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Small pets need exercise and enrichment just as much as cats and dogs do. A bored hamster chews bars. A restless rat gets into things it shouldnt. A gerbil with nothing to do will burrow destructively. The right toys keep them active and engaged without taking over your living room. I tested eight of the most popular small pet toys and exercise accessories on the market, from wheels to tunnels to playpens. My test crew of hamsters, gerbils, and rats were brutally honest about what they liked and what they ignored. ...

If you’ve never put a muzzle on your dog, it sounds like punishment. The reality is different. A well-fitted muzzle lets your dog pant, drink, and take treats while preventing the one thing that could get them banned from the dog park or the vet’s office entirely. Three types exist, and they’re not interchangeable. Basket muzzles allow full panting and drinking — essential for any session over a few minutes. Fabric muzzles are lighter but restrict the mouth fully, so they’re for short-term use only. Grooming muzzles target the specific problem of a scared dog who doesn’t want their nails clipped. Fit matters more than most people realize: too tight and your dog can’t pant; too loose and they can work it off. ...

I’ve been lucky with my pets. Mostly. But the two times I needed first aid supplies that I didn’t have stand out. The first was a cut pad on a hiking trail. I wrapped it in a sock and carried the dog out. The second was a cat who got into a fight and came home with a puncture wound that needed cleaning. Both times I thought, why don’t I own a pet first aid kit? ...

Rabbits need more than a cage. They need floor space to run, jump, and stretch out. The old pet store stereotype — a tiny wire-bottomed hutch with a food bowl and a water bottle — is basically a jail cell for a bunny. A proper enclosure plus a few hours of daily exercise time outside it is what keeps them healthy. We tested 7 enclosures — indoor cages for apartment bunnies, outdoor hutches for backyard setups, two-story condos for spoiled rabbits, and large playpen-style enclosures for free-roam adjacent setups. Some are spacious and well-designed. Others are overpriced boxes with misleading square footage claims. ...

A dog in the car is great company. A dog shedding, drooling, and tracking mud across your back seat is less great. Dog car seat covers and hammocks solve that problem. They create a barrier between your pet and your upholstery, catch the dirt and hair, and keep your seats from ending up scratched. I tested seven dog car seat covers and hammocks. Bench seats, bucket seats, hatchbacks, trucks with bench fronts. Some fit perfectly. Some shifted around after two blocks. Some claim to be waterproof but aren’t. The ones below are the ones I’d actually put in my car. ...

Cats are vertical creatures. In the wild, they climb trees to survey their territory, escape predators, and find warm spots to nap. Your living room is their territory, and without vertical territory, they’ll claim your curtains, bookshelves, and the top of your refrigerator instead. A good cat tree gives them a dedicated territory that doesn’t conflict with your furniture. The trick is finding one that’s sturdy enough for a full-grown cat to launch onto at full speed, covered in material they actually want to scratch, and that doesn’t take over your living room visually. We tested 7 cat trees and condos in 2025 — from a $40 basic scratching post to a $300 multi-level condo — to find the best options for different cats, spaces, and budgets. ...

A bad leash ruins a good walk. The wrong one tangles in your legs, digs into your hands, snaps under pressure, or lets your dog control the whole experience. A good leash disappears into the walk — comfortable to hold, reliable in an emergency, and suited to exactly how you and your dog move together. But there is no one-size-fits-all option. A 6-foot nylon leash that works for a calm Golden Retriever is dangerous for a reactive dog who lunges. A retractable leash that gives your Beagle freedom to explore can teach your strong-pulling Husky to ignore you entirely. The urban jogger needs something completely different from the apartment owner doing late-night bathroom trips. ...

A dog bouncing around your car is a distraction. A 50-pound dog in a sudden stop becomes a 2,000-pound projectile. That is why every safety organization, from the Center for Pet Safety to the ASPCA, says you need to restrain your dog in the car. But finding a restraint that actually works is harder than it should be. Some clip to collars (neck injury risk). Some have buckles that pop open on impact. Some are not crash-tested at all. We tested six restraints with a range of dogs and driving conditions to find the ones that actually keep your dog safe. ...

The filter is the most important piece of equipment on your aquarium. A good heater keeps the water warm. A good light grows plants. But the filter is what keeps fish alive. Without adequate biological filtration, ammonia builds up, fish get stressed, and you end up with sick or dead fish no matter how careful you are with feeding and water changes. We tested 6 aquarium filters across three main types — hang-on-back (HOB), canister, and sponge — in tanks ranging from 5 to 75 gallons. We ran each filter for at least 4 weeks, measured flow rates, noise levels, ease of cleaning, and how well each one maintained ammonia and nitrite at zero in a stocked tank. ...

Open a bag of kibble and it starts going stale immediately. The oils oxidize. The crunch softens. And if it sits long enough, pantry moths find it. A good container keeps the air out, the pests out, and the food fresh for the life of the bag. We tested 6 pet food storage containers, from basic bins to high-end airtight systems, and rated them on seal quality, capacity, ease of cleaning, and how well they actually keep kibble fresh over weeks of use. ...