A Day at the Beach With My Dog and BarkBox

My dog Ollie loves going with me to the beach in the summer. It’s always a special treat to take him beyond the backyard, and a tradition that’s fun for the whole family. Every year, we like to start out our summer season by getting packed up and going to our local beach. Our beach tote always contains the same things: towels, an umbrella, Ollie’s water bowl, his doggie sweater, and his favorite item that we never leave home without: his BarkBox.

For those of you dog-lovers that aren’t in the know, BarkBox is an awesome subscription company for dogs and owners alike, which sends you a themed monthly package filled with all-natural, wholesome treats and well-made toys you can’t find anywhere else. I first heard about BarkBox while I was at a friend’s house one night. I noticed that his dog Mojo had a ton of unique toys and treats that I hadn’t seen in any pet store, and when I asked about them he told me he subscribed to BarkBox. I was interested to hear that every month they send you toys and treats centered around a different theme. It seemed like it would be expensive (my previous trips to the pet store always end up with me spending more on Ollie than I ever would on myself), but my friend assured me that BarkBox was the best value around, so I decided to give it a try.

The first BarkBox we received was themed after classic New York City icons and the box was delivered right to my doorstep. Ollie was already sniffing at it like crazy even before I could open it. We received a Statue of Liberty ball, a pretzel chew toy, a plush Chinese take out container toy filled with small plush dumpling toys, a bully stick and two bags of treats! I was surprised at how many items they sent in each box for just $25: a fourth of what I would pay at a normal pet store.

Ollie was so excited by all of the new gifts he got and proceeded to go to town on the Statue of Liberty ball. That’s when I got scared that he would destroy every toy in the box. I wanted to see about their return policy for damaged toys, and found out that BarkBox offers a Super Chewer box filled with extra durable toys for dogs who demand a challenge. But even Ollie didn’t destroy the toys from the regular box! It was still nice to know the option was there for us if need be and their Happy Team is available to help you with any toy issues that may arise. While I loved every theme, my favorite so far was the “Chewrassic Bark” theme: it was filled with dinosaur toys, Jurassic pork and dino-bite treats. My favorite part was the pamphlet it came with containing animated dogs in hilarious poses labelled: “What Kind of Dino is Your Dog?” Ollie is definitely a T. Rex!

Summer is a great time to bond with your dog and spend time outdoors in the sun soaking up rays and taking in nature. BarkBox helps make that a lot easier. When Ollie and I go to the beach, I never have to think about which toys and treats to bring since he loves them all! He likes to play catch in the sand, he’ll run around in circles after retrieving his toy and sometimes he’ll even bury it in the sand (once he dug it back up on our next trip). He also loves to run through the water letting the waves soak his fur before putting on his sweater and chowing down on some of his favorite treats from the BarkBox. Ollie and I can’t imagine Summer without it! You can check out their site for more details.

Update: The folks at BarkBox are extending a special offer to our readers! Follow this link to BarkBox to get an extra box Free (originally $25)!