? Are they positively reinforced by us for engaging with squeaky toys? Or, is it just plain old fun?
Here are three theories that can help you understand the squeak appeal.
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- Prey-Drive Theory: A 2017 study by Mehrkam et al. looked at the influence of breed on social and solitary play in dogs. They chose adult dogs from working lines (retrievers, herders, and livestock-guarding dogs). Of the three breed types, they found that overall, retrievers and herders were significantly more likely to engage in solitary play (i.e., with toys) than livestock-guarding dogs.
- Human Reinforcement Theory: Another theory is that pet parents are somehow reinforcing the play behavior in dogs. In other words, dogs notice that we give them more attention when they play with a squeaky toy. Dogs are masters at figuring out what gets our attention (and it’s hard to ignore a squeaky toy).
- “Just Plain Fun” Theory: Doing something that elicits an entertaining response is just plain fun and enjoyable. It stands to reason that dogs enjoy squeaky toys because it’s fun to bite down and get an interesting sound.
Read more: Why Do Dogs Like Squeaky Toys?
Those pups are awesome !!! Great looking dogs.
On the second note, I assume dogs like squeaky toys for the same reason I do. They are way fun.