Happy National Pet Week: Your Dog’s Most-Wanted Toy

fetchinstixxYep, it’s a stick. But…it’s not just a stick. It’s the best stick your dog will ever fetch.

Those of us who have owned retrievers of any kind know the stamina of these amazing dogs to fetch and bring back…fetch and bring back…fetch and bring back. My husband and I used to say our yellow lab was a bit like a small child shouting, “Again! Again! Again!” after being tossed in the air or tickled or something else they really liked. After all, retrieving is in their blood. It’s what they were made for. But lots of other breeds love to play fetch, too. (That’s why this specialized stick comes in two sizes – for for dogs 25-50 lb, and for dogs 50 lb and up.)

This stick has a story. Like many of us humans, the creator of Fetchin’ Sticks battled bouts of depression. Maxx, the golden retriever he had rescued years before from an abusive home, was always at his side providing (as dogs do) companionship, quiet support and comfort. And…bringing joy into his life at the darkest of times.

One day the craftsman was working in his Michigan woodshop, struggling through a cloud of depression. Suddenly, Maxx drug a 4-foot-long branch through the door, dropped it at the craftsman’s feet and forcefully barked, as if to say, “Come on now, let’s go play. It’s going to be all right … let’s go have some FUN!”

Laughing, the craftsman looked at the long branch and said, “That’s not a stick. I’ll make you a STICK.”fetchinstixxfb

And he did, right then and there, using a piece of rough sawn lumber, lovingly sanding and shaping it for a comfortable grip, and on a whim adding cut slots at each end (not knowing what they would do). 

All the while, the dog watched, seemingly knowing the stick was just for him. As soon as the stick was done, he was ready (in the craftsman’s words, “he went NUTS.”) 

Still laughing, the craftsman took the stick outside for its trial run, er, throw. The cut slots provided an exciting, natural whistle in the air and a good, satisfying clack when the stick hit the ground. Maxx LOVED it, and as they say, the rest is history. Today, your dog can “go NUTS” too – every time you get out his or her FetchinStixx. And, by the way, you’ll be pretty happy to play, too.

Amazingly, even blind dogs – that’s right, blind dogs – can play fetch with the FetchinStixx.* Although they weren’t originally designed for this, the whistling sound made in the air and clacking sound when they hit the ground make the sticks easy for blind pups to hear, track and find. Currently, close to 80 blind dogs are using FetchinStixx – and loving every minute of it! Click here to see Rocky, a blind labrador retriever, play with his FetchinStixx.

Good throwing and good fetchin‘, humans and canines.

*Note: For a blind dog to use FetchinStixx, the dog must have played fetch prior to going blind. FetchinStixx cannot help a blind dog fetch that hasn’t done it previously.

 

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