Our 10 Favorite Kong Dog Toys (and 3 We DON’T Like): K9 of Mine Staff Picks!

We’ve collected the thoughts about Kongs from five key pack members here at K9 of Mine. This includes our CEO Megan Marrs, editor Ben Team, certified dog behavior consultant Kayla Fratt, and long-time contributors Kelsey Snyder and Kate Brunotts.

Hey guys and gals! Meg, here.

The Classic Kong is one of my favorite options for giving Remy something to lick up and distracting him when visitors are over.

I love to stuff the Kongs with a mix of wet food, canned pumpkin, and cottage cheese. Then I freeze it, and Remy has a snack to lick up when he needs help calming down (essential to have on hand for a dog like Remy who gets over aroused so easily). These things are awesome and so versatile!

Make sure to check out our video below where I’ll show you my favorite stuffed Kong recipes!

Kayla checking in! 

When my puppy Niffler was younger, our Classic Kong was an absolute lifesaver. I filled it with raw food grind for his meals and used it to keep him busy while I cleaned or worked or showered. 

We still use a Classic Kong almost daily in my house; I keep a bowl of 6 to 8 frozen Kongs on hand at all times. With high-energy and slightly anxious border collies in my home, it’s ultra-handy to be able to occupy and soothe them with a snack whenever we need. I love that I can rotate what I stuff the Kongs with to keep the dogs interested and healthy!

Hi there canines and kiddos! Kelsey, here.

We like the Kong Extreme Classic a bunch. 

Moxie (my Staffy mix) is a super chewer, and this is the only stuffable toy that has held up for her.

She’s had the same one for over a year now, and while we only offer it once in a while, it doesn’t show substantial damage other than some scuffing/scratching. It’s easy to clean and sturdy without causing any mouth ouchies like other chews. 

Hey, ya’ll! Ben, here.

My pooch has had her Kong Goodie Bone for about 6 years now, and we’re pretty big fans of it. It was far too large and heavy for her as a young pup, but she’s grown into it nicely.

Now, my dog doesn’t really sit around just gnawing on this toy — she’s not really a chewer at all. But, she does like when I put a treat or bit of dog-safe peanut butter in the ends for her to lick out. And occasionally, I’ll trick her into playing fetch with it, just so I can watch her carrying it back to me (it’s pretty darn cute).

Suffice to say, it’s safe, durable, and gives me a good way to provide some quick enrichment when need be. Highly recommended.

Ben here, again.

While my dog may not be a chewer, she loves — and I mean loves — playing tug-of-war. At least two or three times a day, I’ll look down from my computer to see her resting a tug toy on my lap and giving me the eyes.

She’s not terribly picky about tug toys, and this one may not even really be her favorite (she seems to prefer the plush variety a bit more, but she’ll gladly play with this one too).

But it is my favorite tug toy. The thing I like about it most is the ergonomics — it is really easy for me to hang on to (no small feat when a 95-pound Rottie is on the other end). It’s also super easy to clean once playtime is over.

As long as you don’t intend to let your dog chew on it on her own (it probably won’t hold up long for this kind of use), I whole-heartedly recommend it.

Kelsey here, again. This time talking about the Kong Squeaky Toy.

First, a bit of an issue: These dog toys come with a heavy rubbery odor that requires some airing out. However, once this dissipates, it became a favorite toy bin pick for my pooches.

Unfortunately, it did become punctured after a few days, so it no longer squeaked, thereby ruining its appeal for my Staffy mix Moxie. But overall, it’s a good choice for an average chewer.

Ben, here again.

This simple little toy has proven to be much more appealing to my pooch than I’d have ever imagined. She’s not really a chewer (in the traditional sense), but she loves chasing this thing around and carrying it to and fro.

We’ve actually had it for about 5 years now, and (while it probably wouldn’t hold up for power chewers, like Kelsey’s dogs) it is still in pretty good shape.

Meg here, again.
I’m a tremendous fan of the Kong Wobbler! It was Remy’s first feeding puzzle toy that I used for dinner, and for a while it was the only way to keep him distracted for longer than 5 minutes.

Since we started using this, the Kong Wobbler became a bit too easy for him and we graduated to the Bob-A-Lot toy, but I’ll still use the Kong Wobbler when I’m feeling lazy because it’s SO easy to load up and is just an all-around awesome puzzle toy – especially if your dog needs help building their confidence, as it’s fairly easy to get the hang of for most dogs!

And before you click that “Buy Now” button, be sure to checkout our in-depth, hands-on review of the Kong Wobbler!

Kayla back again — this time to talk Wobblers!

Adopting my border collie Barley was a super overwhelming experience. He was SO food driven and so high energy. One of the first purchases I made after bringing him home was a Kong Wobbler. We filled that with his favorite kibble every morning. Just playing with the Wobbler took a minute edge off of his energy, and I needed any softening that I could get!

