Stuffed Animals for Your Pets | They Need Cuddles Too!
September 30, 2014
Stuffed Animals for Your pets:They Need Cuddles Too!
Have you ever seen your furry little friend cuddle up to a furry little friend of its own? Of course you have! Dogs, cats, even rodents absolutely love to cuddle with anything that will hold still long enough to let them. What holds still for a hug the best?? Stuffed animals of course!
Some animals are so specific and peculiar about their belongings that they’ll actually separate play toys from bed toys. For example, my little pooch will have her raggedy giraffe stuffy (its been so shredded that it now looks like an octopus) that she uses specifically for tug-o-war – oh how dogs love to play that game! And then she has other toys that she puts away in her bed and uses as snuggle objects when she goes to bed – it’s simply the cutest thing ever.
But when giving our pets stuffed animals to play with we have to think of them like little human babies and be very careful about the kind of stuffed animals we give them.
Some tips for safe stuffed animal play:
- If the stuffed animal has little beaded eyes that can come out, don’t give that to your furry little buddy, because they can be chewed out and choked on!
- Animals like to tare things open, so make sure the stuffed animal isn’t filled with beans or any other hazardous objects and take it away once it's ripped open.
- For dogs the tougher the material, the better. Not just because it will last longer, but because they need and love the challenge too.
- If you have a rodent that loves to cuddle with stuffed animals be careful that it doesn’t make a hole to crawl inside, it could get trapped and suffocate!
- Some materials can be toxic as well and sometimes animals can ingest the fibers, so it’s always a good idea to avoid items that have loose plastic materials and dense dyes.
And last but not least – if your pooch friend tries to put a raggedy object in your hands – he/she might be trying to say, “play with me”! Don’t leave him/her hanging when they want to play a game with you – playing with them is so good for them and a bonding experience for the both of you.
I hope your pet friend has many years of fun with their stuffed animal toys and if your pet doesn’t have any, get them some – they’re very emotional just like us and hugging up to a plushy animal might be just what they need sometimes.
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Author: Aileen Schultz