Drive Building & Training Toys
Our tug toys will help you play with your dog. Whether your dog is a tugging fool or just learning the game, one of our tugs can help.
We have many tug toys available made from a range of materials including French Linen, Jute, Synthetic (riot sticks) and leather.
Need to learn more about playing with your dog or choosing the right toy? Read Denise’s articles on Playing With Prey Drive and Choosing Toys.
Fenzi Frenzy & Frenzita Tug
The "Frenzy" toys are designed to build drive in your dog, whether a small puppy or an adult dog that lacks persistent prey drive. Frenzy toys have a long handle and many pieces of multi-textured leather hanging down for your dog to grab onto. The leather is soft to allow a good grip, yet smooth enough to require some jaw pressure. The top portion of the Frenzy comes in different materials to accommodate your dog’s stage of development. The natural fur or sheepswool Frenzy toys are perfect for dogs that require a soft, squishy surface to grab onto - an excellent beginner toy for drive development. The all leather frenzies are a good choice for dogs that are ready to progress, but aren’t ready for the more challenging leather puppy rags or true leather training toys. Frenzy toys are very sturdy, and therefore are well suited to all breeds of puppies and tenacious small to mid-sized adult dogs.
Frenzies are available with upper portions of natural sheepskin, real reindeer fur, or soft cow leather.
The "Frenzita" line of toys is designed to accomodate the needs of small breed performance dogs and puppies. The toys are identical to the Frenzy toys, but all of the pieces are proportioned to the needs of small dogs. We also offer real rabbit fur in addition to the sheepswool, reindeer and leather offered in the Frenzy toys. While made of sturdy leather strips and leather backed fur, the entire toy is much smaller and ligher in weight, making it an excellent surface to grip. These toys are not appropriate for medium or large dogs.
- Frenzy Tug
- Available in Leather, Sheepswool, or Reindeer
- Price: $9 - $16 (depending on material)
- Frenzita Tug
- Available in Leather, Sheepswool, Rabbit or Reindeer
- Price: $7 - $12 (depending on material)
Puppy Chamois Rag
The Leather Puppy Rag is made of thick, soft chap leather that is relatively easy for your dog to grab and hold onto, with a handle for you, too. It is excellent for building intensity and prey drive in both puppies and young dogs just starting out. The leather is soft enough that a dog with a low motivation to bite can grab hold, but not so textured that they aren’t motivated to clamp down and hold on properly. The Leather Puppy Rag is a step harder than the Robit toy. It is an excellent choice before moving your novice dog onto a training-type of toy. The puppy rag is appropriate for puppies and young dogs training for any discipline; schutzhund, French ring, obedience, agility or flyball.
- Puppy Chamois Rag
- Price: $18.00
Training Toys
Narrow Leather Tug with moderate fill
The Thin Leather tug with soft fill is made of soft, chap leather and has a narrow diameter (about 1"). This is an excellent choice for dogs moving from drive building to training toys. To add a prey reaction from your dog, attach a leash to the handle to make the transition from a leather puppy rag. This tug is also easy to hide, making it well suited to many training situations. The thin leather tug is one of the best choices for softer biting and smaller dogs. If you want a softer or harder toy, please make a note in the "comments" section and we’ll see what we can do.
- Narrow Leather Tug
- Price: $12.00
Thick Leather Tug with moderate Fill - 10" length
The Thick Leather Tug with Moderate Fill has a lightly textured leather exterior with a moderate amount of inner fill, making a toy with some "squish" in the dog’s mouth. Due to the thick diameter (approx. 2"), this toy is great for dogs that like to fill their mouth when they play tug. A wide diameter toy is desireable for encouraging your dog to open his or her mouth and commit to hanging on to the toy. This one is popular with schutzhund, agility and obedience folks. It is most appropriate for larger sized dogs with medium to hard bites. The toy comes with a handle, so attaching a leash can make the thick leather tug a good transition toy from drive building to training toy. If you want a softer or harder toy, please make a note in the "comments" section and we’ll see what we can do.
- Thick Leather Tug
- Price: $15.00
French Linen Tug with Handle - 8" or 10" length
The French Linen Tug with handle is popular with trainers in a range of sports. The biting surface provides good texture, giving intermediate to hard biting dogs a nice surface to clamp their teeth down. It is not as heavily filled or as hard as the jute tugs, so is a moderately easier bite. The toy can be ordered in a narrow diameter of 1″ or a wide diameter of 2″. The narrow diameter is a good choice for smaller dogs or dogs who are just moving from drive building to training toys. It is also a popular choice for dogs - many like the feel in their mouth. The handle is perfect for carrying the toy and playing tug. The handler can attach a leash to the handle to incite prey drive in dogs that show little interest in playing with training toys, but have advanced beyond the drive building toys. This toy is well suited to medium or larger dogs.
- French Linen Tug
- Price: $12.00
- Available in 8" or 10" lengths, narrow (1″ diam) or wide (2″ diam)
Jute Ball (Gripper brand)
The Gripper Jute ball is designed especially for drive building. This is another excellent toy for dogs that want to chase and tug. The toy can be thrown like a ball, but the handle is very strong gripper material, and is suitable for hard tugging dogs. This toy is good for medium or large sized dogs, and can help transition a dog who loves to retrieve to an equally great love of tugging. Constructed of high quality jute, the Gripper Jute Ball has a 12" Gripper handle with a knot at the end.
