My dog loves this toy! We often take it to the dog park so she can play tug-o-war with other dogs. It's always a great hit. Do be careful about the rope however, if the dog is trying to break through the rope, they will very quickly. Just make sure they only chew on the rubber, or use the rope to pull.

The Gourdo itself is great and has lasted for over 2 years with minimal wear. The rope, on the other hand, was eaten off within minutes by our 6 month old puppy and lodged in his intestinal track. After vet, x-rays and being sick for 3 days, it finally passed. Wouldn't recommend to leave your pup unattended with it (unless the rope is already chewed off).

Ripley just loves this toy. This is his second one and he likes it so much he even takes it and puts it in his bed so that my other dog can not touch it.

My mini schnauzer LOVES this toy! The first one we had was blue and that one is still tops on his list, but it was getting pretty worn out and he chewed the rope off. The orange is the replacement so for now we have both going at the same time. I was told by a vet that dogs respond better to blue toys.

I'm almost a FEMA SAR K9. The knot did not last too long, but the Gourdo is great. W/ a new rope, I'm good 2 GO!

I got the small, she's 30 pounds and its a good size for her. Not her favorite toy (it doesn't squeak) but she likes it well enough.

This is Mandi's favorite toy of all time. It goes EVERYWHERE with us, and she can hardly contain her excitement when her service dog vest comes off and the Gourdo comes out. We spend so much time working that it's essential to have a well-loved toy that's both portable and durable. This is definitely both!

We LOVE our Gourdos. When we spend so much time training our search dogs it's VERY important to have a toy they love and that is durable- the Gourdo wins!

My puppy and I have played with this toy very hard since he was able. He's now 11 months old and I still haven't had to replace it - better than most, that's for sure! We play lots of tug and the rubber is just starting to show wear. It is truly unbelievable.

Our two dogs love it especially playing tug of war!

My 18 month old Lab. is very tough on all his toys and this is by far the best toy I have ever boought him. The first one lasted 12 months and we are on the second now, it is a perfect retrieving toy for any type of retriever dog. Also, the long cord makes it easy for me to throw it quite a distance.

My dog loves this thing. I fling it across the field I bring her to, and she loves bringing it back. She also loves sprinting around the field swinging it back and forth. Very durable toy!!!

My dog loves this toy and the rubber is definitely durable, but the rope is a joke. He chewed through it within 10 minutes at the park. Oh well.

I think that it is cool but Nutmeg doesn't as of yet. I purchased it to use as a tugging toy because I have read that that will help her strenghthen her hip muscles (she has a bit of arthritis, 14 yrs. old). Maybe I'll have to rub some food smell on it to interest her?

Everyone else had issues with the rope, but if you pay attention to your dogs and not let them chew it off it stands up perfectly fine. We have never had any issues. We have 2 of the Gourdos because they constantly lose one. If you don't let your dog sit and knaw on it for hours it really does stand up well, we hardly have any marks in ours and have had it for over a year now.

Gourdo is a nifty little toy to play fetch with. I've had one for over 5 years now and the only "complaint" is that the rope came off and vanished. The nice thing about this is the ability to hurl it to the moon.

Chewed off the teather in one day...little disapointed. However, it was my fault for leaving him alone with it

I wanted a sturdier tug with which to do tug and bite rewards as well as retrieving around home. I had heard other's found it perfect for this use, so I figured I'd try it. Its just too weighty. I really want to like it and the dogs really want to like it, but its just not quite right for us. I guess we should just stick with the french linen and bitesuit material K9 tugs from here on out, even though the shark teeth tend to shred them. Its a nice product, just not working that great for what I need.

VERY STURDY

Of course, my dog chewed off the tether. If your dog is a chewer, he will too. HE'S A DOG. Rope isn't indestructable, nor is it meant to be. If you don't want your dog to chew off the rope end, then don't leave him unsupervised with this toy. If you want to, you can replace the tether very easily. Now that my rant is out of the way. This toy is excellent! It took my dog a few days to warm up to it, but now he loves it! I do too I stuff treats in the bottom and he'll work hard to get them out. You get what you pay for with this toy, and that's a good thing.

It's easy to sail this thing! It's weighted just enough to make it easy to get some distance with little to no effort. Well constructed and durable.

My dog Brandis is 14 months old and has never been one to play a 'complete' game of fetch, but with the gourdo he does! We can play for hours and with some warm days lately we've even tried it out at the creek & have found that its wonderful on the water too. Love it!

We've had our Gourdo toy for approx 2 years and only recently had to "retire" it. Its rough and durable. I have purchased other "dog toys" and they've only lasted one day with my crew! I alos love the bright colors - makes it easy to find them in the yard!

Only drawback is the tether. My dogs chewed it off in a couple days. Should be indesrtructible - if anything can be. Otherwise, Gourdo is a great toy to retrieve and to chew.

my sister-in-law bought this for our German Shepherd, Bear, back in July when he was 7 months old. It is his favorite toy. He is now 1 year and just ripped it in half the other day. I ordered 2!! Great product and long lasting!

