Battle Of The Boxes

On our Snowdog Guru group on Facebook, there was a big concern about BarkBox not being a UK based company. I did some research and found that actually we have an impressive amount of Treat Box Companies just like BarkBox right here in the UK.

I got in contact with some to arrange a review of their boxes and they readily agreed!

I would just like to take this time to thank each company who sent Anuko a box. You wasn’t obliged to and we’re both very grateful for the luxuries your boxes have provided us. I feel he felt like it was Christmas each time we received a new parcel which put a huge smile on my face. Without any further ado…

BarkBeats Box

BarkBeats is a UK based treat box for dogs. Their boxes can include toys, treats, health care and grooming products. They donate a fantastic 10% of their products to a range of charities found on their website, which receives a huge thumbs up from the Snowdog Guru team. They offer box sizes of Small (10kg), Medium (10-20kg) and Large (20kg+), each box contains 5-6 items and they have three plans. We chose the Large plan appropriate for Anuko (and most of our readers). This plan includes:

• (Large) £19 Per Month Box.
• (Large) £14 Per Month Box on a 6 Month plan. This is their most popular plan.
• (Large) £13 Per Month Box on a 12 Month plan. This is their best value plan.

The plans which are spread over months are paid in one go when buying your first box, which gives you a considerable discount. The monthly plan is not contracted and you can cancel your boxes anytime hassle free.

The box Anuko received contained the following…

• Woolf Chicken & Blueberry Bites. Price N/A. Anuko rates 1/10
• Gesunde Hundekekse (gluten free) Cheese Bites. Price N/A. Anuko rates 9/10.
• RAC Dog Travel Bottle. Price £3.99. Anuko rates 10/10.
• Barks & Sparks Smoothie. Price N/A. Anuko rates 10/10.
• Plush Octupus Toy. Price N/A. Anuko rates 8/10.

Our BarkBeats box arrived promptly via Royal Mail. Packaging included a cardboard box with BarkBeats written across it and the goodies were neatly wrapped in paper which had the companies name printed on it, fastened with a BarkBeats sticker.

Packaging: With their packaging being 100% recyclable, personalised and easy to open we give a satisfied 4/5.

Experience: BarkBeats did all the work for us, all we had to give was an address and name. They had fast, polite responses. 5/5

Box Contents: Anuko did not take to the Woolf treats at all, and he enjoyed the plush toy however it was destroyed within a few minutes. He loved the cheese crunchies, smoothie and we’ve used the RAC bottle on every hike we’ve been on since and it’s become very handy! 4/5

Any suggestions for the company? I could fill out boxes stating my pets name and breed, however I did not see on the website an option to put any allergies my dog may have.

Would I buy again? I love the fact BarkBeats supports a lot of companies that are not very well known as well as a few of the more well-known companies. As well as the 10% donation per box to charity and the great products, presentation and experience it’s a definite YES.

PROMO CODE: SDG5 for £5 off your first box.

Animal Box (Pawsome)

AnimalBox is a European based company that provides monthly treat boxes in the UK not only to dogs (PawsomeBox) but to cats too (PurrfectBox)! Upon exploring their website, we found it extremely diverse and has the most options of any box we’ve been asked to review so far. Their boxes offer a selection of products including treats, toys, accessories, hygiene and pet care products. Not only do they offer boxes to both cats and dogs, they have four size options and four plan options. Size options include Mini (5kg), Small (5-10kg, Medium (10-25kg) and Large (25kg+). We chose the Medium plan appropriate for Anuko and this is what we found…

• (Medium) £19.90 Per Month plan.
• (Medium) £18.90 Per Month on a 3 Month plan.
• (Medium) £17.60 Per Month on a 6 Month plan.
• (Medium) £16.90 Per Month on a 12 Month plan.

Much like the vast majority of Treat Box companies, their monthly plans are paid during payment of the first box and give a nice discount. Their monthly boxes are renewed monthly but can be cancelled anytime hassle free.

In the box they sent us, we received…

• Mutt & Jeff Cured Sausage. Price £5.90. Anuko rates 10/10
• Trixie Multi-Vitamin Paste. Price £4.49. Anuko rates 7/10
• Georplast Collapsible bowl. Price N/A. Anuko rates 10/10
• Georplast Frisbee. Price N/A. Anuko rates 1/10.
• Armitage Latex Squeaky Toy. Price N/A. Anuko rates 8/10.
• Good Boy Crunchy Chicken Treats. Price £3.99. Anuko rates 10/10.

