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BarkBox for Large Dogs Box Review + Coupon – August 2016

Ragan Buckley
ByRagan BuckleyAug 19, 2016 | 8 comments

barkboxlarge-august-2016-box

BarkBox
3.9 overall rating
115 Ratings | 53 Reviews

BarkBox is a subscription box for dogs. It’s the most popular dog subscription box. You’ve seen the small dog version, but since they customize based on dog size, we thought you might like to see what you’d get if you have a large dog, so this is a review of the “Big & Bold” box for a 50+ pound dog. (My dog, Nyx, is a Rottweiler who currently weighs about 83 pounds.)

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My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

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The Subscription Box: BarkBox

The Cost: $29 per month on a month-to-month plan, save with longer subscriptions!

COUPON: Get a free extra month when you sign up for any length subscription with code BONUSFREEBOX

OR

Save $10 off any new BarkBox subscription with code ADDICTION.

The Products: Toys, treats, and grooming products selected for your dog based on size (choose “Small and Cute” for 0-20 pounds, “Just Right” for 20-50 pounds, and “Big & Bold” for dogs 50+ pounds).

Ships to: US and Canada

Good to Know: BarkBox offers a heavy chewer option. After you sign up, you can email them to request this. This box is supposedly the heavy chewer option.

Check out lots of great boxes for dogs in the Pet Subscription Box Directory!  And see Liz and Eric’s reviews of the small dog version of BarkBox, along with the large version of Barkbox reviews here!

Keep Track of your subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

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The theme this month revolved around the state of California.  The information card was a little different from usual, and designed to look like a celebrity gossip magazine, which is a fun little touch.

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Butcher’s Block Bones Roasted Beef Steak – Value $5 (?)

I can’t find these online other than at wholesale sites (I did learn that you can buy steaks on Amazon, though, which is weird). I have gotten one of these in a dog box before, and this brand is usually pretty good quality. It kind of defeats the point of having a large chew, but I can probably get away with giving Nyx little pieces of this at a time. I like the warning for this not to be consumed on carpet…

Gustavo’s Avocado Rubber/Tennis Ball Toy – Value $14

This was a fun toy. It was really two toys in one, actually. The rubber avocado part was just the right mix between being slippery and being pick-up-able for Nyx to be interested, and the tennis ball pit was a clever touch. (Nyx loves tennis balls.)

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US 101 Plush – Value $10

This is a pretty tough plush toy. It reminds me of two things: (1) a Social Distortion song and (2) this trip my grandparents took to California in their RV in the 1980s or early 1990s. My grandpa would send back postcards and he always mentioned this specific highway. Anyway, this is a nice, good size for Nyx and when I let her have it tonight, I predict the first thing to go will be a squeaker, followed by bits of the outer covering. But I think it will take awhile for her to do either of those.

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Cow-Abunga Beef Kettle Chips (4.5 oz) – Value $6 (?)

I can’t find these in the Barkbox shop so I just assume they are around the same value as the other treats, since they are also Barkbox exclusives. I am adjusting Nyx’s medications now (dropping her pain pills since she seems basically over her knee ligament injuries, and adding fish oil very slowly to help improve her skin condition) so I will save these for after the adjustment is done, since she has done well on beef in the past.

Beach Dog Bacon Squares (5.5 oz) – Value $6

These are gluten free and made in the US. They do have oats and brown rice, though. Those will be suitable for most dogs, but unfortunately, Nyx can’t have pork, so we will pass these along to another dog to enjoy.

Here are some shots of Nyx enjoying the avocado toy. The best moment for me was when she discovered that the tennis ball “pit” had a squeaker in it (didn’t make a good photo, but you could see the realization in her eyes!).

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The best part is, she totally didn’t destroy this. Didn’t even really damage it. So she’ll be able to play with it again.

Verdict: I calculated a value of about $41 for this month’s BarkBox (large dog version). Of course, some of the values above are estimates, but I still think you get about $10-12 in value over the cost of the box for a month-to-month subscription, and even better if you use a coupon or commit to a longer-term subscription (something I feel you can do with confidence with Barkbox). Nyx definitely enjoyed the avocado toy and the treats seem high quality, as well.

What do you think of the August 2016 BarkBox dog subscription box? Do you subscribe to any dog or cat boxes?

Starting at $20.00
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BarkBox is a monthly delivery of unique toys and all-natural treats and chews—inspired by a new theme, tailored to your dog, and shipped free to your door, every month. Each month’s BarkBox is packed with two unique toys created by our dog-loving designers, two ful... read more.

Ragan Buckley
Ragan Buckley
Ragan stumbled across My Subscription Addiction in late 2013 and immediately subscribed to way too many beauty boxes. She's now focused on boxes for her cats and dog, vegan/vegetarian food boxes, and craft subscriptions (and she didn't give up beauty boxes entirely).

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8 comments

DL

I signed up for the Large BarkBox this past month as well and was excited to try it for my 60lbs doberman puppy. I even ordered the extra chew toy with it. I excitedly opened the box, I think even more so than my pup and I have to say I was very disappointed. A doberman is a big chewer and likes to try and tear things apart and got all cloth toys that have been or will be torn apart in less than 10 minutes. I looked at the card of all various toys that were available and would love to have gotten the Gustavo’s Avocado. The Avocado I believe my pup would love, and it may last a few days. However, based on some of the previous reviews I am not sure how long that would have lasted as well… Even the “steak” treat will not last very long. The treats are good and he will enjoy them but over all not happy with my first BarkBox.

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Aimee

I love the picture of nyx with crazy eyes! She’s so cute! We got the same box. The avacado was really cute but unfortunately, it only lasted about 5 minutes before the tennis ball was in pieces. Overall though it is a great box. We also get the medium size box which was really cute add well

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Heidi

I got the same items for my German Shepherd. Our pug sole the avocado toy and had a hole ripped in it in 5 minutes, eating little pieces of plastic. Straight to the garbage. The brown tenure ball later 10 minutes. I’m glad you had better luck with this toy.

This was my first “heavy chewer” box and I’m very disappointed. The toy didn’t last long enough to get to our Shepherd puppy.

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Jennifer

I spent a lot of time on the 101 growing up-makes me nostalgic! I just added that avocado to my shopping cart at Barkbox. I don’t subscribe-yet-but I plan to soon!

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MyMilkShake

thanks for posting. would have loved to see the scale of the 101. I got a size small and it’s pretty small. my dog is medium and I tried ordering medium for a while – but some toys would fit an 80+ lbs dog. so switched to small. now too small. there really aren’t any “mediums” it seems (tried for a long time)

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Ragan

If you look in the picture with all the box items, you can see the 101 next to bags of treats. I am assuming the treat bags are the same size for everyone. Hope that helps establish scale! (I do think it is an appropriate size for an 80+ pound dog…)

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Caward45

The look on our dog’s face when the tennis ball fell out of the avocado was priceless. He dropped the pieces immediately and gave me a look like “it’s broken”. He loves barkbox and even more fun is my kids and my husband fighting over who gets to give the dog the first treat :).

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Shelley Singer

I am a long time barkbox subscriber and friends have signed up after seeing the clever themes they put together each month. I have 3 small dogs so I get the small dog subscription and an extra toy in every box! I absolutely love this subscription! It’s one of my favorites and my dogs go crazy when it comes. Whatever they can’t have (which is very rare) I regift a barkbox to my daughter’s dog. It is filled with healthy treats and very cute, well thought out toys. I even go on their website to buy extra toys. They have the Donald and the Hilary which made me laugh! Everyone that has a dog no matter what size should try this subscription! Highly recommend!

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