Petco Star Wars Winners

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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Toys and a Harness Find Homes Today

The community of Star Wars followers out there is clearly quite committed, knowledgeable, or dare I say addicted?!!! LOL; you guys did a great job of guessing what the space ship on Oliver's right is called--the X-Wing Fighter. Today that space ship, the Death Star, Princess Leia, and the Darth Vader harness will each find a new home.

I've drawn the winners and will notify each today via my AllThingsDogBlog@gmail.com account. Watch for my message and be sure to check your spam file if you believe your name is on this list. Those spam files cause me more problems that Lord Vader!

Congratulations to R. Sarao, M. Noble, Urd-Chan, and J. Diehl. I'll fill you each in on which prize you won in my email, so be ready to receive it and reply with your shipping address quickly. I like to get my prizes out as fast as the spaceship travels!

May the force be with you all,

These prizes have been provided by Petco for promotional exposure. I was not paid to share this information or the giveaway with you and the comments, numskull as they may sound, are completely my own!

Three Happy Tricky Treater Lovers

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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Smells Good Inside There!

Tanner and Oliver have been having way too much fun with their new Tricky Treater. We've used it to serve meals, keep the boys busy during rainy days and give them a little brain work for problem-solving practice. This is a terrific way to tire out a hyperactive pup who just can't seem to get enough exercise. Add a Tricky Treater to your bag of tricks and you'll be good to go.

Delicious!

Our review and giveaway have been fun, especially the comments and social media conversations. Our winners have gotten a lot of great insight on what setting they'll need to use for their dog. We love that there are several settings to allow the food to be dispensed slower or faster, depending on your dog's needs. This is truly an awesome feature of the Tricky Treater.

Our winners are Natalie B., Kyla P. and Maureen C. Today's lucky winners will be receiving an email from AllThingsDogBlog@gmail.com requesting their shipping information. Watch for my message in your inbox, or check your spam file.

If you're not a winner today, I urge you to consider adding one of these great toys to your home. You'll find them at this link on Amazon, as well as at the list of other online stores shown below. It's sure to improve your quiet time when Fido gets "needy". Congratulations again to our winners.


Retailers that carry the Petlinks System:

Yes, Please!

• PetSmart.com
• Petco.com
• Petvalue.com
• Wag.com
• HSN.com
• OnlyNaturalPet.com

Petlinks asked us to review the Tricky Treater displensing toy and has provided us with this review product. We have not been compensated, and the opinions included here and in our review and giveaway are completely our own.

Petco Blasts Off with Star Wars Fun!

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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Star Wars Toys and More

Let's open this giveaway with a disclaimer: I'm not a Star Wars expert in any way, shape or form. I'm definitely going to blunder through the names, terms and movie facts, so bear with me. If you get nothing else from this post, here are the basic facts: Petco has a cool line of Star Wars pet toys and other paraphernalia, and I'm giving some of them away at the bottom of this post. If you're a Star Wars fan, look no further than the Star Wars link in this paragraph for the ultimate in goodies for your dog to satisfy your own appetite.

courtesy Petco.com

With a little help from family I finally identified the Death Star. Pretty cool, I have to say. Not only is it a large, soft ball that medium to large dogs will enjoy, but it has some buried treasures. Look for Darth Vader and others hiding within. You know how much I love toys that make our dogs use their problem-solving skills; this is neat!

No line of Star Wars toys would be complete without a replica of Princess Leia, and guess which toy was Tanner's hands down fave? Yep! I gave him 3 chances to select from the pile and he bolted for the pretty lady every time. He's all boy!

Name this Starship for an Entry

I actually thought he'd choose the Star Ship Enterprise, but go figure. I guess he's not a flyer. Oh, my bad! This is definitely not the Star Ship Enterprise, is it? I guess you can see what I mean when I say I'm not a Star Wars expert. Let's see who can name this particular spacecraft in the giveaway. We'll get to the bottom of this mystery with your help.

