I’ve watched my pooches take down dozens of stuffed animals in a few seconds flat. Seriously – if it squeaks, they will gut it just to find the squeaker, which they could then choke on. The risk, and vet bills, are so not worth it. We always get them at least one safe, new toy to share for Christmas, but I decided to make something special instead this year.
The surprise part of this otherwise-straightforward rope knot toy is the treat inside! My pooches LOVE their Kongs, which are dog toys you can pop little treats into, and are hard for pups to get at. Unfortunately, my pooches have mastered the puzzle that is their Kongs, so they solve them super quick. This rope ball should present a challenge!
Supplies
105 inches (8.75 yd) of 1 inch-thick cotton rope like this
scissors or knife
dog treats
2 twist ties
Directions
Using two twist ties, secure the ends of your rope from raveling. Then, follow the instructions below for tying it into a monkey’s fist knot. I find the monkey’s fist knot to be challenging, so it might take a couple of tries to get the knot just right. This toy is really just a giant monkey’s fist, but before finishing and tightening the knot at the end, you slip in a dog treat (see step 5).
Collage by me / knot illustration via
For my monkey’s knot toy, I used three wraps per section of the toy pictured in this post, though you can wrap it as many times as you like (or can fit into your knot). Also, for the sake of demonstration, I used nylon rope for the photos since it had a bit of color to it.
When you finish your knot, trim any excess rope and remove the twist ties before giving the toy to your pups! I like to wrap dog presents in plain tissue paper & ribbon, no tape, so they can open them themselves… Nerd. Alert. Sorry.
If your dog struggles getting the treat out, you might want to throw them a bone (sorry again) and replace the treat with a fresh one every once in awhile. Gotta keep ’em entertained!
kaleigh
December 13, 2013 at 10:39 pmSuper cool. Does the dog need to take the whole thing apart to get the treat or can it be used more than once?
Heidi
December 15, 2013 at 8:27 amIt depends on how your dog gets to the treat. You can always retie the knot if they undo it entirely! One of my dogs is better than the other at solving treat puzzles, so she pops it out. The other dog just likes playing with the treatless rope ball.
Richard Baranowski
January 10, 2015 at 7:57 amHeidi, you said 105 inches (8.75 yd)… I’m not sure whether you meant 8.75 ft, or 315 inches…
105″/12″ = 8.75 ft…
105″/36″ = 2.91667 yd…
8.75 yd * 36″ = 315″..
I’m pretty sure you meant 8.75′, didn’t you?.
Heidi
January 11, 2015 at 10:14 amYep – good catch!
Marcheta
September 16, 2015 at 10:58 amI bought my cat a rope knot ball. He loves it! I’m going to try to make a few of these. He will be so happy!
Lucas Walker
November 15, 2015 at 11:56 amGreat DIY project! Would love to stuff a duck foot or beef back strap in there!
debbi
November 16, 2015 at 7:49 pmAre there any toxic ropes that we need to be aware of?
Heidi
November 20, 2015 at 10:05 pmI’m not sure off the top of my head. I would consult with my vet if there were rope I was unsure of. I’d stick to cotton to play it safe.
Christopher
December 3, 2015 at 11:50 amIs there a way of tying this to be more difficult or impossible for dogs to unravel it?
Heidi
December 4, 2015 at 5:46 pmYou could experiment with trying knots other than the monkey’s fist for variation. Has your pooch out-clevered this one? :)
Isabel
April 15, 2016 at 7:10 pmI can’t wait to try this! Just got a German shepherd puppy who is going to be GIANT. I’ll need to make one the size of my head. Thanks for saving my furniture and sanity. (He’s a good boy tho LOL!) I love wrapping their gifts too!!!
Lisa
November 30, 2016 at 6:57 amHi Heidi, where do you purchase your cotton rope from? I am struggling to find any 1inch thick. Thanks.
Heidi
December 1, 2016 at 9:26 amHi Lisa! I haven’t tried this particular rope myself, but it looks like Amazon carries cotton rope in various sizes, including 1 inch. Cheers!
Marcy Leonard
December 7, 2016 at 12:02 pmHi Heidi
How many knots where you able to make with the supplies listed above?
Thanks.
Heidi
December 8, 2016 at 8:46 amJust the one pictured. It’s about 9 inches in diameter.
Dorothy Lanier
March 5, 2017 at 10:10 amMy puppy had a plastic cat toy with a bell inside. He LOVED it, and would throw it around and chase it. He finally chewed it open, and I had to throw it away. I think I’ll make a few of these and put small jingle bells in them.
Heidi
March 6, 2017 at 8:30 amWhat a good idea! I love it – let me know what rope you end up using. :)