- Jute Ball/Tug
- Price: $15.00
Jute Frisbee (Gripper brand) - 10" diameter
The Jute Frisbee is an excellent toy for dogs that like to chase AND tug. The toy can be thrown like a frisbee, but is made of sturdy jute which is perfect for hard tugging. There is no fill and the toy is very narrow (1/4"), so can be used with any sized dog. This toy can help transition a dog who loves to retrieve to an equally great love of tugging. Very durable and versatile toy for a range of sizes and biting styles.
- Jute Frisbee
- Price: $14.00
Jute Tug with Ring - 8" or 10" length
The Jute Tug with Ring is a hard, stiff toy which provides a moderate to hard biting challenge for a young dog. The ring on the end allows the handler to attach a leash in order to whip the toy around, creating a strong prey reaction in the dog. The jute has plenty of texture allowing the dog a good hold once they catch the toy. This Jute toy is appropriate for larger sized dogs with fairly hard bites; it is not a good choice for a soft biting dog. Once the dog bites well with the toy attached to the leash, the leash can be removed for an excellent training toy. Jute is a very popular biting surface for most dogs once they learn to apply hard jaw pressure. This toy would be appropriate for almost all schutzhund dogs and harder biting agility or obedience dogs.
Jute Tug with Handle - 8" or 10" length
A Jute Tug with Handle is handy for carrying the toy and playing tug. This jute tug with handle is suitable for any larger dog with a strong medium to hard bite. The jute provides a textured biting surface which is easy to grip; however this toy is well filled, and is best for dogs that provide harder jaw pressure when playing tug.
- Jute Tugs ("O" Ring or Handled)
- Price: $10.00
- Available in 8" or 10" lengths, and with an "O" ring or handle
Hard Leather Tug Toy with Handle
This leather tug toy is made with a relatively smooth exterior surface and hard fill. There is very little "squish" making it an excellent toy for hard biting dogs. Due to the thick diameter (approx. 2"), this toy is great for dogs that like to fill their mouth and really clamp down when they play tug. A wide diameter toy is desireable for encouraging your dog to open his or her mouth and commit to hanging on to the toy. This one is popular with schutzhund, agility and obedience folks. It is most appropriate for large sized dogs with hard bites. The toy comes with a handle.
- Hard Leather Tug with Handle
- Price: $13.00
Rolled Jute Toy (Gripper) - 12" length
The Rolled Jute Toy is made by the Gripper company. It is made of hard, durable, rolled jute. The rolled construction makes them more durable than most toys with fill. This toy comes with or without a handle. It is a very popular toy for schutzhund dogs, and is well suited to larger, hard biting dogs.
- Rolled Jute Tug
Stitched Leather Tug (soft or hard) - 10" length
The Stitched Leather Tug comes in soft and hard versions. The Soft Stitched Leather Tug is made of puppy bite rag leather, while the Hard Stitched Leather Tug is made of durable chap leather. Handmade, these tugs are easy to stuff in a pocket or waistband, and the Hard Stitched Leather Tug is particularly durable. The light color of these tugs will not stain your clothes when they get slobbery. These toys come with a handle. Attaching a handle to a leash makes it easy to convert the dog from "drive building" toys to "training" toys. This is one of our most popular training toys for agility and obedience trainers. The toy is appropriate for dogs with moderately soft to hard bites.
- Flat Stitched Leather Tug
- Available in Hard or Soft
- Price: $13.00
Stitched Jute Tug (medium) - 10" length
The Stitched Jute Tug is identical in construction to the Stitched Leather Tug, except that it’s made of jute. Handmade, these tugs are easy to stuff in a pocket or waistband, excellent for dogs that like the feel of jute or do well with the added texture that jute toys bring. These toys come with a handle and are medium hardness. Attaching a handle to a leash makes it easy to convert the dog from "drive building" toys to "training" toys. This is one of our most popular training toys for agility and obedience trainers. The toy is appropriate for softer dogs, or dogs transitioning to a training tug.
- Flat Stitched Jute Tug
- Price: $10.00
Synthetic (Firehose) toys - White - 8", 10" or 12" length
White Synthetic Toys (also known as firehose) are slippery on the surface (harder to grip) and possess moderately hard fill. They are excellent for hard biting dogs and for quick rewards, due to their narrow construction (approx 1"). Schutzhund dogs with good grips and hard biting agility/obedience dogs can benefit from these toys. They are not appropriate for soft biting dogs or dogs that aren’t committed to playing tug. These tugs come with or without a handle.
- Firehose Tug - White
- Price: $10.00
- Available in 8", 10" and 12" lengths, with or without handle
Synthetic (Firehose) toys - yellow - 8", 10" or 12" length
Yellow synthetic toys are more textured on the exterior than white synthetic toys. They have very hard fill and are more durable than most training toys. These toys float in water and are easy to throw. They are much thicker than the white synthetics, and are good for encouraging dogs to take a deep, hard grip. These are excellent for hard biting dogs competing in any sport, but are most popular with schutzhund competitiors. They are not appropriate for soft or moderate biting dogs. These tugs come with or without a handle.
- Firehose Tug - Yellow
- Price: $10.00
- Available in 8", 10" and 12" lengths, with or without handle