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Make your own advent calendar for dogs

Advent calendar for dogs

Ever since I was little, he has definitely been a part of Christmas for me: the advent Calendar. And honestly, you never get too old for that, do you? You can also give your dog a very special treat with their own advent calendar. Even if he won’t understand the idea behind it – namely to shorten the waiting time until Christmas and increase the anticipation. There are now really great advent calendars for dogs to buy. They hide behind the doors delicious snacks, lots of chewing fun and delicious Dog cookies. But how happy will your dog be if you conjure up his absolute favorite snacks from the advent calendar every single day? Or does your dog even suffer from intolerances and cannot tolerate all the treats at all? Either way: Just make your own this year! Because with a self-made advent calendar you decide what is hidden behind each individual door.

How to create a great ritual with an advent calendar

With an advent calendar you can nice little ritual for your dog established during the Christmas season: Because in the morning you can go to the advent calendar with him and look for the next little door. While your dog is already waiting, full of anticipation and happily wagging its tail, you finally open the little door. You observe how much he is looking forward to his surprise. Because with the self-made advent calendar, you have to wait every day his absolute favorite treats on him. If you like, you can have one too dog trick practice together – and the advent calendar door is ultimately the reward. Design this little ritual in the run-up to Christmas in the most beautiful way for you and your dog. The main thing is that you have this little moment enjoy together every day.

Upcycling toilet paper rolls: making an advent calendar for dogs yourself is easy

Are you also a big fan of upcycling? I definitely am. Because I think it’s great that you can actually make beautiful things out of supposed “garbage” – and that’s usually even easier than you think. For example, you can quickly and easily make an advent calendar for dogs yourself that looks like a gingerbread house.


You probably already have the handicraft material at home or you can do it collect within a few days. You need toilet paper rolls, milk cartons, cardboard and wrapping paper. If you don’t have enough toilet paper rolls at home, you can also ask your neighbors, friends or family. You can also cut kitchen paper rolls. You will then fill these later – because they are the little doors in the advent calendar for your dog. So be sure to get your loved ones Treats, snacks or small dog toys.

When designing the advent calendar, you can live out creatively. There are no limits to your imagination. You can paint it in bright colors or decorate it with decorative materials. And if you want a particularly wintry look, you can stick cotton to the roof of the advent calendar.

DIY instructions: make your own advent calendar for dogs

With only little material and a little time you can easily make a great advent calendar for dogs yourself. The nice thing is that you can fill it yourself. So you can also pack your dog’s favorite treats in it. And on St. Nicholas and Christmas Eve? There are bigger surprises waiting for him, e.g. B. small dog toys or accessories.

What you need for an advent calendar for dogs:

  • 22 toilet paper rolls
  • 2 milk cartons (empty)
  • 1 box (at least 25 x 20 x 10 cm)
  • Brown wrapping paper
  • craft glue
  • adhesive strips
  • Scissors
  • acrylic pens
  • other decorative materials as required (e.g. washi tape, stickers, cotton wool, sprinkles …)
  • Small treats, snacks and dog toys to fill

Instructions for making your own advent calendar for dogs

  1. Start by making the frame: cut off the flaps of the cardboard and set them aside. Now shorten the box to the height of the toilet paper rolls (usually 10 cm) so that you can later stand them upright in the advent calendar for dogs.Advent calendar for dogs - step 1
  2. Cut two strips of equal length from the cardboard flaps for the roof. The width corresponds to the height of a toilet paper roll. You are free to choose the length – depending on how big the roof of your gingerbread house should be. Cut the triangular back wall of the roof from another cardboard flap. Finally, glue all the individual parts together to form a house. Advent calendar for dogs - step 2
  3. Make the advent calendar doors for Santa Claus and Christmas Eve: Cut off the top part of both milk cartons so that they are the same height as the toilet paper rolls and the frame. Thoroughly wash and dry the milk cartons.
  4. Place the toilet paper rolls and the two milk cartons upright in the advent calendar for dogs. You can fill the empty spaces between the rolls with newspaper or packing paper so that nothing slips afterwards. Advent calendar for dogs - step 3
  5. Fill the advent calendar for your dog. In the toilet paper rolls you can z. B. small dog biscuits and delicious chews, which he particularly likes. Since the advent calendar doors for St. Nicholas and Christmas Eve with the milk cartons are a bit larger, small dog toys or useful dog accessories also fit in. Advent calendar for dogs - step 5
  6. Pack the advent calendar for dogs with the wrapping paper. Use tape and craft glue to seal everything well. Tip: Take a picture of the advent calendar from above before you pack it. With a photo that you can look at, you will find the doors more easily when labeling them. Advent calendar for dogs - step 6
  7. Finally, design the gingerbread house according to your ideas. You can let your creativity run free: Use acrylic pens for painting and also other decorative materials such as stickers, sprinkles, washi tape, etc. To label the doors, feel the toilet paper rolls and milk cartons through the wrapping paper and label them with the numbers from 1 to 24 Advent calendar for dogs - step 7

We wish you a lot of fun crafting and a nice pre-Christmas period!


Tanya Reeber is a creative mind with countless DIY ideas. The trained media designer has specialized in the production of creative content for years. Because from a young age she has loved to do things herself and lets off steam with all kinds of materials. Many know Tanja’s ideas from her DIY dog blog “Herr Olaf” and from popular dog magazines. But in addition to the love of making things yourself, there is of course more: Olaf – a Greek street dog with a penchant for fresh bread rolls, forest walks and sniffing games. He is the profiteer in the team because most of the time she bakes and does handicrafts for him.


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