About Ruff Rope
Our Story
It instantly became her “go get your toy” toy.
One day, I caught our family dog, Roxy, chewing on some of my climbing rope. It was time to get rid of it anyway, so I fashioned a toy for her instead. It was a really long braid with some cool knotting, and she absolutely loved it. It instantly became her “go get your toy” toy. I made a few more for friends and family, and the feedback was always the same: "Our dog loves it! You should sell these!”
I got together with my brother and we started putting together a plan. We began calling climbing gyms to see what they did with their old rope and discovered it usually got thrown away. We researched and talked to vets to see if climbing rope was safe for dogs. We tested it and worked out designs. We began to realize that we could make a dog toy that matched up to the standards and ideals that we looked for.
Then life sort of happened. Marriage, kids, a move across the ocean. Ruff Rope left our priority list, but never the back of our minds. When we were back home for Christmas we saw that Roxy was still playing with the rope toy I made her 10 years prior. It was still her favorite.
We committed right there to making this a reality and now after lots and lots and lots of research, preparation, and work we're pleased to share Ruff Rope with you and we hope your dogs will love and enjoy them just as much as all of our dogs have.
You’re awesome for being a part of something we hope will have a positive impact on our planet, our pets, and ourselves. Thank you.
With sincere gratitude,
- Aaron and Anthony Rayl
( Roxy, Frank, Meeko, Piper, Jack, and Coco too)
Our Process
We do our best to keep everything local, hand-made, chemical-free, low-waste, and recyclable.
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We work with climbing gyms to acquire retired climbing rope that can be up-cycled into dog toys instead of sent to a landfill.
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We provide prepped rope, tools, and training to our local network of gig workers so they can hand tie the toys at their own home on their own time.
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We donate every 10th toy to shelters along with 10 cents for every foot of rope used to make our toys.
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We sell them to you so your best friend has a new favorite toy.