How to Make Wood Dog Dishes

Making a wood dog dish might please all your pets.

Unlike humans, dogs care less about their serving dishes than the tasty contents. Metal bowls serve perfectly well. Specialized dishes in a variety of materials are available from most pet supply retailers. However, anyone with a lathe and a wood block will likely entertain ideas about crafting their own dishes. As is the case with other woodworking projects, making a wooden dog dish allows plenty of room for personalization and discovery. The basic skills are straightforward, but they offer a lifetime's worth of refinement and development. Wooden dog dishes also make terrific gifts.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Handsaw
• Wooden block
• Lathe
• Lathe's mounting plate
• One-half inch wood screws
• Screwdriver or drill
• Cupped chisel or gouge
• Flat chisel
• Sandpaper
• Walnut oil

1. Use a handsaw to remove the corners of a wooden block, resulting in a rough cylinder. At this stage, the cylinder does not need to be perfectly round. Use the saw to make the cylinder approximately 5 inches tall.

2. Place the lathe's mounting plate on one end of the wooden cylinder. This side will become the dish's bottom. Use the drill to screw the mounting plate to the block.

3. Connect the mounting plate to the lathe. Start the lathe running at slow speed. Operating the lathe at too fast a speed with a lopsided blank will result in a wobble. Use a cupped chisel or gouge to remove the excess wood around the dish's exterior. When enough material is removed, the lathe speed can be increased to make the cutting smoother. Continue removing material until the cylinder has round sides. Use a flat chisel for finer shaping.

4. Reposition the chisel to the cylinder's center. Start the lathe at a medium to medium-high speed and hollow the wooden cylinder, slowly moving the chisel from the center outward. Be sure to keep the dish's outer edge at least one-half an inch thick. Continue carving away the wood from the cylinder's middle until it is approximately 4 inches deep. Once the cylinder is even, increase the lathe's speed and shape the wood with a flat chisel. When satisfied, stop the lathe.

5. Rub the dish's interior and exterior with sandpaper. Remove the dish from the lathe. Unscrew the mounting plate from the dish. Sand the dish's bottom. Decorate the dish as desired.

6. Apply a coat of walnut oil to seal the dish. Oil prevents cracking or splitting and nourishes the wood.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid using olive oil or vegetable oil to seal the dish. They will eventually go rancid, resulting in harmless yet foul odors.

• Always use proper safety equipment when operating machinery.

References

• The Self Sufficient Urbanite; How to Make a Wooden Bowl; Nathaniel Martin; December 2008