Beneful Healthy Smile Line

I am a huge fan of free samples - www.freebieking.com is one of my favorite sites to go on to search for samples. They even send out an updated list of samples every day in an email. One of the samples I requested was for Beneful's new line of dog treats. I was expecting a small sample bag but what I recieved was:

Much larger than what I expected and the following was inside the box:

Two sample treats bags with two small chew sticks in each and a sample of dog food. My pups haven't had the food yet but they tried both treats and were big fans!

They are used to mommy getting things in the mail now and they have begun to figure out when the packages are for them :)

There also were coupons included for future purchases :)

PawBox August 2013

So I subscribed to my second dog subscription box - PawBox. PawBox is a monthly subscription for your pet - you can actually choose a box for a dog or a box for a cat. As I have two dogs I subscribed to the dog box. This box costs $10 per month and you can order one here: www.pawbox.com Below is my review of the first box I received from them:

This is just a picture of the packaging, card that was included with the box and a first look.

This is the actual first look. Cute tissue paper.

The first item is a grooming brush. I already have one of these and don't use the one that I have. I am a little unimpressed with this item as I think this is something I could have found somewhere inexpensively and easily.

The next item is the pop'n bites for dogs. My dogs loved these and I am happy to see it is made in the USA - couldn't help but notice the grooming brush was made in China. While my dogs did love these treats, this item was also something that I feel like I could find easily in stores, if not this exact item then something very similar.

Ok, next is the rope toy...what can I say about this rope toy...well, it's colorful!! I really wasn't impressed by this item either. My dogs aren't fans of rope toys but if they were they are abundant at our local dollar store. I gifted the rope toy and grooming brush to a friend's dog who was very happy to have them.

And next is the Natures Animals Biscuts...uh, wait a minute...guess they must have ran out because there was another item in my box. Other boxes have supplemented items because they ran out before but they usually add a little card explaining the difference in items. I didn't notice that the item was not what was listed on the card or that the picture was way out of focus when I took the picture either. Too bad because this by far was my dogs favorite item in the box. There were only four and they got two each. I found them online: this is Cloud Star Wag More Bark Less Soft & Chewy Dog Treats and from the package color it looks like my dogs got the pumpkin pie flavor...they must take after me, I love pumpkin flavored anything! Also, they are made in the USA - I found them online for $5.99 for a 6 ounce bag - I am planning to buy this when the treats I have run out. My dogs LOVED these treats:

Begging for the treats, they weren't fans of me taking pictures first!

Finally, the surprise toy! And...it's a...?? What exactly is this - a fabric toy mouse?? I swear this looks just like toy mice I used to buy for my cat to play with when I used to have cats. I am unimpressed once again - I think I could make this myself and it would probably only cost 50 cent to 1 dollar for the materials. Callie was slightly more impressed than I was however...my dogs are easy to please. Soooo, all in all I am under-impressed (is that a real word?) by this box. Most of the items are things that I could find for less than $10 in any local market or even dollar store. Maybe I would have been more impressed if I hadn't gotten BarkBox first. I have to say this box need to step up their game - I realize they are only $10 per month vs bark box's $19 per month (if you subscribe for 6 months) but I would rather pay more to get better quality items. I think they need to give less and better quality and this box would be much improved in my opinion.

Bark Box August 2013 Box Review

My first subscription box was to Bark box - I received the August 2013 box and I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I was very happy with my first box from them. Bark Box is a monthly subscription for your canine companions. I have two pups and I am always looking for new ways to entertain them and new treats...I unfortunately can not take my pups to the pet store with me because they mark everything in sight so this is a good option for me. The website to order is https://barkbox.com/r/44zeQ2tn5W They, like most box subscription companies have several options available- one month for $29, 3 months for $24 a month or 6 months for $19 a month. Add them on facebook for discounts, thats how I first heard of them! I think its important to mention that all of their items come from North or South America which is great for food safety. Below is a picture of the box and a first look when opening the package:

Below is a real first look once you open the paper the product is wrapped in:

Right away I was impressed because there were items that I had never seen or heard of in the box and so many full size/non sample items. This is the card that came with the box, it explained what the items in the box were and where you could purchase them online.

The first item in the box was the Hear Doggy whale - it has a squeaker that dogs can hear but people cannot...when you squeeze the whale it sounds like air is leaking out of it...barely audible...no way that my dogs who LOVE squeaky toys would like it right:

WRONG! My dogs couldn't get enough of it...in fact before I could take it completely out of the packaging they were going so crazy, I could not get a picture of them sitting still with it. I also ordered a bark box for my moms two poodles and she tells me the fight over this toy daily...we will be purchasing more of there! Especially for one of my moms dogs who loves to squeak toys whenever someone calls on the phone! I wish we heard of this toy years ago. I found this online for $9.99 Next item was a sample of The Honest Kitchen's Ice Pups...looks like a really cute idea...on one side of the package there are instructions to make a icy treat for your dog and if you flip the package over there are instructions on how to make a broth for your dogs with the mix. I think it's a great idea, just haven't gotten to try it yet because that would require me actually making room in my freezer for an ice tray! I should add this was the only sample in the box. This item is sold for $0.99 per packet.

The next item in the box was Barkworthies Natural Hickory Beef Treats. My dogs loved these...they are rather small though, even for my 10 pound dogs, they seem like they would be great training treats. I found that I kept giving my dogs several every time I opened the package because they were small. As a warning there is a very strong hickory smell when you open the package. These are sold by the case on the Barthworthies website - 12 in a case. The value of one would be $6.30

Next was the Primal Freeze Dried Liver Munchies. My dogs have had freeze dried liver before and loved it, this was no different. I found these online for $6.99 which really is a good price compared to what I have paid before for freeze dried liver and this is a bigger bag than what I bought.

The last item in the box is something I had never heard of and was really impressed with! Barkworthies Bully Flakes. My dogs are huge fans of bully sticks - we order them in bulk. I have never met a dog that doesn't like bully sticks. I do know quite a few dogs that are picky and wont eat their food. Mix some bully flakes in with their food and the idea is that they will eat the food and not just the flakes out...I think its a great idea. My dogs aren't picky though, and they are smart enough to eat around the food to get to the flakes. I just put two little piles of the flakes on the floor for them to try and let them have at it - they continued licking the floor long after the flakes were gone. This item is also sold by the case - the value of just one 4 ounce bag is $5.25

Overall I am impressed with this box! The total value was approximately $29.52 which is great for me since I bought the 6 month plan that only cost $19 per month. The size of the items in the box were great, the amount of product and quality were all better than what I was expecting. I am excited to find Barkworthies and Hear Doggy, two companies that I had never heard of before this but my dogs love their products. I am sad to say that this box has me hooked...I will definitely recommend them to friends and family and I plan on ordering some subscription boxes for me...hey, the dogs can't be the only one getting fun surprises every month!