# Fun with a laser pointer



## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

My daughter's golden LOVES the laser chase and her boys love to play it with him!

I am SO very sorry about your sweet Sammy. God bless you.


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## esSJay (Apr 13, 2009)

That sounds like fun! I remember using it on my cat, with a butterfly shaped laser beam and she would climb the walls trying to catch it! I'll have to invest in a new one. Ebay here I come!

So sorry to hear about Sammy. He sounds like he was a fun-loving dog!


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## Blaireli (Jun 3, 2008)

Luke gets so excited when he sees a flashlight or anything like that that he has been known to work himself up to the point of getting sick. 

I am so sorry to hear about Sammy. Lots of hugs.


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## Noey (Feb 26, 2009)

yes we call it the "bug." He loves it.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I am so sorry about Sammy, sounds like you made his life exciting and fun with everything he did. Mine have shown no interest in the laser but my cats love it.


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## GWD (May 16, 2009)

Love him and miss him!!!


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## Golden_Lover (May 10, 2009)

BeauShel said:


> I am so sorry about Sammy, sounds like you made his life exciting and fun with everything he did. Mine have shown no interest in the laser but my cats love it.


I bought one for Charlie and was very disappointed that he lost interest after about 10 minutes once he figured out where the light was coming from. :--hmpf:The kittens we have though love the thing and play with it for hours, then Charlie chases them! :--smirk:That can be a little frightening because when he gets them in his mouth I'm not sure if he wants to eat them or if he's just trying to figure out what it is. I keep telling him to leave it and he does as long as they are still but as soon as they start running and hopping, he's all over them. I've heard that Goldens are supposed to be good with other animals, but I'm not sure I could ever trust Charlie alone with the kitten, he'd probably eat it, or seriously injure it (it does sound a lot like his stuffed duck! :--keep_silent


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## GoldenSail (Dec 30, 2008)

GWD said:


> I bought a flashlight that had a red laser pointer built in and learned that our golden, Sammy, absolutely either loved or hated that little red dot on the ground. He was a little overweight at the time and his vet had instructed him to go on a diet and get some exercise, so laser chasing became his daily workout routine. At about dusk every night, we'd go out and just hearing the click of the light had him searching for the red dot, and he would chase it all night if we let him. He lost 30 pounds in about 4 months, through this exercise and a good meal plan. Sammy passed away this past Tuesday at the young age of 6 due to cancer, but he was still chasing that laser, though not as aggressively, right up to the night before he died. If you try this with your dog, just be sure to be careful not to shine the laser in his eyes!


That's very cool, I think laser pointers can be very fun and I used to play with them with my dogs. HOWEVER, I would warn everyone to be careful because I have seen it cause severe OCD in some dogs, which is why I stopped. The one girl I knew (yellow lab) was so bad that it transferred over to shadows and that is all she could do and think about all day. She wouldn't even interact with other dogs--off in her own world. The other dog wasn't that bad (golden) but he began tracking the cursor on computers and biting/licking it.

Again, I think it can be a good tool and fun--but I just had to throw in my warning.


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## reese (Jan 2, 2010)

Well, I thought laser is good for making a dog become active, but I guess I shouldn't ignore such warning. My dad, often play with our dog using a ball, (I'll buy him a frisbee soon) I guess if Jayson has OCD he will also catch everything he sees flying, right? or it just work out with lasers, shadows and stuffs?


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## Murphysmom (Nov 2, 2009)

I'm so sorry you lost your precious Sammy. It sure sounds like he had lots of fun though!


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

I stopped using mine for the cats because my Pawley that I adopted in August is very OCD with any lights. Someone must have teased him ALOT with a laser light because he attacks all flashlights at night, lights reflecting on the wall or any shiny thing on the wall.


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## Sandy's Dad (Aug 20, 2011)

GoldenSail said:


> That's very cool, I think laser pointers can be very fun and I used to play with them with my dogs. HOWEVER, I would warn everyone to be careful because I have seen it cause severe OCD in some dogs, which is why I stopped. The one girl I knew (yellow lab) was so bad that it transferred over to shadows and that is all she could do and think about all day. She wouldn't even interact with other dogs--off in her own world. The other dog wasn't that bad (golden) but he began tracking the cursor on computers and biting/licking it.
> 
> Again, I think it can be a good tool and fun--but I just had to throw in my warning.


