Make your own dog toys

In this tight economy, it’s often hard to justify spending your hard-earned money on toys for your dog. But, dogs like to play and chew. I’ve found that if you don’t provide toys for them to chew on, they’ll find their own chew toy. Like your shoes…or the corner of your sofa. Or the leg of the antique curio shelf that’s been in your family for years. To keep Fido from gnawing on your belongings, make sure he’s got his own toys and chew things. If you can’t buy them, try making your own.

Here are some ideas:

Take an old sock, preferably a man’s tube sock, tie a knot at either end, and you have a tug-of-war toy.  You can also use old rope if you have any lying around.  Old towels also work for tug and pull toys.  Just tie a knot in the towel.

You can also make a chew toy from an old sock.  Take an old tube sock and cut the top off.  Sew one end of the tube.  Stuff the foot of the sock inside the tube, and sew the other end. Sleeves from old sweatshirts work for this as well.  Or, if you’re really crafty, you can make chew toys from fabric scraps and stuff with old socks or padding.

Dogs love balls, so if you have any old tennis balls or rubber balls around the house, your dog will love these.  The bigger the dog, the bigger the ball. My husband had a German Shepherd who loved his old basketball. You can also take a tennis ball and drill a hole through the middle. Then, string a long rope through the hole and bring the two ends of rope together. Tie a knot at the end of the rope, and another knot directly about the ball. This makes a good throw toy, or tug-of-war toy.

Take an empty water bottle, remove the cap, and flatten it length-wise. My neighbor does this for her small dog, and Cindy (the dog) has hours of fun chasing the bottles around the house. She’ll get hold of the edge of one of these bottles, shake her head, and fling the bottle across the room. Off she romps after it, only to repeat the process. If you’ve got a large dog, use empty 2-liter bottles.

Making your own dog toys will not only save you money, but will also provide your dog with hours of fun and exercise.

Photo credit: ktylerconk on flickr

July 22nd, 2009 by Beth VanHoose | Posted in Dog Stories, Dog Toys | (0)