Table of Contents
The Aisle
You’re standing in the pet store aisle, holding two toys. One is $8, bright yellow, slightly chemical-smelling. The other is $32, muted colours, claims to be “non-toxic.” You have no idea if the price difference means anything. You don’t know what “non-toxic” actually promises. You’re not sure if the smell is a warning sign or just how plastic smells.
So you do what most of us do: you pick one, hope for the best, and feel vaguely uneasy about it later when your dog is chewing happily and you’re wondering what’s leaching into their mouth.
This isn’t paranoia. It’s the rational response to a marketplace that offers no guidance. There’s no safety certification on pet toys. No mandatory testing. No standard that separates products that have been evaluated from those that haven’t.
The regulatory framework that protects human children from choking hazards, toxic plastics, and cheap construction simply doesn’t extend to their dogs. A toy that would be illegal to sell to a toddler can be marketed to your Labrador without a single test.
The useful part: the standard that could apply already exists.
Children’s toys in Australia must meet AS/NZS ISO 8124, with equivalents like EN71 in Europe and ASTM F963 in the US. These standards test for 19 heavy metals. They require structural integrity under stress. They mandate choking hazard assessments. They’re comprehensive, evidence-based, and enforced.
Nothing stops pet toy manufacturers from meeting these standards. Some do. Most don’t. And there’s nothing on the packaging that tells you the difference.
But you can learn to tell the difference.
The Dog, Not the Label
Before we talk about products, we need to talk about interaction. Safety is a property of the relationship between the toy and the dog using it, not the toy alone.
The same ball that’s perfectly safe for one dog can be a choking hazard for another. A rope toy that provides gentle enrichment for your Greyhound might become a surgical emergency in your Staffy’s jaws. The product didn’t change. The interaction did.
You probably already know how your dog plays. Some dogs carry toys around, lick them, sleep with them. Years later, the puppy toy is still intact. For these dogs, the product range is wide. Most materials work because the dog isn’t applying destructive force.
Other dogs play hard. They’ll dissect a plush toy eventually, working a seam until the stuffing comes out. They chew to occupy time, not to consume. These dogs need durability, but not industrial strength.
And some dogs are destroyers. Destruction is the point. They shear chunks off rubber. They gulp pieces. If your dog has ever passed toy fragments in their stool, or if you find rubber shrapnel around the house after playtime, standard toys aren’t safe for them. What matters is matching the product to survival, not enjoyment.
“You know which dog you have. That knowledge matters more than any certification.”
You know which dog you have. That knowledge matters more than any certification, because the best-tested product in the world is still wrong if it doesn’t match how your specific dog interacts with it.
What Would Fail the Standard
If pet toys were held to children’s toy standards, here’s what would be restricted or tested.
Materials
PVC and vinyl require phthalate plasticisers to be flexible. That’s the chemistry: pure PVC is rigid, like plumbing pipe. To make it soft and squeaky, manufacturers add phthalates, which leach out when chewed, especially combined with the warmth and enzymes in saliva.
Phthalates are restricted in children’s toys because they interfere with hormones. Research links them to reproductive issues and liver stress. In pet toys, there’s no restriction. But you can avoid them.
The telltale signs: a strong chemical smell, like a new shower curtain. A surface that becomes sticky or oily over time. That smell is phthalates off-gassing. The stickiness is the plasticiser migrating to the surface as the material degrades. Either sign means it’s time to bin the toy.
The alternative is TPR or TPE (thermoplastic rubber). These materials are inherently flexible without added plasticisers. Look for toys explicitly labelled as TPR or TPE rather than “rubber” or “vinyl.”
Heavy metals in dyes are another concern. Children’s toy standards limit the migration of 19 elements including lead, cadmium, and mercury. No such limits exist for pet toys. The risk is concentrated in brightly coloured, inexpensive imports.
Safer options: natural rubber (tan or brown, not requiring dyes), unpainted products, and brands that explicitly test to EN71-3 or equivalent standards.
Rope and fibre toys have their own considerations. Long fibres can unravel into what veterinarians call “linear foreign bodies”: strings that anchor in the digestive tract and saw through intestinal walls as the gut tries to move them along. Nylon rope is the worst offender. Hemp and jute shred into small pieces rather than long strands, making them safer choices.
Construction
Children’s toy standards test for small parts that could detach and become choking hazards. They test structural integrity under stress.
