Create the perfect handmade toy for your furry friend
There is nothing more fun than watching an animal having fun playing with a toy, tossing them up in the air and chasing them.
With this in mind, many people have turned to making their own pet toys.
Monika Lewis from Wolfville, N.S., has been making crocheted cat toys for the past two years. The idea began as a way for her to help fundraise for the Safe Haven Animal Rescue, a private shelter in the area. Funds raised from selling these toys help to cover costs for feeding and tending to the many cats and kittens they rescue from Kings and Annapolis counties.
When Lewis began making cat toys, she simply Googled "cat toys" and loads of ideas came up.
“With experimentation, l developed a quick and easy corkscrew pattern, which I've been using to make toys for about two years now,” she says.
To make them, Lewis uses blanket yarn, which is thick and fluffy. The toys can be crocheted very quickly and are virtually indestructible. She says it takes just a few minutes to make one toy, and the yarn comes in a variety of colours.
“I'm fairly certain the cats can't distinguish the colours, but their owners seem to be quite particular about which colours they think their pets would enjoy,” says Lewis.
Lewis next rolls her toys in dried catnip, but says fresh would probably work, too. Then, she says, the fun really begins for the cats.
PRETTY POOCHES
Regan Inch, a 14-year-old from Lawrencetown, N.S., recently made a surf-inspired bandana for her dog, and it was such a success, she created her own business called Beachy Paws. Because Inch lives in a surfing community and loves to surf, she decided to make a business for surfthemed bandanas.
“I learned to sew over the past year and wanted to make a bandana for my dog Owen, so I watched a video of how to sew it and cut up one of my dad’s old plaid shirts,” says Inch.
Inch says anyone who would like to try making bandanas should do a few practice runs first.
“You can put a lot of money into materials, so practice whatever you are making a lot on non-good stuff,” she says.
For every bandana Inch sells, $1 of it goes to Marley’s Hope dog rescue, a local charity near her home.
REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE
Janet Loomer, a residential rehabilitation worker for Plank Industries (a division of Kings Regional Rehabilitation
Centre in Waterville, N.S., for people with different challenges and abilities), works with clients to create dog toys which are sold in a pet store in Berwick and from their location.
“We believe in reuse, recycle, and reduce waste, so, we have taken 100 per cent cotton used T-shirts and have created different varieties of braided toys for dogs,” says Loomer.
Besides the braided toys, Plank Industries also makes stuffed bones from recycled jeans, which are stamped with a print using a nontoxic permanent hair dye for dogs.
These toys are double stitched for extra durability and stuffed with the larger scraps of the unused pieces from the braided toys. Loomer says they also include a squeaker to add more enjoyment for pets.
If trying to create a braided toy at home, Loomer suggests making a gadget that can be attached to a table to hold the knot that starts the braid. This will keep your braid tight and your toy stronger.
Braid several strands together to get your desired size depending on the size of your dog. For example, try using nine strands (three sets
of three that get braided together) and so on.
“You can find many patterns of braiding on YouTube as well as directions on how to cut your t-shirts for optimum use,” explains Loomer.
When it comes to the bones, Loomer says their stuffed toys are made with a pattern drawn on the jean legs and then cut out.
“Make sure you double stitch these for more durability as some dogs have pretty strong teeth,” she says.
“In our research, we found that cotton was the best material to make the rope toys and jeans were the toughest material to make the stuffed toys. But no matter what, always monitor or play with your dog as any toys can be a choking risk.”
FINDING THE PERFECT FIT
Natasha Cairns, a veterinarian at the Wolfville Animal Hospital, says that when selecting a toy to make for your dog, you need to consider how your pet likes to play. Is your dog an avid chewer or fetcher? Does Fido prefer brain game type of toys or is he food motivated and likes hidden treat toys? This will enable you to decide what type of toy to make for your dog as not every toy works for every dog, she says.
There are a few safety precautions to note.
Specifically for cats: Do not use long strings the cat could swallow or stretchy elastics, as they will eat them. For dogs, do not use long strings or buttons because they can chew them off and swallow them. Be careful with stuffing as dogs like to eat it, cautions Cairns.
Knowing the size of your dog’s mouth will help to determine what size of toy to make. You don’t want to make a small toy that a large dog could swallow, she says.
Monitor the animal with the toy and regularly inspect toys for damage. Remove damaged toys and watch your animal with them.
“I usually see toys when I have to surgically remove them from the animal,” says Cairns.
Use care and caution as you would with a child, Cairn recommends. If you make toys carefully and properly monitor them, it can bring hours of entertainment for you and your pet.