Two Easy Homemade Dog Toys
By Johanna Soliday
One of the simplest toys to make is a ball. All this requires is some of those leftover odd or holey socks that seem to accumulate in most households. You can make a ball of any size depending on the number of socks you use. These balls are soft so can be used indoors and out. They can also be thrown in the washer and dryer. If your dog likes to chew on them till they’re shredded, you can make more in just a few minutes.
For a basic Sock Ball, use 3 or 4 socks:
Take your longest sock with the least number of holes for the base
Roll and stuff the other socks inside
Tie a firm knot in the base sock above the stuffed area
Double the end of your base sock back over the entire ball
Tie another knot and double the remaining end back over the ball
Repeat until you run out of sock
Trim off the remaining end
For a bigger ball, use as wide and long a sock as possible for the base and add more socks for the stuffing.
If you want a ball with a handle on it so you can throw it further or play tug-o’-war, make a Sock Swing Ball using 4 or more socks:
Use your two longest socks for the base
Roll and stuff the other socks inside
Tie a knot in the base socks above the stuff area
That’s all there is to it! Happy playing!
Jo and Stan have been playing with dogs ever since childhood. They are enjoying making things for their current dog, Comet, who may be a purebred red-and-black Shepherd, although his parentage is unknown.
For more low-cost ideas, visit their website at http://www.make-and-build-dog-stuff.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Johanna_Soliday
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EDITOR’s NOTE
I personally do NOT recommend that you use old socks as “Sock Toys” – especially if your dog likes to chew them up. I used to do this all the time with our dogs, because I had lots of old socks with holes in them. It’s great for playing fetch, tug-a-war etc … but that should be it. Our own little Papillon dog Sophie really liked all my “Sock-Toys” I used to make her .. and after playing she would lay down and hold the sock-toy in her mouth and sometimes fall asleep. She liked the odor of her master. But, if she wasn’t sleeping or just holding it .. she was chewing it up and EATING the threads while she was doing that.
After a while she had trouble breathing and was gagging almost entirely and ended up being constipated. If she did gag .. sock threads would come out of her onto the carpet. It was sad. She felt sorry that we felt sorry and was concerned, and while she was gagging she would try to stop – almost to the point where she would stop breathing. Poor Sophie.
We now throw out ALL old toys that she ends up chewing through to the material and buy her a new one (e.g. Football-Toy, Soccerball-Toy, etc) .. and we quit making new sock-toys.
While I think this is a bad idea (if your dog doesn’t swallow the threads .. chances are you’ve got old sock-toy pieces all over your house!) … when all else fails … USE COMMON SENSE. Every situation and pet are different!
HART
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