18 January 2011

Snack-in-a-Box

Are you fed up with buying expensive 'indestructable' toys that your dog wastes no time in ripping to shreds?  Do you love the idea of 'activity' toys but don't buy them because your dog isn't the type to gently take her time working out how to get the treat out of the carefully designed, labyrinth of chambers?  Do you want a toy that combines your dog's passion for ripping stuff up with simple problem solving that costs just a few pence?  Was that a yes?

Then this is for you ~ the homemade Snack-in-a-Box!

You will need some cardboard, scissors, sticky tape, and your dog's favourite dried snacks.

1.  Make a rectangular piece of cardboard - about 6"x18" is a good size ...



2.  Score and cut the cardboard ...
  

3.  Fold the two outer sides up, curl the ends around and fix with tape ...       


4.  Pop some snacks inside ... mmmm ... dried chicken necks, Tilly's favourite!

5.  Fold and tape up the sides ...


6.  Add another layer ...


7.  Tape it all up, and then snack-in-a-box is ready to enjoy ...


As you can see, Tilly is having great fun ripping into the side of the box ...


And eventually her persistence pays off ...




Most dogs are way more interested in eating what's inside the box than the box itself, but if you have a known cardboard muncher, snack-in-a-box may require some careful monitoring.  For those that just like ripping and shredding, snack-in-a-box is the ideal outlet, and the cardboard is easy enough to clear up once your dog has finished eating his prize.

To really engage his scenting ability, hide snack-in-a-box in the garden or house and let him go and seek it out.  If you feed your dog dried kibble, you could even make a meal-sized snack-in-a-box!    

9 comments:

  1. Brilliant cheap idea :D

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  2. Brilliat idea Lizi, I may give that a go for CJ, he just loves tearing things apart and to get a treat at the end would be his idea of heaven:D

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  3. Great idea Lizi, I'm going to try this with George as he loves opening things. He opened all his own Chrissie presents so this should prove more challenging

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  4. Brilliant, it's such a simple and cheap/free idea.

    First one took Scrumpy 15 mins to break in, second one a little less time but the more layers the better! Better yet the cardboard bits are huge fun to play with, throw around the room, grab out of my hand as I try to clear it up, take out of the bin, make lovely and soggy then spit out on people's feet :-)

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  5. Thanks for your comments, I'm glad to hear that Snack-in-a-Box is a hit! I've had a couple of requests as to where to buy the chicken necks from so here's the link ... http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/dogs/dog_treats_chews/chicken/138396

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  6. Thanks for the shout-out, sorry I'm so slow in responding!!

    This is a GREAT idea - I'll be passing it on!

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  7. I tried this before posting and I'm happy to say it was a BIG hit! A great economical way to keep my dogs happy - I made 3 different sizes for 3 different dogs - and they kept them busy and engaged for a long time! Thank you so much!

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  8. Fabulous! Glad to hear that your woofs had fun with their snack-in-a-boxes :)

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  9. For little dogs the inner tubes from toilet rolls and kitchen roll with taped over ends work well. Stuffing a favourite toy inside the tube (no tpae!) can be fun as well!

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