Tennis balls are a serious health hazard for your pet, behaviorist warns

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By Chaitra Krishnamurthy

24 June 2024

Pet parents love to surprise their dogs with a variety of toys. There’s nothing more exciting than watching your fur baby become obsessed with its new ball or stuffed toy.

Even though toys are a great way to keep your pets engaged, a dog behaviorist warns against one specific toy being extremely dangerous. And, you might be surprised to know how many toys you should ideally give your dog at once.

Dog behaviorist warns against a common toy for dogs

Dog psychology and behavior expert, Steve Del Savio, says tennis balls are one of the most dangerous toys you can give your dog for several reasons.

It’s a choking hazard

Dogs often choke on tennis balls and the accident can turn out to be life-threatening. Therefore, watch your pooch closely if you let it play with the dangerous toy.

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The expert explains tennis balls when filled with saliva, are wet and slick. So, when your dog is playing with it, the chances of them ingesting it are high.

The ball is abrasive

The surface of the tennis ball can become abrasive with usage, causing wear and tear in your pooch’s mouth when playing with it.

You can instead use balls of bigger size in different materials to play fetch with your fur baby.

@packleaderdogs

Playing with our dogs is a great way to enhance the relationship with our dogs. That being said, how you play with your dog and what tools you use with your dog really matter. Ideally, we decide when the game starts, the intensity of the play, how long the game is to be played, what the rules to the game are, and when the game is over. We also want to be using tools that are safe for you and the dog. When I first started working with dogs, I didn’t realize that tennis balls🎾 were not a safe tool for a dog to play with. Then I saw a video of a veterinarian popping a tennis ball out of a dog’s throat that got lodged in their during a game of fetch. I did some research and realized this wasn’t so uncommon. The risk of choking on a tennis ball can be high, especially for larger dogs. When the ball gets covered in saliva, it becomes very slick and can slip down a dogs throat during vigorous play. Another issue is the abrasive surface of the tennis ball, which can wear down a dog’s teeth over time. The material that a tennis ball is made of can be toxic to a dog and cause issues if ingested. Lastly, tennis balls can break pretty easily if a dog rips them up, causing small pieces with sharp edges that could cause damage if ingested. I will make a future video on the balls I use with my dogs after doing a bunch of research. Stay tuned, but for now, avoid those tennis balls! 🎾

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Toxic materials and dyes

Dogs are notorious for eating anything and everything. Pet parents shouldn’t be surprised if your dog ends up eating a tennis ball too.

But this can be “very problematic” as the dog behaviorist says, because the ball consists of toxic materials and dyes.

Steve says dogs can develop problems in their digestive system and liver when exposed to the chemicals in the common toy.

The ball can be shredded easily

How hard do you think it is for a dog to shred a tennis ball into pieces? As with choking, ingesting the broken pieces of the ball can cause serious damage.

The expert says the sharp edges of the ball shredded apart can cause a lot of problems in the digestive tract and may need surgery to be removed.

Steve Del Savio is a dog psychology and behavior expert with over 15 years of experience. He is the Owner & Founder of Pack Leader Dogs, who has turned his passion for animals and their behavior into a flourishing career in dog training, according to the official website.