The Good: Durable, Comparatively inexpensive.
The Bad: Felt feet come off or do not launder well.
The Basics: For a decent squeaking toy that is surprisingly durable and has a distinctive squeaker, the Quackers toy is easy to recommend.
As our new Siberian Husky, Myah, has gotten settled in at our home, we have been trying to make her feel more loved and comfortable. For me, that means trying new treats on her, for my wife, that means getting her new toys. While I was all set to pan the Halloween bear that my wife got for Myah. That would be an easy toy to not recommend as Myah popped the squeaker in that within three minutes of active play. But, I thought it would be fun to review something that Myah liked (and that I could associate products with). For that, I went with the Hartz Quackers Large Duck toy.
The Stuffed duck toy is a simple one; it is thirteen inches long with a fourteen inch wingspan. The brown stuffed duck has a green mallard head and bright orange felt feet. The underside is a simple cotton fabric, but the top and neck is a more coarse, wool-like fabric that simulates the feel of short feathers in the dog's mouth, apparently. Wisely, the eyes are embroidered onto the Quacker's head so they cannot be torn out by the dog.
Myah is almost four years old, so she is very rambunctious and eager to play. Since we got her the Quackers toy several days ago, she has played both with us and on her own with the Quacker toy. We'll be sleeping and hear her start chewing or smacking on the stuffed duck's butt and activating the duck-like squeaker. The squeaker sounds just like a duck call and that is distinctive and seems to get Myah riled up more.
What impressed me most about the Quackers toy is how the squeaker cannot be punctured easily. Myah has pushed, bit, thrown the toy around and the squeaker does not break. The Quackers toy seems virtually indestructible, making is a very good investment for those of us with active dogs. As well, the neck of the Quackers includes a support which keeps the neck stiff. No matter how Myah has played with the Quackers, the neck remains rigid and strong.
It is not entirely unbreakable. The felt feet are good for a while, but they represent the weak point on the Quackers, both for connection and cleaning. Myah tore a hole in one foot after week of heavy play and I suspect really big dogs would get the foot off in about the same amount of time. The other foot, being felt, became weaker when we cleaned the Quacker and it looked ratty before I tore it off.
Cleaning the Quacker is fairly easy. Washing a saliva-covered Quacker in cold water gets it clean, though I found unless I blow dry the Quacker, the top of the duck mats. This is pretty much like any stuffed animal, but it should not be put in the dryer, lest the squeaker inside become more brittle.
But, after a week of heavy play and one good cleaning, our Quacker is holding up remarkably well and making me think that the extra money we spent on this, as opposed to the less expensive Halloween Bear toy, was well worth it.
For other dog products, please be sure to check out my reviews of:
Oster ShedZilla Clean & Healthy Professional De-Shedding Tool
Kong Medium Classic Toy
Four Paws Wire Rake Pooper Scooper
8/10
For other pet product reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2011 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
| | |
No comments:
Post a Comment