Yes, I wanted to second this warning. I had a german shepherd growing up and he chased the laser pointer too. We didn't even play with it that much, but he started pouncing on shadows and eventually nothing at all. He would be off in a room by himself pouncing on the floor and whining. When he got stressed out about someone leaving or knocking on the door he would start pouncing on the floor.


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## TheCrewAndUs (Sep 11, 2011)

Dexter loves it too. he tries soooo hard to catch it.. lol


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## Dexter12 (Feb 10, 2012)

We recently found out that Dexter LOVES a laser pointer, to the point where he starts to look for it when it's not there. But we've found a fun game to play with him I call it the laser pointer scavenger hunt. I leave treats all over the house and then lead him there with the pointer and then direct the dot to the treat and he finds them!


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

Animal behaviorists get nervous about dogs chasing light....leading to OCD.....


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## 2Retrievers222 (Sep 5, 2007)

esSJay said:


> That sounds like fun! I remember using it on my cat, with a butterfly shaped laser beam and she would climb the walls trying to catch it! I'll have to invest in a new one. Ebay here I come!
> 
> So sorry to hear about Sammy. He sounds like he was a fun-loving dog!


 
Petsmart has them around $5-10


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## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

Not a fan of lasers.....have a girl that is light & shadow obsessed...not to the point of ocd....but none the less...its a problem....one that could escalate with a bit of encouragement... :-(


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## Sally's Mom (Sep 20, 2010)

I see client's dogs that are obsessed with light to the point that I cannot look in their eyes with an ophthalmoscope or the ears with an otoscope.


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## kwhit (Apr 7, 2008)

There are many, many ways to entertain your dogs. Laser pointers are _not_ one of the better ways. I wouldn't let either of mine near one.


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## TYPERCOP (Jul 25, 2011)

I'm a police officer and my taser gun has a laser on it and my dogs absolutely love it! haha


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## oakleysmommy (Feb 20, 2011)

My son has a small laser toy the dogs love it, I feel so bad they can't catch it the funniest is when he points it on the wall, poor babies


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## cubbysan (Mar 13, 2007)

Please beware of using lasers with goldens - yes, they do love them - but they become addicted to them. I now have scratch marks on my walls from MacKenzie chasing and trying to climb to get ANY reflection that bounces off the walls or ceilings. 

At Christmas time it was awful. I can be doing the dishes, the sun can be setting, we could be using the Ipad, it is amazing how many things throw off reflective light. She goes into such a "zone" that I am scared one day she will hurt herself.


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## megkate (Feb 7, 2012)

*laser lights????*

Goldensail, I was going to post the same message. My daughter just adopted a yellow lab mix and the previous owners used a laser light to "play" with him. He is definitely OCD about anything with shadows, reflections, glares.....my daughter and her boyfriend have come to dread late afternoons because he goes crazy chasing these things. He isn't even distracted with treats or anything. The trainer they are working with seriously discourages it, but maybe for some dogs, it is just fun.


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## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

Thanks for the warnings guys! I've never used a laser pointer as a toy, but I certainly didn't know how bad they can be!


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## oakleysmommy (Feb 20, 2011)

I told my son when he did it the first time it was ok but he has since stopped I didn't like it either for the dogs..the laser has since disappeared


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## Capt Jack (Dec 29, 2011)

Noey said:


> yes we call it the "bug." He loves it.


 We call it the light"bug" too When the suns out I use a towing mirror from the camper


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## shallwemichele (Apr 28, 2012)

I've read in books by two different dog behavior experts (one also a vet) who said that too long with the laser pointer can have the negative affects mentioned above. OCD, problems with car headlights, etc. So I only use it for a few minutes at a time, now and then.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

I don't like them for a myriad of reasons, not the least being that the dog never has the "win"... for a retriever to chase and not be able to catch/fetch/return must be extremely frustrating.


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## Womn2Blame (Jan 8, 2012)

Same here. Our last dog, a lab/shepherd mix, loved chasing a laser light, and it was great exercise for him, especially when we shined it into the woods in our backyard. Then, he began slobbering and licking the carpet where "the light" had been, staring into the air vents (where he thought the light lived), panting heavily. He became obsessed with anything shiny...flashlights, the reflection off a wristwatch's face, and the reflection of water in the kitchen sink on the ceiling. 

Our Nugget goes crazy over reflections on the ceiling. There's no way I would let a laser pointer near her!