Our Pawsome Box arrived on time via a private delivery company. The box is bright blue with paw prints and the companies name sprawled across it, and inside was decorated with animated dog print patterns.

Packaging: We give 5/5 due to the packaging being 100% recyclable and because of the colourful and patterned packaging, their box can easily be spotted amongst other Treat Box Companies.

Experience: We spoke to Red via E-mail and our experience was very warm, quick and pleasant. When Pawsomebox found out we were featuring them in this review, they edited a very hilarious picture of Anuko. We give them extra points for this! 5/5

Box Contents: Anuko is not a big fan of fetch and the material of his frisbee didn’t prove to be a pleasant chew either. I use his Trixie paste whenever he’s feeling under the weather in his Kong which he seems to enjoy. He absolutely loved the chicken treats, and we regularly use our collapsible bowl on our days out. Our squeaky toy was thoroughly enjoyed but lasted only a day. 4/5

Any suggestions for the company? We could fill out our pets age, breed, name, hair type and size but like BarkBeats, didn’t find an option to fill if our pets have any allergies which I feel is important.

Would I buy again? With a very sassy looking box, an awesome army of humans to speak to and great products, it’s a very easy YES.

Pawpost Box

Pawpost is a UK based company that delivers world wide, to both cats and dogs. They donate an impressive £1 to All Dogs Matter for every box that is purchased on their website, big thumbs up from Snowdog Guru for this! Pawpost boxes contain 5-7 products including toys, treats, health and hygiene products and even something for us humans too! Like Pawsome, they are very diverse and offer a big range of sizes and plans. Sizes include “Dog Treat Box” (prices £8.97+) “Dog Box” (prices 17.95+)  and “Cat Box” (prices 17.95+). We chose the “Dog Box” to get an example of the prices of the plans. Here is what we found…

• £27.95 Per Month Box.
• £20.95 Per Month on a 3 Month plan.
• £18.95 Per Month on a 6 Month plan. This box is their most popular Dog Box.
• £17.95 Per Month on a 12 Month plan. This box is their best value Dog Box.

Again, the monthly plan box is renewed monthly and you can back out hassle free any time. The rest of the plans are paid in full on the first payment, which gives you a very nice discount.

In our box, we received…

• Beautiful Joe’s Treat Tin. Price £2.50. Anuko rates 9/10.
• The Dog Treat Company Calm Treats. Price £2.50. Anuko rates 1/10.
• The Dog Treat Company “Take My Breath Away” Treats. Price £2.50. Anuko rates 1/10.
• Rosewood Cyber Rubber Tyre Toy. Price £5.29. Anuko rates 9/10.
• Beco Plush Aligator Toy. Price £6.80. Anuko rates 10/10.
• Honeys Natural Feeding Handbook. Price £7.50. Anukos Human rates 10/10.

Our Pawpost Box arrived on time via a private delivery company. The box is a solid cardboard box, with Pawpost in black across the top. The contents are neatly wrapped in animated patterned paper and was pleasant to get into.

Packaging: I feel the packaging is a statement look, and although not many colours are used the logo and brand are easy to spot. These boxes are also 100% recycle. 4/5

Experience: Talking to the humans behind Pawpost was a pleasant experience and I received e-mails back quickly and professionally. We still receive monthly boxes of Pawpost to enjoy. 5/5

Box Contents: Anuko wasn’t too fond of his treats from The Dog Treat Company, but went nuts for his Beautiful Joe treat tin. He loves chewing and playing tug of war with his tyre, and I feel Anuko fell in love with his Aligator plush toy. Usually they last only hours but we still have the toy to this day, I think it’s his “baby”. I thoroughly enjoyed the feeding guide book, and was quite excited at the fact that I get something as well! I feel the quality of the products are exceptional. 5/5

Any suggestions for the company? As well as giving my pets name, age and size there’s a “comment box” which I assume I can use if my dog has any allergies. If that’s not the case, to make it a box about additional information such as allergies would be great.

Would I buy again? Each box I’ve received since the first one has been truly exceptional in the quality of the products. Each box most of the products I find myself thinking “wow, how did I live without this before?” I feel you truly receive more than what your money pays for with Pawpost. YES

Even though the products sent to us were for free, all opinions are our own. If you are a company that offers a similar box and would like to be involved in our next Battle of the Boxes, please contact Jasmine through Missjasminemilton@hotmail.com