Pet toy equivalents: squeakers that can be extracted, seams that fail under jaw pressure, glued-on eyes and plastic noses that detach with minimal force. These are the mechanical failure points that send dogs to emergency surgery.
What You Can See for Yourself
Back to that aisle. You’re holding a toy with no meaningful information on the packaging. How do you decide?
What the labels mean
When a pet toy claims EN71-3 or ASTM F963 compliance, it means the product has been tested to children’s toy standards. This is the gold standard: the same safety benchmark required for a human child’s toy.
FDA Food Grade means the material meets food-contact safety standards. This matters for things meant to be mouthed extensively, like treat dispensers. It doesn’t guarantee durability, but it does guarantee the material won’t leach harmful substances.
“Non-toxic” on its own means almost nothing. It’s unregulated. It can legally mean “not acutely poisonous,” as in your dog won’t drop dead from licking it. It doesn’t mean the product has been tested to any standard. Look for specific claims rather than vague reassurance.
“A toy that would be illegal to sell to a toddler can be marketed to your Labrador without a single test.”
What your senses tell you
When you can’t find certification, your senses are useful.
Chemical smell means phthalates off-gassing. If it smells like a shower curtain or petrol, put it back. Press your thumbnail firmly into the surface: if you can’t leave a small indentation, the material is harder than it should be for dental safety. It should be softer than tooth enamel.
Veterinary dentists use a simple rule for hardness: would you let someone hit your kneecap with it? If not, it’s too hard for your dog’s teeth. If it hurts bone, it can break teeth.
Finally, the pull test. Tug hard on any ropes, limbs, or appendages. Pull on the seams. If the stitching gives under your strength, it won’t survive your dog’s.
What the company tells you
Manufacturers who test their products to children’s standards usually say so. Check their website, FAQ, or materials pages. A company that’s done the work tends to mention it.
If you can’t find out who made a product or what it’s made from, that tells you something too.
The Work Doesn’t Stop at Purchase
Purchasing is just the start. Safety is ongoing.
Some toys need supervision, always. Rope toys carry linear foreign body risk regardless of quality. Squeaky toys can have their squeakers extracted by determined dogs. Plush toys for hard chewers will eventually be dissected.
Other toys can be left unsupervised once you’ve confirmed how your dog interacts with them. Solid rubber toys appropriately sized for your dog, frozen lick mats, products that have survived extended play without damage. Don’t assume safety. Confirm it through observation.
“Crack, hole, or fray means immediate disposal. Neither your dog’s attachment to the toy nor yours changes that.”
One rule doesn’t allow for sentimentality: crack, hole, or fray means immediate disposal. Dogs form attachments to toys. So do owners. Neither attachment matters when structural integrity fails. A frayed rope is a linear foreign body waiting to happen. A cracked rubber ball has sharp edges. A plush toy with a hole is a squeaker extraction in progress.
Make inspection a weekly habit. Check seams. Look for wear spots. Replace proactively.
When It Goes Wrong
Most toy interactions are fine. But if you suspect your dog has swallowed something, don’t induce vomiting without veterinary advice. Sharp or rigid objects can cause more damage coming back up. Call your vet with details: what was swallowed, how big the pieces were, how long ago it happened.
Signs that warrant urgent attention: repeated vomiting (especially if nothing comes up), lethargy, refusing food, abdominal pain, straining to defecate without result. Obstructions can become life-threatening within hours. Don’t wait to see if it resolves.
Australia doesn’t have a pet toy reporting system, but you can contact manufacturers directly, document everything with photos and vet records, and use social visibility if they’re unresponsive. Bad press often moves faster than regulation.
The Aisle Again
You’re still going to stand in that aisle. The $8 toy and the $32 toy will still be there, and the packaging still won’t tell you much.
But now you know what to look for. You know that “non-toxic” is marketing and EN71-3 is a standard. You know what phthalates smell like, and why that matters. You know that safety isn’t a property of the toy alone.
The smell test, the thumbnail test, the weekly inspection: these aren’t paranoia. They’re the same attunement you bring to everything else that matters. Noticing how your dog responds to their food. Reading their energy on a walk. Catching the subtle signs that something’s off before it becomes obvious. This is just that skill applied to objects.
In a better world, you wouldn’t need to do this work. The standard that protects children would protect pets. Labels would mean what they imply.
We’re not there yet. So you’re the quality control. That’s the situation.
Next time you’re in that aisle, at least you’ll know what you’re looking at.
