# Tennis balls



## Woody Taylor (Mar 28, 2006)

Okay, so I had never really got Annie on tennis balls until recently...two-ball is a new favorite of hers. She's not allowed to chew on them, but I can't figure out...is the problem with tennis balls the glue used in them, or in the felt itself? Or both?

And is fetch okay as long as she's not chewing on it?

I made the mistake of trying to save money on toys off the bat...needless to say, Annie went through 12 cheapo Target tennis balls in...well...12 throws. ;-) Chopped the damn things nearly in half just mouthing them on the runs back to me. I just got some industrial-strength balls from the pet store that supposedly have less abrasive felt, but I'm still wondering about the impact on her teeth.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Woody Taylor said:


> Okay, so I had never really got Annie on tennis balls until recently...two-ball is a new favorite of hers. She's not allowed to chew on them, but I can't figure out...is the problem with tennis balls the glue used in them, or in the felt itself? Or both?
> 
> And is fetch okay as long as she's not chewing on it?
> 
> I made the mistake of trying to save money on toys off the bat...needless to say, Annie went through 12 cheapo Target tennis balls in...well...12 throws. ;-) Chopped the damn things nearly in half just mouthing them on the runs back to me. I just got some industrial-strength balls from the pet store that supposedly have less abrasive felt, but I'm still wondering about the impact on her teeth.


It's the glue, and it's only when it combines with their saliva. How wet is it when she returns it?


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## Woody Taylor (Mar 28, 2006)

Connie Sutherland said:


> Woody Taylor said:
> 
> 
> > Okay, so I had never really got Annie on tennis balls until recently...two-ball is a new favorite of hers. She's not allowed to chew on them, but I can't figure out...is the problem with tennis balls the glue used in them, or in the felt itself? Or both?
> ...


It can get pretty slimed up. I think less so with these "regular super" balls than with the Kong balls I was using...those have squeakers in them, so she was incentized to chomp down on them over and over.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Well, here's my own OCD advice.

Squirt her teeth with a sports water bottle or with that new squirty anti-plaque stuff for dogs after a long session.

I have read (and I believe) that the enamel-dissolving effect doesn't happen when the dog is playing with it in water. To me, it makes sense to wash off the glue residue.

But...... if the ball was coming back pretty dry, I'd assume there wasn't any saliva-glue mixing happening.

This is 100% unscientific.


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## Kristen Cabe (Mar 27, 2006)

On Dr. P's website, it says that the dye in the felt is toxic.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Kristen Cabe said:


> On Dr. P's website, it says that the dye in the felt is toxic.


Yeah, my daughter buys the undyed (kind of off-white balls), but the glue is still an enamel-dissolver when it's mixed with the dog's saliva. Or at least I have read it enough to have come to believe/accept it.


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## Mike Schoonbrood (Mar 27, 2006)

I read references to a german study about this -- a) why are the germans the only one who know about this? I've never heard a vet say not to use tennis balls, many a dog has had a long fulfilling life chasing tennis balls. We teach our dogs to retrieve pipes made of metal, but a tennis ball might damage their teeth LOL. I believed it for a while, but then I decided to ignore it. b) where is this infamous study that proves tennis ball glue mixed with saliva (ironic combination ain't it) will cause damage? I'd like to see it.

Yes, I'm skeptical lol, if someone showed me the study then I'd change my mind.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Mike Schoonbrood said:


> I read references to a german study about this -- a) why are the germans the only one who know about this? I've never heard a vet say not to use tennis balls, many a dog has had a long fulfilling life chasing tennis balls. We teach our dogs to retrieve pipes made of metal, but a tennis ball might damage their teeth LOL. I believed it for a while, but then I decided to ignore it. b) where is this infamous study that proves tennis ball glue mixed with saliva (ironic combination ain't it) will cause damage? I'd like to see it.
> 
> Yes, I'm skeptical lol, if someone showed me the study then I'd change my mind.


Out of UC Davis "VetMed" I see a reference to the fuzz, but not the glue! LOL!

QUOTE: The surface material of tennis balls is abrasive and wears teeth 
downsoft rubber balls make better toys for play or exercise. END

But I didn't look very far yet. Type in dogs, tennis balls, teeth and you get a lot of returns about the saliva story, but they are all forums like this one.

I'll try Snopes when I get a chance.


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## Al Curbow (Mar 27, 2006)

Maybe it's the mixture of the ink on the dyed abrasive felt..........., lol


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## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

I think the combination of dye in the color, when mixed with the glue in the fuzz, will activate only when the dog bites it with the left side of his mouth. I said "HIS" because a Transilvanian study said the SHE has to bite it with the RIGHT side of HER mouth, or the whole process will turn the tennis ball into a Kong. Well! Wherdja think Kongs came from!


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Bob Scott said:


> I think the combination of dye in the color, when mixed with the glue in the fuzz, will activate only when the dog bites it with the left side of his mouth. I said "HIS" because a Transilvanian study said the SHE has to bite it with the RIGHT side of HER mouth, or the whole process will turn the tennis ball into a Kong. Well! Wherdja think Kongs came from!


Yeah.......that's the study I read too. Famous.


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