Keep your pup busy with a cactus dog toy with cactus inside, the ultimate interactive boredom buster revealed.

Alright, so I had this idea bouncing around in my head the other day. My dog loves those plush toys, right? But destroys them in like, five seconds flat. Especially the ones with squeakers. So I thought, what if I made something a bit more interesting? A toy within a toy kinda deal. And being in a bit of a desert vibe mood, I landed on a cactus dog toy... with a smaller cactus hidden inside!

Getting Started - The Plan & Stuff

First things first, I had to figure out how this would even work. The main goal was a big plush cactus that my dog could rip into, only to find another, smaller cactus toy inside. Double the fun, maybe double the lifespan? Wishful thinking, probably.

So, I rummaged through my craft bin. Found some decent green felt – not the toughest stuff, but it’s what I had. Also grabbed some lighter green felt for the little guy inside. You need the basics:

• Fabric (felt, in my case)
• Needle and strong thread (don't skimp here, trust me)
• Scissors
• Stuffing (just regular poly-fil)
• Squeakers! Got a couple, one big, one small. Crucial step.

Making the Mini Cactus

I decided to tackle the small, inner cactus first. Seemed less daunting. I just freehand cut two simple, kinda cartoony cactus shapes from the light green felt. Nothing fancy. Maybe about 3-4 inches tall?

Then, the sewing part. I used a basic stitch – I think it's called a backstitch? Whatever keeps it together – around the edges, leaving a little hole at the bottom. Flipped it right-side out, which was fiddly because it was small.

Stuffing time! Pushed in the poly-fil, trying to get it into the 'arms' of the cactus shape. Then, squeezed in the small squeaker. Finally, stitched up the hole. Done. Looked kinda cute, actually. Added a few lazy stitches with black thread for 'spikes'.

Building the Big Cactus Shell

Okay, onto the main event. Cut out two much larger cactus shapes from the dark green felt. Had to make sure they were big enough to hold the little guy plus some stuffing around him.

Now, the tricky part: the opening. How would the little cactus get inside? I decided against velcro – knowing my dog, that’d be the first thing ripped off. I went for a simple slit on one side of the cactus shapes. I cut about a 3-inch horizontal slit on one of the big cactus pieces. Then I folded the edges of the slit over slightly and stitched them down to make them a bit stronger. Didn't want it tearing immediately.

Sewed the two big cactus pieces together, right sides facing each other. Stitched all the way around except for the reinforced slit opening, and left another small gap at the bottom for stuffing. Turned this bigger one right-side out.

Shoved the bigger squeaker inside, trying to position it somewhere central. Then started stuffing poly-fil all around it, making sure to leave a cavity in the middle for the mini cactus later. Packed it pretty firmly. Once it felt substantial, I stitched up the final stuffing hole at the bottom.

The Big Reveal (for the Dog)

So now I had a big, green, slightly lumpy cactus plush with a reinforced slit on its side, and a separate little light green cactus plush.

Moment of truth: I gently squished the little cactus and worked it through the slit into the cavity inside the big one. It fit! Snug enough that it wouldn't just fall out, but hopefully loose enough for a determined dog to extract.

The finished thing looked pretty cool, I gotta say. A decent-sized cactus toy, ready for action.

Handing it Over

Called the dog over. Showed him the toy. Initial sniff... confusion... then the squeaker discovery! He went nuts, thrashing it around like usual. Took him a while, maybe 15 minutes of serious chewing and shaking, before he started working on that slit area. I could see his little brain working.

Eventually, he managed to pull the mini cactus out! Victory! He seemed pretty pleased with himself, carrying the little one around for a bit before inevitably trying to find its squeaker too.

Honestly, the outer cactus didn't last much longer after that, the slit became a weak point. But hey, it worked! The concept was a success, even if the materials weren't indestructible. It was fun watching him figure it out. Might try again with canvas or something tougher next time. Maybe reinforce that slit even more. But for a first attempt using scraps? Pretty good afternoon project.