As Barley got used to my home, I started to actually hide his Wobbler around the house so that when I left for work, he had a full-on scavenger hunt to find his meals. He loves pawing and nosing at the toy to earn his meals – you can see a grin on his face whenever the Wobbler makes an appearance.

Ben here, again.

This toy really shocked me — well, my dog’s reaction to it did, anyway.

For some reason, my pooch completely lost her mind over this toy from the first second I pulled it out of the box. She chewed, chased, and wrestled with it for a solid 30 minutes before I even threw it once (though she flung it up in the air to herself several times).

It has continued to be a favorite of hers, and I’ve actually found her whining and going all bipedal in an effort to snatch it off the kitchen counter at times.

However, I am not quite as big a fan of it for one simple reason: It’s not especially easy to throw well. I’m no disc golf champ or anything, but I can throw a dang Frisbee. However, there’s definitely a bit of a learning curve to getting this thing to fly well.

But while it’s not a great choice for competitive dog disc games, it is undeniably a great toy for more casual fetch time.

Kelsey here, again.

This toy is an all-time favorite of my two Staffy/pibble mixes. We keep new ones on hand to switch them out as needed and have a bit of a Wubba graveyard in our living room.

These aren’t the most long-lasting of toys (a few hours until they’re fraying and the inner squeak is popped), but they’re a favorite for throwing, thrashing, and playing tug between the two. Just watch the tentacles, as they can be chewed off and swallowed. 

Kayla here, again!

Tough, squeaky, tuggable, and tossable? Honestly, it doesn’t get much better than a Wubba as an all-around toy for playful dogs.

My working dogs both LOVE getting their Wubba as a reward after a long search; it allows them to squeak loudly (it is loud), tug with me, fetch, or simply run in circles and whip the toy around to “kill” it.

Eventually our Wubbas are all dissected and need to be replaced, but that’s not due to poor construction: It’s simply that my dogs love the toy to death.

Kelsey here, again.

I bought this in hopes that my Staffy mixes would use this for playing tug instead of their poor original Wubbas. Unfortunately, they preferred to chew this like a bone.

That said, it stood up to chewing for a few days before the center started fraying all over the rug. I wouldn’t recommend it for super chewers, but it’s a solid pick for gentle to average chewers looking for a better option than a standard rope toy.

Hey there four-footers and friends! Kate, here.

We got the chance to try out the Squeezzz ball dog toy with my 10-pound shih-tzu poodle mix Spicy. For reference, Spicy is pretty playful, but usually gravitates towards plush toys with squeakers, or anything that rolls. 

That being said, she loved this toy! Spicy loved being able to roll around the dumbbell and had fun nudging it across my apartment. It’s also nice that the toy bounces sporadically, much to Spicy’s delight. 

The small-sized dumbbell was perfect for my pooch, and Spicy was able to pick up this toy and toss it around despite her small stature. Spicy isn’t a super chewer, but the toy’s durable design feels like it will last a while without needing replacement for most dogs.

I appreciate that this toy has rounded edges so that it’s soft enough for Spicy to enthusiastically grab during an intense game of fetch. The bright emerald color also makes this toy easy to find, and while squeakers aren’t my favorite, Spicy loves this toy’s sound and it’s not totally ear-splitting. This dumbbell also features raised textured nubs which I’m sure my furball appreciates. 

Overall, Spicy and I give this toy two paws up! It can be a bit loud when tossed on hardwood floors, but it still makes an interactive and safe fetch toy that Spicy seems to enjoy. 

Hey guys and gals, Ben here again.

I actually bought this toy for my pooch on the way to pick her up from the breeder. I mostly picked it because I knew her soon-to-be mom would just find it too cute for words, but it also seemed like a good overall chew toy.

I still have it in a drawer somewhere, but it just never really lived up to my expectations. My pooch has never seemed particularly interested in it (and it’s a bit small for her at this point), and it is all but impossible to clean after stuffing with anything soft and tasty.

I wouldn’t consider it a “bad” toy and it’s certainly cute, but I’d gently nudge our readers in other directions. There are just better Kongs to spend your money on in my view.

Ben here, again.

I really wanted to like this toy, but I just didn’t. As mentioned, my dog isn’t really a chewer, but I thought she may enjoy it.

But she didn’t really seem to care about it at all. She nommed on it for about five minutes, and then moved on to other things. Honestly, it is much smaller than I thought it’d be, the texture doesn’t seem terribly pup appealing to me, and I just really don’t get why the toy would be appealing to most four-footers.

I wouldn’t classify this as a “bad” toy; it may work better with your four-footer. But for us, this was a waste of 15 bucks.

Ben here one last time.

There’s not much “wrong” with this toy, but I really struggle to see any advantages it provides over a dog-safe tennis ball or other fetch toy. It’s surprisingly heavy for its size, it’s pretty slick, and it gets rather grody after your dog slobbers it up.

Additionally, I would be mildly concerned with it posing a choking hazard, except that I threw it in a drawer and don’t intend to use it anymore.

Try it if you like, but do so carefully and temper your expectations.