Why do dogs love a dog toy ice cream cone so much? Find out the reasons behind this popular chew toy choice.

Okay, so the dog needed a new toy. The old ones were looking pretty sad, honestly. I was rummaging through my craft stash the other day, thinking about what to make. Summer's kinda here, felt like something fun. An idea popped into my head – a sort of cone-shaped thing with a scoop on top. Yeah, that could work.

Getting Started

First things first, had to find the right materials. Dug around and found some leftover fleece fabric. Perfect. Grabbed a tan piece for the cone part and some pink and white for the top scoop part. Needed stuffing too, luckily had a bag of that poly-fill stuff. And, of course, a squeaker! Can't forget the squeaker, that's half the fun for the pup.

• Tan fleece fabric
• Pink/White fleece fabric
• Polyester stuffing
• A squeaker (medium size worked)
• Thread and needle (could've used the machine, but felt like hand-sewing this one)
• Scissors

Got everything laid out on the table. Looked like a plan.

Putting it Together

Alright, tackled the cone part first. Cut out a sort of rounded triangle shape from the tan fleece. Didn't use a pattern, just eyed it. Folded it over and stitched up the side seam to make the cone shape. My stitching isn't exactly machine-perfect, but it's strong enough for a dog toy, I reckon.

Next, the 'scoop'. Cut out two slightly wavy circle shapes from the pink fleece. Wanted it to look kinda like melting ice cream, you know? Placed them right sides together and sewed around most of the edge, leaving a gap open for stuffing later.

Stuffing time! Pushed a good amount of stuffing into the cone part first, packing it down a bit so it holds its shape. Then, turned the pink 'scoop' right side out. Popped the squeaker inside, right in the middle, and packed stuffing all around it. Made sure it was nice and plump. Then stitched up the opening on the scoop part nice and tight.

Last step was joining the two bits. Positioned the pink scoop on top of the tan cone's open end. This was the fiddly part. Had to carefully hand-sew the scoop onto the cone, going all the way around. Used a strong stitch, doubled up the thread actually, because I know how rough my dog can be with toys. Tugged it a bit to test – seemed solid.

The Big Test

So there it was. A funny-looking, slightly lopsided, fleece ice cream cone toy. Definitely homemade, haha. But kinda cute in its own way.

Called the dog over. Showed him the new creation. Sniffing first, naturally. Then the tail started. Gave it a little squeak – ears perked right up! Tossed it for him. Success! He grabbed it, squeaked it like mad, shook it around. Looked like a hit. Always feels good when you make something and they actually like it, you know?

It's holding up pretty well so far. Let's see how long this one lasts!