It seems like my typical luck that our much anticipated BarkBox would be delivered while the dogs and I went to Virginia Beach. I brought them there so they could romp in the sand before Labor Day. You see how successful that was for Bunsen.

Speaking of successful, we were pretty lucky that this delivery was for dog treats and toys because it rained while we were gone and our package got soaked. When we came home it was both a pleasant surprise and a tad of a let down – our BarkBox was drenched and covered with slugs 🙁

Opening The Box

As you can see, everything came out fine. We were a little worried that anything inside would be ruined or inedible. The box sat out in a pretty bad storm but the contents held up pretty well.

First, the paperwork:

Call in the assistants!

Then the edibles:

Jinx asked for treats so I gave them treats…

Hare of the Dog Organic Carrot Biscuits

Plato Pet Treats Farmer’s Market Natural Salmon & Vegetable Treats

The chewy toys

R2P Bumblebee Silly Bum

West Paw Zogoflex Bumi

It should be noted that this Zogoflex Bumi is considered the premium toy that costs an extra $9. If you paid $29 for the one month plan you’ve just upped your cost to $38. Shipping in the contiguous 48 states and Canada is free.

Also note that this was filmed right after we got home from our trip to Virginia Beach. It was a 3 hour drive and Bunsen was pretty tired after romping in the sand, hanging out with Grandma, and hanging out in the back of the Jeep for the long ride.

Final thoughts

I have to admit that, through no fault of their own, I was initially a little bummed about the BarkBox. It all stems from coming home and finding my box on my porch all soaking wet and covered with slugs. It was more like a MushBox :/

Upon opening it, though, I realized that it was quite the lovely surprise for my pooches. Keep in mind that I bought a single box, not a box for multiple pets. They enjoyed the treats very much (even though I had a hard time with the salmon/veggie smell). Jinx loved the crinkly and squeaky chew toys. For a good 10 minutes after distributing the toys all I could hear was her ripping and tearing and squeaking those things. By the end of it she was exhausted and was panting heavily; smiling a big toothy smile with a look of satisfaction.

Bunsen isn’t much of a fan of dog toys. Treats, yes. Toys, meh. He does enjoy collecting them from Jinx and surrounding himself with them. My big dopey dog savored the carrot snacks and the turkey chew stick.

Was it worth it? $29 + $9 for the extra toy may seem a little steep. When I look back on it I realize that they got a number of great treats that they really enjoyed and Jinx got to slaughter a small army of stuffed toys. Non-pet lovers may not understand why I would want to contribute to the multi-billion dollar pet entertainment/treat industry. The looks on my fuzzbutts faces is enough of a reason for me.

I should also note that BarkBox also sent me an email asking if I wanted another box that was geared more towards chewy toys for the household that has dogs that love mauling those things or if I had a pet that had any particular allergies so that they could tailor a box that was acceptable for my pet to digest. I thought that was a very nice gesture offered by the company.

Will I buy the BarkBox again? I probably will. I’m not sure I’ll get a subscription for multiple months, though. My dogs don’t really seem to care to much for getting surprises and treats like this that often. They’d be just as happy chewing on a regular rawhide and snoozing on my couches.

I would consider sending them to family and friends who have pets. I think they’d make wonderful gifts for birthdays or Christmas.

Great going, BarkBox. I think you’ve got a pretty great product here. To close out this review here’s one last video of Jinx enjoying the beach. Until next time!