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## dezymond (May 3, 2012)

My golden got smart, he figured out he couldn't catch the laser so all he does is follow it for a few steps and watches it. It was so easy to tire him out that way before bedtime with very little effort on my part, now I need a new trick. Or a green laser....


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## snapsnap (Apr 24, 2012)

*Laser Fun*

Funny how things work out. I came onto the forum tonight to get everyones feedback on the laser that i just bought for Henry, my 6 month old Golden. First post I see is this one.

Henry seems to love the laser and chases it with all the energy he can muster, which is a lot considering he is very much still a pup. My concern was not the OCD that someone mentioned earlier in this thread, I hadn't even thought about that. 

My concern was the idea that there is never a reward, never a payoff. When we play with balls or tug o war or with other toys, I may play keep away for a few minutes but eventually he wins our contest and he proudly walks around with his trophy. Which I think is great for his confidence. There is never a trophy with the laser. He never wins.

Any thoughts?


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## snapsnap (Apr 24, 2012)

*Just threw laser away*

Great forum subject and thanks for all the warnings. I think that is great feedback about our dogs getting obsessed with the "little light". Henry seemed to be enjoying the game but I have noticed him seeming to search the floor for the light even when we were not playing. Nipping this in the bud. He's got plenty of other toys anyway.


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## ScottyUSN (Jul 18, 2011)

snapsnap said:


> Funny how things work out. I came onto the forum tonight to get everyones feedback on the laser that i just bought for Henry, my 6 month old Golden. First post I see is this one.
> 
> Henry seems to love the laser and chases it with all the energy he can muster, which is a lot considering he is very much still a pup. My concern was not the OCD that someone mentioned earlier in this thread, I hadn't even thought about that.
> 
> ...


He's a Golden.. He will chase for the sport of it. Not always catching what you chase is also a result. Mix the laser with the retreiving other toys seems like a good compromise to me.

My boy Finn loved to chase the laser. He would never open his mouth as if he was going to catch it. It was just the game he enjoyed. When he tired of chasing, he would come to my hand holding the laser pointer, as if to say "put it away".

P.S. It's all fun and games till your teenage son shines a laser on your crotch, and you get a GR snout coming at you full speed ahead.


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## rockatonador (Jun 19, 2012)

I joined this site because I was curious to have more talks with people about golden retrievers to know if I should really get one, right now I have a labrador. And if I point a laser pointer anywhere, they stare for a while like they're waiting for something and then just walk away. It's really funny actually.


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## tcsd87 (Jun 21, 2012)

GWD said:


> I bought a flashlight that had a red laser pointer built in and learned that our golden, Sammy, absolutely either loved or hated that little red dot on the ground. He was a little overweight at the time and his vet had instructed him to go on a diet and get some exercise, so laser chasing became his daily workout routine. At about dusk every night, we'd go out and just hearing the click of the light had him searching for the red dot, and he would chase it all night if we let him. He lost 30 pounds in about 4 months, through this exercise and a good meal plan. Sammy passed away this past Tuesday at the young age of 6 due to cancer, but he was still chasing that laser, though not as aggressively, right up to the night before he died. If you try this with your dog, just be sure to be careful not to shine the laser in his eyes!


Thank you for sharing this. I've only had my golden for a week and I'm going to try this tonight. I can't express my condolences enough for Sammy.


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## Nomes (Nov 7, 2011)

i'm not sure if anyone's said this before, but changing and fast moving lights do cause seizures...so if you have a dog that has seizures, i wouldn't recommend a laser.
My girl Tasha looooved the laser but she would always have a seizure during the evening if we'd played with it during the day, so we stopped, but she sure loved it and probably never understand where her little friend went! :


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## Ljilly28 (Jan 22, 2008)

There's a "mini aussie" at the beach that will kill himself if not stopped bc he is so whooped up about light refelecting on the water, that he runs back and forth on the sea shore like a horse running a fence. He has to be physically stopped or he will go until he collapses. There's no joy in it- it is obsession. The owners says she accidently created the obsession with a laser pointer. That's enough for me- that dog is so possessed and desperate. Also, I prize my play time with each dog, and a laser just isnt interactive enough like fetch, hide n seek, roof ball, or tug. This toy( or just a soft toy tied on the end of a horse lounge whip) is a happy medium, I think. http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=1645&ParentCat=39


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