Kong dog toys.

• Author: Peterson, Eric
• Position: Cool Colorado Stuff - Brief Article

In 1976, Joe Markham was working on his VW Bus as his faithful dog Fritz worked on something else: chewing on a rock. Knowing that a dental catastrophe was in progress, Markham tossed the German shepherd a rubber chunk of the VW's transmission, It worked. Once he got that Kong, he left those rocks alone," recalled Markham, who immediately turned the incident into a commercial product. It was a tough go for the first decade, as cheaper copycats flooded the market in the Kong's wake. Markham's saving grace: "We made the best part. By '86, I could make a living with the company." The company has since shipped "millions and millions" of its products all over the world, supplying just...