Nina Ottosson by Outward Hound Smart Puzzle Game Dog Toy

This really is a great puzzle toy. My 4 mo old Corgi has been playing it for a couple of weeks, getting better and better at it. He gets really excited when he sees me setting it up. It's fun to watch his different strategies for uncovering treats. He does only want to do it one time through each time. And then take a break. It's very sturdy too! My little guy is quite a chewer - and he will gnaw on the white 'bones' for a bit after finding his treats. I mix it up by putting his fave treats under only a few, with kibble under the others. He smells them and goes for the premium treats first!

I bought this for my puppy for mental stimulation as well as something to help him eat slower other than a slow feeder bowl. It only took him a few minutes to get the idea of it. He does it fairly quick now so if you are looking for something that takes a long time, this isn’t it. (It would probably take longer if maybe you used a peanut butter or some kind of spread in it.) But it’s great for puppies and beginners. I usually spread his meals out between a few different puzzles and he goes back and forth between the puzzles and it takes a while. Also to keep his interest I don’t use it all the time. Definitely a great product.

I have a not very food motivated 12 week old German Shepard mix pup. It can be hard to keep her occupied for longer than a few minutes but this puzzle does the trick! We put a mixture of different treats (coconut oil, peanut butter, frozen banana slices and the pure bites freeze dried beef liver!) in the TOP of the bones if possible because it keeps her busy longer. She does like to play with the bones after she pulls them out because of this but not a lot of chewing. I took one star off because it was a bit too easy for her to figure out and we have to bribe her with different foods!

NOT for dogs that are chewers. Mine are not, they solve the puzzle, eat the food, and move on. I have a 50 lbs mutt and 20 lbs mutt. This was not difficult for them to figure out, couple of minutes maybe? We have other Nina Ottosson toys that have the white blocks, so they are familiar with them. The larger dog lifts them out with his teeth. The smaller dog digs at them until they come out. I have only noticed a couple of pieces with scratch marks either from his teeth or her nails, and so far, it seems very sturdy. Sometimes the entire puzzle or the blocks need to be rescued from under furniture. I use puzzle games as slow feeders, and will place 2-4 out at a time for each dog in separate NOT for dogs that are chewers. Mine are not, they solve the puzzle, eat the food, and move on. I have a 50 lbs mutt and 20 lbs mutt. This was not difficult for them to figure out, couple of minutes maybe? We have other Nina Ottosson toys that have the white blocks, so they are familiar with them. The larger dog lifts them out with his teeth. The smaller dog digs at them until they come out. I have only noticed a couple of pieces with scratch marks either from his teeth or her nails, and so far, it seems very sturdy. Sometimes the entire puzzle or the blocks need to be rescued from under furniture. I use puzzle games as slow feeders, and will place 2-4 out at a time for each dog in separate areas. I will also hide the puzzle games in the yard for them to find. Great fun watching them run around. I would NOT recommend this for dogs that like to chew on plastic pieces (or a puppy), unless you are watching them and can rescue any pieces. Lastly, I love that this is plastic and I can throw all of it in the dishwasher. … more

Noodle loves this toy and it can be challenging for her to raise the bones to get the treat. Unfortunately she would just as soon chew on the bones as find more treats. We have to supervise her while she’s playing and remove the bones before she runs off with them. But it keeps her occupied for longer than some other toys and she asks for a reload when she finishes the puzzle!

Our 85 lb Lab Mix figured this out pretty quickly, however, I like using it combined with another puzzle to feed her in the evenings. She doesn't eat super fast but it slows her down even more and gives her something to do after a long day. I do pick up the bones and put the toy away right afer she's done or she'll destroy the bones! I would buy it again.

My vet told me to buy a puzzle because thinking would help my anxious dog burn off some mental energy and calm him down. I wasn't sure where to start so I decided to try this item at a level 1 difficulty. This puzzle was just interesting enough to get my dog excited but not stimulating enough to calm him down, with the result of me dealing with a manic dog crying for more. It seemed more like a difficulty level 0. Supposedly the asymmetrical shape of the bone shaped pieces allowed them to be oriented in a way that would be more difficult to pick up, but it was a piece of cake and made essentially no difference.

I originally purchased this for my cat, because she gets bored and asks for food a lot. It took her a minute and some help to figure out, and also to decide it was even worth her time, but now that she has she speeds through it and is really eager to use it. It’s great for when we leave the house for long periods of time during the day, I know she has outlets while we’re gone. I also recently got a puppy and she’s a big fan of this toy, but she’s almost more interested in playing with the bones than the treats inside, so we have to supervise her and will probably wait a little longer before we start using it regularly.

We love watching our huge 14 week old Lab try to solve this puzzle. He wants the "bones" and needs to be reminded that there's a treat, which can be hard to get if you're a dog that's determined to keep the bones in your mouth and eat the treat....What's a pup to do? Ours drops the bones and we scoop them up quickly before he grabs them from us. This is such fun watching him try to paw and bite at the "bones" to find the treat. We try it with him a few times a day, at different times sometimes, or all at one time. He's got such big paws that he really has to work at it while we chuckle along! In a week or two we'll get another one...just for our viewing pleasure...er...yeah..and his stimulation We love watching our huge 14 week old Lab try to solve this puzzle. He wants the "bones" and needs to be reminded that there's a treat, which can be hard to get if you're a dog that's determined to keep the bones in your mouth and eat the treat....What's a pup to do? Ours drops the bones and we scoop them up quickly before he grabs them from us. This is such fun watching him try to paw and bite at the "bones" to find the treat. We try it with him a few times a day, at different times sometimes, or all at one time. He's got such big paws that he really has to work at it while we chuckle along! In a week or two we'll get another one...just for our viewing pleasure...er...yeah..and his stimulation...Brain Training! Love this game/toy! … more

This is a fun brain challenging toy for the price. We bought this toy for our 4-year-old dog. She enjoys it while playing with it, but is very quick in retrieving the treats and knowing once they are gone. We may upgrade to the next challenging one.