The 12 Best Dog Gifts For Dog Owners in 2022

Once you start shopping for presents to happify doggos and their humans, all other shopping moves down the list. OK, baby clothes can be pretty cute. But still. That’s why we’ve compiled a list of the 12 best dog gifts for the dog owner on your gift list or the doggo in your family.

First we start out with the gifts that are geared towards happifying your doggos or your dog loving friend’s fur baby.

Here are 6 of our favorite ideas for the best dog gifts this year:

1. Barkbox subscription.

You’ve heard the stories and seen the photos on social media – dogs waiting by the window and going berserk when their Barkbox arrives.

When it comes to understanding “monthly present,” Mama didn’t raise no fool!

Imagine twelve months of themed boxes, filled to the brim with toys and treats selected just for your dog. So much to look forward to!

2. FluentPet Dog Talking Button Kit.

Talking dogs are all the rage now, ever since a dog named Stella learned to “talk.”

We’re recommending the FluentPet Talking Buttons Kit because of its button size, speaker quality, and ability to accommodate growth.

Puzzle toys are great for mental stimulation and to hit your dog’s daily exercise goals. If you have a Mensa-brained Border Collie, you can simply add more hextiles and word buttons as his/her vocabulary grows.

(Watch Sheepadoodle Bunny communicate with her mom using her FluentPet buttons.)

3. Dash Mini Dog Treat Maker.

OK, so technically this goes to the dog lover and not the dog, but only because doggos shouldn’t be playing with electrical appliances.

If you’re the multi-tasking type (what dog parent isn’t?), you can make everyone happy. Make fun-shaped waffles in your own Dash Mini while pumping out homemade dog treats in the Mini Dog Treat Maker.

4. A Getaway.

Literally. A Getaway.

It can be difficult for dog owners to “get away from it all,” especially when that means finding reliable care for their dogs.

Besides, the best escapes are the ones you and your dog can make together to a dog-friendly destination.

A company called Getaway makes that possible by sending you to a nature-tucked cabin within a couple hours of your hometown.

Puppers will have Mother Nature at his disposal, and you’ll be able to exhale for the first time in too long.

5. FurHaven Faux Sheepskin Snuggery Memory Top Foam Pet Bed.

This top-of-the-line hooded dog bed design lends new meaning to dogs loving to burrow and den.

If your cuddle-muffin loves to be tucked in under a blanket to sleep, he’ll love curling up in this cushy sherpa slipper.

Truly one of the best dog gifts that will pay you both back with quiet nights and good sleep for years to come.

6. A new blanket that helps homeless animals.

A young man in Wisconsin has garnered a faithful following on Facebook with his handmade fleece pet blankets.

Jeff and his foster mom Deb have a very special story about how Blankets by Jeff got started.

Together, Jeff and Deb help transport animals out of high-kill shelters to no-kill rescues and foster/furever homes. Jeff wanted to help even more and came up with the idea of making fleece blankets to raise money for homeless dogs and cats.

With the help of his mom and grandmother, Jeff assembles thousands of hand-knotted, two-sided blankets in three sizes and countless patterns and colors.

While he sets up tables to sell blankets at events across WI, Deb packs and ships blankets all over the country.

Blankets by Jeff blankets are beautiful, soft, durable, machine-washable, and filled with love. And all the profits go to help homeless animals.

Here are 6 of our favorite ideas for the best dog gifts for the dog owner:

Now we’ll review our top 6 gifts for the dog owner, whether it makes pet parenting easier, safer or more fun, pawrents always love a dog themed gift!

1. A customized pet portrait on canvas, a blanket, phone case, or mug.

Tell us you can resist it. A royal portrait of your duke or little princess by Crown and Paw. Go ahead, try. Your Frenchie dressed up as Napoleon. Your Great Dane pulling rank as an Admiral. Your trio of WaWa’s playing “all for one and one for all” as the Three Musketeers.

Crown and Paw will take any dog lover’s favorite close-up pet pic and abracadabra it into a canvas portrait fit for a king. Or queen. Or duke. Or….

Surprise a dog loving family member or friend with an Alpha Paw customized fleece blanket, a canvas, coffee mug, ornament or phone case with their favorite pic of their dog.

