monster chewer! quick question

Thank you he has grown up to be a very handsome beast!
as for the hard ball it might be worth a try  - we had a good size treat ball - one of those where you put the kibble in and they have to work it out - that was hard plastic and after rolling it around awhile and deciding it wasn't dispensing quickly enough he darn near dislocated his jaw to grab it - successful - and then busted it open
He has also popped real footballs and a kickball...................  And taken chunks off tennis ball air kongs (football, dumbell, retriever, and donut!)
I just wish there was something he could play with - inside - that he didn't immediately destroy.
the pic was his first look at the tire - from there he went to shaking it (i was playing with my camera phone and video'd it but don't know how to post it) After about 15 minutes with it there are huge chunks out of it and it is split completely through at one point (thats when DH took it) - this thing is heavy and inside the rubber was reinforced with a fabric of some sort like a real radial tire.  I really thought this would be the one [&:]

ORIGINAL: mudpuppy
and then you still have a ball left over.

LOL sort of like the footless Cuz balls.............  ( I know MUCH bigger)
I'll look into that although as its a pricey 'toy' I'm a little concerned that it too will be dead in minutes

Frisbees last about a minute or 1-2 throws. Any of the retriever toys get eaten/chewed during fetch. its a nightmare

 
This is a training issue.  I suggest you completely start over with teaching retrieve.  Clicker training is great for this!
[linkhttp://www.dogscouts.com/retrieve.shtml]http://www.dogscouts.com/retrieve.shtml[/link]
 
The dog should not be rewarded if the object is chewed.  I wouldn't start with one, but using a lemon can be an excellent way to teach a dog not to bite hard into the object being retrieved.  [:-]   []
 
I am sure that there are people in the training section that can explain this better than I can.

Kongs aren't really toys and anything you put in there is only in there for a couple of minutes at best. I might buy the really huge black one but I don't know what to put in there that will plug the hole.

Fill the hole with a layer of peanut butter and then put the Kong on a flat plate or a piece of waxed paper.  Put a mixture of goodies and yogurt in the Kong.  Then freeze it.
 
You might even want to feed meals that way!

ORIGINAL: kpwlee

ORIGINAL: mudpuppy
and then you still have a ball left over.

LOL sort of like the footless Cuz balls.............  ( I know MUCH bigger)
I'll look into that although as its a pricey 'toy' I'm a little concerned that it too will be dead in minutes

 
Ahhhh!  For outside give Bugsy a large block of ice.  Easy to replace and guaranteed not to be in his poop. 

Great idea! - I could put it in his wading pool that he thinks is a wonderful water bowl!

Thanks DPU - I hope all your pups are well and special vibes ofr Essie
Karen

thank you for both your suggestions - there is no doubt his retrieving could improve but he destroys frisbees with his teeth and grip
The retrievers get ruined by the same plus the dreaded head shake, and occassional chomp as he's running back to you.  He will fetch as many opbjects as you like and retrieve them all in sequence.  This is a dog that likes to chew sticks on his walk - a natural multi-tasker.
And we have fed in his kong but it was insanely messy as he just squashes the kong and all the stuff squirts out and yes we had frozen it.  He licked for a while but got fed up and chomped it.
Again I appreciate your suggestions but I really am trying to find a toy though - something to chomp on or bat around that is non-food related

I also have some monster chewers- mainly the one in my avatar. I really like the zogoflex toys from West Paw. They are a little pricey, but Ullr has not been able to tear these apart like other toys, plus they don't seem to get that strong tire-like 'odor' that Kongs have. [linkhttp://www.westpawdesign.com/catalog/dog-toys/cat_zogoflex-products.html]http://www.westpawdesign.com/catalog/dog-toys/cat_zogoflex-products.html[/link]. They bounce in all different directions, and I like that they won't wear my older labs' teeth down as much.
 
Edited to add that Ullr prefers the "bone-bone" (that's what we call it, lol). Plus, it floats! [linkhttp://www.westpawdesign.com/catalog/dog-toys/zogoflex-products/p_zg14.html]http://www.westpawdesign.com/catalog/dog-toys/zogoflex-products/p_zg14.html[/link]
 
 
I am not affiliated with this company, but I really like their stuff as it is very tough and has outlasted anything else we have tried. They just can't seem to sink their teeth into the material. 

this may or may not work - 1st try
very short video from camera phone of the B man and his tire
[linkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcCvEpjC0rA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcCvEpjC0rA[/link]

Cute video; reminds me of my lab!

ORIGINAL: janet_rose

Frisbees last about a minute or 1-2 throws. Any of the retriever toys get eaten/chewed during fetch. its a nightmare

The dog should not be rewarded if the object is chewed.  I wouldn't start with one, but using a lemon can be an excellent way to teach a dog not to bite hard into the object being retrieved.  [:-]   []

Hmm... to be the dark sheep. I don't know if I would try that lemon method myself, that could open up a whole other batch of re-training problems, depending on the dog. It could kill interest in fetch & loose trust with the owner. I'd just select a stronger toy myself. Kong makes some good flexible rubber frisbees (safer on the teeth & gums than plastic ones) we also like the flying squirrels. Both are strong.

there is no doubt his retrieving could improve but he destroys frisbees with his teeth and grip
The retrievers get ruined by the same plus the dreaded head shake, and occassional chomp as he's running back to you.

 
 try one of the soft bite frisbees:  [linkhttp://www.sitstay.com/store/toys/toysc.shtml]http://www.sitstay.com/store/toys/toysc.shtml[/link]
They look flimsy, but they aren't. Baxter, who can crush a tennis ball simply by picking it up, doesn't even leave teeth marks on these, and he loves to shake them wildly around on the way back.

thanks Mudpuppy - will do!

i know a guy whose rotties play with lacrosse balls....  maybe you could try those for retrieving?  if that's the goal.