If you fancy dressing your pup in true Star Wars fashion, the harness that our stuffed model is wearing is also up for grabs. It's too big for Oliver and too small for Tanner, so this sharp number will need to go to a dog that has measurements in the following range: Chest range 23.5-30 inches and Neck range 14-16 inches. I would call this a medium, but the makers of the product have it labeled as a Large, so

Courtesy Petco.com

please measure your dog accurately to be sure he'll fit. This is the only size I have to offer. Be sure to enter using the comment about your dog's size to be eligible to win this nice harness. 

So there you have it--4 prizes to 4 winning Fidos. The clock is ticking. Entries begin now and will run through midnight on Thursday, June 12. I'll announce the winner on Friday, June 13. At least we know that there will be good news for these 4 lucky dogs.

Use the Rafflecopter entry form below to make your entries, using as many or as few of the choices as you wish. If you can't locate the entry form, it may be hiding from Darth Vader. You can wave your light saber by clicking on the post title above. That will snap our Rafflecopter back to work pronto. Keep it fun and best of luck to you all.

May the force me with you,

These prizes have been provided by Petco for promotional exposure. I was not paid to share this information or the giveaway with you and the comments, numskull as they may sound, are completely my own!

Treat Your Dog with the Tricky Treater: A Giveaway!

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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I trust you're here today because you read our review of this fun, treat-dispensing toy by Petlinks--the Tricky Treater! Tanner and Oliver have been enjoying a few mealtime expeditions around the house, making chow more of a mental game that the boys have to work for. That's always a good thing--stimulating your dog's mind. I also love that it helps them to eat a bit more slowly, especially for Tanner. He can inhale a bowl full of kibble in seconds, a habit that we should all work to diminish in our chow hounds.

Now that we've got you wanting one of these toys, we're going to run a giveaway. Three lucky pups will score a free Tricky Treater! If you prefer the sure-thing method to getting your Tricker Treater, please stop in at Amazon or check out the list of other retailers that carry the Petlinks line, found in my review post.

To enter the giveaway, you need only scroll to the bottom of this post and enter by using those methods you prefer. Feel free to pick and choose. We're just happy to have you join in. If the Rafflecopter entry form is hiding, you can retrieve it by clicking on the post title above. That technique is like Come When Called for a dog; works every time!

Entries will continue through Thursday, June 5 with winners announced here and in a new post on Friday, June 6. Be sure to mark your calendar and return to see if you got lucky. 

One great way to assure that you don't forget to check up on the winners is to subscribe to All Things Dog Blog. This way you'll get our announcement in your email. That's a great way to get good news! Click this link to set up your FREE subscription, if you're not already subscribed. One final, very important tip: don't forget to check your email account and click the verification email link to confirm your subscription. Until you do this, you won't receive any of our posts in your inbox. 

Best wishes to all our entrants!

Happy treating,

Petlinks asked us to review the Tricky Treater dispensing toy and has provided us with this review product. We have not been compensated, and the opinions included here and in our review are completely our own.

Tricky Treater Dog Food Dispensing Ball

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

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Let's Get this Show on the Road!

There's no denying that my boys are food motivated. But Oliver's nose is a few notches ahead of Tanner's. As we prepared to roll this photo shoot, Tanner was patient and accommodating. Oliver was Mr. Eager! What he didn't realize was that this toy may be a bit large for his tiny snout. He weighs in at a whopping 10 lbs., so his little nose could be a bit sensitive to pushing around this ball that is larger than his head. The two boys had to team up to both enjoy the goodies spilling out of this enjoyable brain teaser. 

Team Up for Fun

The team up approach works well whenever your dogs are good with one another's food--no food aggression. If your dogs tend to be protective of their noms, better to use this tool in a confined space, one dog at a time. Better safe than sorry.