I bought the product at REI and came home and gave it to my English Mastiff who is 190lbs. He loved the toy but by the end next day he chewed off the end with the cord. I think it is a good product but not,mastiff proof, not much is though

Holds up well to rough play. We haven't tested it in the water yet since it's getting cold already, but its also great to keep my dog occupied when he's waiting in the car. Also great for fetching inside since it's soft and bouncy.

The Gourdo takes tons of rugged abuse and because of it's shape, my dog hasnt been able to destroy it beyond use. I've replaced the rope three times and it's still her favorite toy!

excellent, 3 labs haven't chewed it yet !!!

My dogs destroy every toy they get within a few days. All those 'durable' toys never stand up to their intense chewing. I had almost given up on buying them any toys because nothing seemed to be able to withstand them. Then, about a year and a half ago, I bought a Gourdo from a small pet store and it is amazing! The dogs love and it is just now starting to show the wear and bite marks of their constant 'love'. That's pretty darn amazing to me and a great deal!

My 20lb dog is an intense chewer that will chew off and swallow fabric/rope pieces. Like several reviewers, we cut the rope off because it wasn't going to last long. He LOVES the remainder, plays fetch with it, gnaws on it, and finds it every night before going to bed. I just ordered two more because, after a year, it's finally beginning to crumble under his tiny jaws. :)

I like the gourdo for water play and some general tug work. The only thing I don't like is that the large does NOT come in Orange so it is VERY hard to see in the water.

Charlie loves this thing! We go for walks with him holding in his mouth the entire time. Every now and then we stop, he will drop it. and I'll throw it for him. He eagerly runs and retrieves it. It's one of the most durable toys he has and his most favorite.

The Gourdo seems to be doing just fine after a week of use. I throw it as far as I can and it hits all kinds of stuff from trees to ricks to a seesaw, no cracks or breaks yet. My dogs destroy everything from buster cube to black kongs and the Gourdo isn't showing wear yet. Maybe it will in a month or so, but for now, so far so good. And yes, the rope is still knotted, although just barely,) and still firmly inside the rubber part.

OK, I'm disappointed because the Gourdo is perfect, except for the color - since it just barely floats, the blue is hard to see in the water. Neko is pretty good at spotting things, but even other dogs weren't able to see it out in the lake. To be fair, it isn't advertised as being a water toy (except by REI). Please make the large in orange!

Tug of war is my dog's middle name and he loooves this toy and shows it no mercy. Durable and fun to tug and chew.

Our black lab loves this toy. She lives in Maine in the summer and retrieves in from the lake (yes it does float) and plays on the beach in Mexico in the winter. It also doesn't wear down her teeth like a tennis ball. Great for all retrievers!!

I think as a matter of disclosure, .... in the "salient characteristics" description part for this product, .... they should start of with "this product does not float, yet its not mentioned in the product description. Love the durability of it, though I'm only 2 weeks into it. With that said, .... On the second throw, the string came out of the rubber housing on one of one of them (I bought 3, based on my Lunker experience; things just disintegrate w/ dogs). I had to get all McGuyver like and fish the string through - then weld / melt it so that it wouldn't come out. All is well w/ the two others as well as this one now w/ the fix. As long as I stay away from the ocean, we should be good w/ this one.

Very durable, heavy rubber. Great for retrieving. Probably won't float so we don't try it in water. My boy about knocks himself unconcious with all the shaking he does with it. His eyes light up with excitement each time we bring it out. I do not recommend unsupervised play with this toy it can be flung far, break windows etc.

Rex loves it it is his favorite over the Squash and TurnUp. He likes the rope a bit more than the rubber but for tug-of-war I make sure the rope part is for me and the rubber is for him so it lasts longer!

Like other comments, the rope was pulled out within a day or two. The dogs LOVED the toy even without the rope but that got shreaded after a month.

I saw the reviews that the rope doesn't last, and the same was true for my dogs. It was a brief life. Like the other people, I was interested in the rough-n-tough rubber part. Sadly that didn't last either. After one day in the kennel with our male blue heeler, the guordo turned into blue sprinkle chunks. I have a sqwash, turnup and squareball that all have endured the test of my pack. So, if you need a super durable toy, I recommend the others.

My boys love this toy. I will say that the rope was destroyed within 10 minutes but I just cut the remaining part off and they still love to play with it and chase it. we now own 3 and i would purchase this toy again. I love that it is easy to find in the snow when they take it outside. only 4 stars because the rope is so easily destroyed and because nothing is perfect. currently own 3 of these and love that the toy itself is tough and virtually indestructable.

My dog definitely liked this toy, but I had a similar problem in that the rope handle was destroyed right away. I haven't replaced it yet, though it looks like its simply enough to replace myself. Until I get the chance to replace though, it mostly gathers dust. :-(

Our Lab, Barley, loves this toy but he destoryed the rope after about 5 minutes...I cut the rest out and now he just plays with the rubber part.

My molly loves playing with this toy. The latex rubber is durable and provides hours of chasing fun. My only complaint would be the rope lanyard. The rope was easily chewed through in a day. I have replaced the rope with a more durable material.