Ordinary plush toys last about an afternoon with a determined chewer, and the seams always go first: one pulled thread and the stuffing is across the living room floor. Tuffy build the other way round. Several bonded layers of material are stitched together with multiple rows of thread, and the seams themselves are covered with protective webbing, so there is no single weak line for a dog to unpick.

That layered construction is why this duck survives games that finish other toys. A dog tugging at a seam meets webbing and several rows of stitching rather than one run of thread. It floats, which makes it a good river and paddling-pool toy, and it goes through the washing machine when it comes back muddy. Air dry rather than tumble, since heat is harder on the bonding than the wash itself.

• Multiple bonded layers with several rows of stitching
• Protective webbing over the seams
• Floats, so it works in water
• Machine washable, air dry
• Roughly 14 x 35.6 x 41.9 cm
• Around 290 g
• Made in China, shipped tracked to the UK

One honest word on toughness. Tuffy toys are tough, not indestructible, and no soft toy is. This one will outlast an ordinary plush by a wide margin, but a dog who works methodically at a toy gets in eventually, so keep destructive chewing supervised and retire it once the outer layer opens.

Who it's for: Dogs who shred normal soft toys within a week, and owners who would rather buy one toy that lasts than five that do not.