Why letting your dog play with cat toys is seriously risky

Pet toys are a must when you have a furry friend but they're not actually interchangeable between animals.

If you've ever looked at a cat toy and thought your dog would love it or wondered if your kitty could share its toys with your pooch a vet has the answer.

It turns out that letting dogs have a play with cat toys is a hard no and for very good reasons.

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Vet Dr Rebecca MacMillan told PetsRadar that cat toys are too small and not sturdy enough for dogs to play with.

"The best cat toys are designed to stimulate natural feline hunting behaviors such as stalking, pouncing, and grabbing. These movements often require fine motor control and precision. Cat toys are often small, and some have random prey-like actions," she said.

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"Dog toys on the other hand are designed for rough-and-tumble games like tug, fetch, and chewing. Dog toys tend to be larger, heavier, and more suited to your pet's size. These toys are also more robust as they are designed to withstand the strength of a dog's jaw and the intense way that they play."

That means that when a dog plays with a cat toy there is a risk of choking and digestive blockages from parts of the cat toys ripping off during play.

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If there is any suspicion that your dog has ingested a pet toy you need to contact your vet straight away.

"Left untreated, a foreign body could make your dog seriously unwell, causing vomiting, diarrhea or constipation, abdominal pain, and damage to the digestive tract. It is always best to get your dog checked out rather than waiting for symptoms to develop," she added.

Cat toys aren't the only things dogs shouldn't play with. While not designed for dogs tennis balls are associated with playing fetch with dogs.

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However, Dr Katrina Warren warns that tennis balls can cause serious problems for our furry friends.

There's a risk of injury, choking, teeth damage and ball fixation.

"The size and texture of tennis balls present a choking hazard," she wrote in an article for 9honey Pets.

"A ball can obstruct the airway, and many dogs can easily break a tennis ball into smaller pieces, which can cause choking. Remember, a tennis ball can compress and expand, and some large dogs can easily fit an entire ball in their mouth. Many dogs will chew the fuzz off balls, which is also a choking hazard."

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Whole tennis balls can be swallowed by large dogs but pieces of balls can also be ingested and potentially cause a "life-threatening bowel obstruction".

Meanwhile, damage to teeth can be caused by the abrasive coating of a tennis ball if your dog chews them which can "wear the teeth down over time, causing permanent and sometimes severe and painful damage".

As for ball fixation, which can happen with other toys involved with a repetitive game like fetch, that is when your dog becomes obsessed with only the ball during while playing and nothing else.

"This is commonly seen in working breeds such as border collies and kelpies. Often, owners accidentally reinforce this behaviour, believing they are doing the right thing by exercising their dog, but the dog becomes an adrenaline junkie wanting more and more," Dr Katrina said.

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