2. Pet first aid kit.

Some of the best gifts for dog lovers are purely practical. A well-stocked pet first aid kit is one such item.

Every dog owner should have one. Better yet, two or three: a primary kit for home and smaller ones for your car and hiking bag.

Shop for the kit that best fits your and your dog’s (or your dog-loving friend’s) lifestyle. In addition to your typical first aid kit items, such as antibiotic ointment, antiseptic wipes, tweezers, scissors, gauze & bandages, check the first aid kit includes a pet first aid field book, styptic pencil (stops small cuts or nails from bleeding), emergency blanket, irrigation syringe, eye wash, and temporary collar and leash.

Our go-to brands are Medique, Rayco, and Adventure Medical Kits. For a fully stocked kit for at-home or those challenging hiking/camping trips, we like Adventure Medical Kit’s ‘Workin’ Dog’ and Medique’s Patch-a-Pet Deluxe. For a pet first aid kit that is travel size, we like Medique Patch-a-Pet Small and Rayco Pet First Aid Kit.

3. Dog DNA kit.

It’s just the thing to do now: Discover your personal history and all its scandalous secrets through the magic of a cheek swab.

And now you can find out the truth of your mixed breed’s ancestral past — and maybe find some of his relatives, too.

It can also be fun fodder for those late-night reflective convos with your canine child.

With the Embark Dog Breed + Health DNA Test, you can learn more than just your dog’s breed profile. You can learn about genetic health risks and actionable health insights specific to your dog.

4. Personalized reliquary jewelry.

Depending on how long a dog lover has had dogs, chances are good s/he has had to say “good-bye” at least once.

Pet lovers will tell you that the loss of a perfect companion is like no other loss. And the grief process can be quite lonely for them.

If your holiday gift list contains a dog lover who has recently sent a beloved dog to Rainbow Bridge, consider a customized memorial gift. Today there are countless ways to create personalized gifts.

What we love about the Mignon & Mignon Etsy site are the numerous options for personalized gifts with a dog’s photo engraved on them. Keychains, necklace and bracelet charms, and the reliquary pendants that will hold some of a late pet’s ashes are some examples.

5. Dog monitoring camera and treat dispenser.

We know our dogs don’t like being without us when we have to leave them for, like, a minute. And hours can be a dreadful eternity.

How do we know this? Because we miss them, too.

When you’re away, it’s nice to be able to get a visual on what your dog is doing. It’s even nicer to be able to say hello and toss your pup a treat for being so good in your absence.

The Petcube Bites 2 Lite Interactive WiFi Pet Monitoring Camera with phone app and treat dispenser covers all the bases.

Want to combine a pet camera and pet feeder all-in-one? The Petlibro Granary Camera Monitoring Feeder is a great gift for the dog owner who might be at work during the dog’s dinner time and needs a way to feed their pet remotely.

It will give you peace of mind with the ability to check in via your smartphone. And it will give your dog some interactive fun in the form of your voice…and a treat, of course!

6. Gift cards for pet stores and dog services.

When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with gift cards to places your dog-loving friend or family member visits regularly.

From major chain retailers like PetSmart to small boutique stores or for fresh-cooked dog food by PetPlate delivered to their front door, gift cards make it easy for dogs and their humans to indulge their personal preferences.

One of our favorite gifts is the gift of travel. Whether it’s for a gift certificate to a luxury pet-friendly hotel for pet parent and pet to travel together, or a gift card to a luxury pet hotel so that pet parent can relax on their vacation knowing that their dog is having a vacation of their own, the gift of travel can be a win-win!

Consider gift certificates for services, as well: grooming, pet-sitting, training, and even a photo session with a local pet photographer.

Why We Chose What We Chose

Coming up with great dog gifts is easy. But narrowing down the list to the best dog gifts is so darn difficult! There are just so many fabulous items and services that cater to dogs and the privileged lives we humans have with them.

Whether you stuff your dog’s stocking with a new stash of tennis balls or leave the shopping to Santa, one thing matters most: time with you.

That’s why we are big fans of gifts for dogs – and gifts for dog lovers – that deepen the connection between dogs and their humans.

Time really is the most priceless gift of all.