How many of you have every encountered a dog that does not like to chew on socks whenever it gets the chance? Probably none of you, because dogs love socks. I'm not sure I want to know why, but this seems to be a truth of dog nature.
Step One: 2 minutes
In case you have forgotten or didn't know, this is Eddie, chewer of socks.
Eddie also happens to be teething, so we are still going through toys at an alarming rate.
Today I am going to make a new dog toy, this time one made out of the beloved sock rather than old t-shirts. There are a number of options for how to make such a toy, but I am going with one that combines the sock with something else Eddie loves- crunch. I am going to put a water bottle inside of the sock.
No tutorial should be necessary here, and I am confident that I would have to try to mess this one up. Here's a tutorial I pulled up, just in case you want one: Easy DIY Dog Toy
Step One: 2 minutes
Gather Materials
The materials here are an old sock (a long one), and an empty water bottle.
Eddie came running over when I took the label of off the water bottle and it made the loud crunching water bottle sound, so this bodes well for this toy's future.
Step Two: 2 minutes
Put water bottle in sock. Just in case, I decide that am grabbing an extra pairless sock so that it will take Eddie longer to destroy the water bottle, so my water bottle is wrapped in two socks. Fortunately, I easily find a second sock, and it happens to be a houndstooth sock.
I get slowed down a bit on this step because I run off to find the sock, and then Eddie runs over again and grabs the sock as I am putting it on the water bottle. I get it away from him, only for him to run off and try again. This time though I have my ninja skills ready and snatch it away from him just as he is about to clamp his little jaws on the toy.
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| Eddie tries to eat the toy before I have finished it. |
Step Three: 1 minute
Now I must tie off the socks, but this is complicated by the fact that I now have two socks on the bottle, and too much fabric. I push one sock down into the other, and tie off only the outer sock. Ugly, but effective.
Step Four: Give Toy to Dog
I hand off the toy to Eddie, who immediately starts chewing it and goes on doing so for a long time. I monitor him though and occasionally pick up the toy to make sure no plastic is breaking off where it could hurt him. The double layer of socks was an excellent idea, because it makes a great buffer between the plastic and Eddie.
So, was it worth it?
Time Investment: Less than 5 minutes
Cost: Old socks and a used water bottle...no cost here
Dog's reaction: I hate to say this, but he seems to like this one better than the t-shirt dog toy. He's going to town chewing this one, both the knot and the bottle side. I have to keep an eye on him because of the plastic bottle under the socks, which I don't have to worry about with the t-shirt toy. The toy also makes a lot of noise, so don't make this one if you can't stand the sound of crushing plastic. Overall though, the project and the noise are totally worth it for a puppy owner who needs to distract the energetic puppy for even just a little while. Just make sure to keep an eye on toy and dog, as with all toys, to make sure that it's not in a state it could do damage.
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