Listen to a toy:
After several prototypes I found the proper weight of canvas duck to use as the flesh of my personalized dog toy. The pet industry has an informal term for destructive dogs—aggressive chewers. Durability in the construction of this toy was a concern to me and I tested the prototypes with my dog. She is by no means an aggressive chewer, but she’s not a lightweight either. I was satisfied with the workout my dog gave the prototype. I went beyond making a single toy. The “object of my desire” which inspired this exploration was a fuzzy duck that belonged to a product line of toys. To emphasize the personalized aspect of my design, I created my own product line. The second doll I created was my dog’s co-owner (my wife). The third and fourth dolls will belong to a black lab named Carl who lives with my brother and sister-in-law. Each toy has been embedded with a customizable voice box that contains a ten second message that was recorded by the owner before it is was stitched into the doll. The surface of each toy was silk screened with the face of each dog owner and a symbol that is a reference to an activity that may be associated with the owner of the toy. I am pleased with the final result, and have been asked by several friends to make a doll for them. If you are interested in commissioning your own personalized dog toy please e-mail me at leexx253@umn.edu.
