Best dog toy colours: what your dog can spot
Dogs see mostly blues and yellows, so a red toy on green grass is hard for them to find. Below, eight toy colours sit on grass, sand and snow, first as you see them, then as your dog does. Easiest to spot everywhere: yellow, blue, purple and pink.
A simulation made from published eye studies. Not what the animal feels.
Red ball in green grass? A dog loses it: red and green look like the same khaki. Want a dog to spot a toy? Pick blue or yellow, not red.
On grass green
You see
Your dog sees
| Toy | Your dog sees | On grass green |
|---|---|---|
| Red | khaki | Hard to spot |
| Orange | khaki | Hard to spot |
| Yellow | yellow | Easy to spot |
| Green | khaki | Hard to spot |
| Blue | blue | Easy to spot |
| Purple | blue | Easy to spot |
| Pink | grey | Easy to spot |
| White | white | Easy to spot |
On sand
You see
Your dog sees
| Toy | Your dog sees | On sand |
|---|---|---|
| Red | khaki | Easy to spot |
| Orange | khaki | Hard to spot |
| Yellow | yellow | Easy to spot |
| Green | khaki | Hard to spot |
| Blue | blue | Easy to spot |
| Purple | blue | Easy to spot |
| Pink | grey | Easy to spot |
| White | white | Easy to spot |
On snow
You see
Your dog sees
| Toy | Your dog sees | On snow |
|---|---|---|
| Red | khaki | Easy to spot |
| Orange | khaki | Easy to spot |
| Yellow | yellow | Easy to spot |
| Green | khaki | Easy to spot |
| Blue | blue | Easy to spot |
| Purple | blue | Easy to spot |
| Pink | grey | Easy to spot |
| White | white | Hard to spot |
Flat colour samples stand in for real grass, sand and snow. "Hard to spot" means the toy and the ground look alike to a dog's colour vision; dogs still use smell, movement and brightness to find a toy.
So which toy should I buy?
For the garden or the park: yellow, blue, purple and pink. Skip red, orange and green on grass: to your dog they melt into the lawn.
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More to try: Plan an egg hunt your dog can see