To make sure that the Tricky Treater is suitable for all dogs, no matter how aggressive their interaction style, the Petlinks folks built in a system for adjusting the feeding amount. Unscrew the 2 halves of the ball to reveal a storage area in one half of the ball that includes a trap

Inside Adjustment Area

door with 4 notches. This allows you to make the game easier or more challenging, depending on your dog's nose skills and his motivation. If he needs more help, open the doorway larger to allow for more scent to escape and food to come out more easily.

The Tricky Treater can be used with your dog's kibble or even small treats. Keep in mind Fido's figure before filling it full of dog treats, however. You don't want to increase his chance of any health issues either. Better to use the ball as a breakfast dispensing game than to serve up dessert using the ball.

So, what exactly, makes a treat ball a game? Here's a few skills that your dog will gain from playing with the Tricky Treater:

• Building his recognition of scent and ability to follow it.
• Focus: Fido will stay tuned into this task as long as the food continues to trickle out. Use the slowest setting that works for your dog, to give him the maximum workout for his brain, body and problem-solving skills.
• Use of his snout as a tool.
• Paw dexterity, another important skill.
• Problem-solving: For example, if the toy gets lodged in a corner or underneath furniture, how will Fido free it up? In our video below, Tanner demonstrates use of his paws, snout, going all-in with his body to rescue it (don't miss this funny scene), and also grabbing the toy with his mouth.
• The ridges on the Tricky Treater are somewhat soft and pliable, assuring that he won't injure his teeth or cause any gum damage. These ridges also give him something to grip as he uses his teeth to grab the toy. The ability to grab and lift is a terrific skill.
• Speed: Believe it or not, your dog will likely discover that the faster he rolls the ball, the more quickly the food will spill out. I have watched Tanner's speed pick up each time he plays with the Tricky Treater.
• Building food motivation: This tool can be a skill builder if you're working on any sort of training with your dog. If Fido will work for food, you're sure to be able to train him to do many tasks, skills or tricks.

On the flip side of the speed issue, an upside of using a treat dispensing toy to feed your dog is to slow down his eating speed. Veterinarians warn against dogs eating too fast, as this has been associated with bloat, a life-threatening condition. Remember that your dog should not engage in active play or a lengthy walk after eating a full meal. Always plan an hour of rest after mealtime or a large snack.

Let's watch Tanner and Oliver as they tag-team the Tricky Treater, successfully enjoying all the contents of the ball's storage compartment:

You can learn more about the benefits of feeding your dog using a dispensing toy at our dog trainer's video. Michael does a great job of explaining the benefits.
Some of the features of the Tricky Treater that appeal to our green side are the recyclable packaging and the use of recycled plastics in the toy. Kudos to Worldwise and the Petlinks System for using their Eco friendly thinking when designing this toy.
Looking to pick up a Tricky Treater for your pup? I checked up with the website and learned that there are quite a few retailers that carry the Petlinks line. I'll list these below. You'll also find the toy at Amazon here. 
If you have questions, please do touch base with the Petlinks folks at Twitter or Facebook to ask your questions and get further insight. I also found a video about the Tricky Treater here.
Retailers that carry the Petlinks System:

• PetSmart.com
• Petco.com
• Petvalue.com
• Wag.com
• HSN.com
• OnlyNaturalPet.com

Petlinks' Instructions for First Use: Close the opening completely and fill only the top with treats. Once your dog learns how to use the ball, set the opening to the maximum setting. Over time, gradually set the opening smaller and smaller to challenge your dog.

All Things Dog Blog's addendum to the Petlinks' instructions: If your dog is already a frequent flyer with a treat ball, don't be too hasty with the maximum setting. Your Fido may plow through the treats or food, overdoing it. Always consider your dog's existing skills when using a new toy. Finally, please use this, and all dog toys, with supervision.

Hoping for a giveaway? You're right on track with our plan. Watch the site for news soon.

Petlinks asked us to review the Tricky Treater displensing toy and has provided us with this review product. We have not been compensated, and the opinions included here and in our giveaway are completely our own.