My dogs love playing tug of war with me. It’s a great way to bond or get them revved up for agility.
There are a variety of pull toys on the market, but I thought it would be fun to create some homemade Valentine’s Day themed pull toys from scratch. These toys are easy to make and add a personal flair to your dog’s toy box.
In this post, I’ll guide you through the process in a step-by step-tutorial.
First, you’ll need to stop by a fabric store and pick up three fleece fabrics of your choice. I bought a 1/2 yard of each, which is enough to make four pull toys.
Lay your fabric length-wise and measure about 4-5 inches. Cut your strip. Repeat with all three fabrics.
This is what your fabric strips will look like when you’re finished cutting.
Start by tying the three fabrics in a knot with about 5 inches to spare on the end.
Now the fun starts. Start braiding the fabrics.
Keep on braiding until you get about 7 inches from the end and tie in a knot again (the idea is that you want about 5 inches hanging loose on the end again, so the extra 2 inches gives you some space to tie the knot). I like to tie two pieces in a knot and then add the third in a separate knot, but you can use whatever type of knot-tying technique that is easiest and most attractive to you.
Tie a knot or two (or three) along the braided area of the toy to give your dog something to hold onto while they’re tugging.
That’s it! This whole process took me about 15 minutes per pull toy. Here is the finished product.
Now it’s time to play with your dogs! (Sorry for the blurry image – there was too much action!)
21 Pup Street 