Small dog (6″ tall) raised dog feeder plans

Parts

Cut list

Kerf 1/8″ included. Every cut runs edge to edge.

Steps

• Tape measure
• Speed square
• Pencil
• Drill/driver
• Clamps
• Safety glasses
• Hearing protection
• Dust mask
• Circular saw or miter saw
• Jigsaw with a scroll blade
• Compass
• Countersink bit
• Putty knife
• Sander, 120 and 180 grit

Underlined words have a short explanation: hover or tap them. All of them are on the glossary page.

1. 1Before you start

   Read every step once, start to finish, before you buy or cut anything. Each step names the parts it uses by letter; the parts list gives their sizes.

   Set up somewhere flat with good light. A pair of sawhorses with a sheet of plywood on top makes a fine work table.

   Wear safety glasses whenever a tool is running, hearing protection for saws, and a dust mask for sanding and for cutting treated wood or sheet goods. Tie back long hair and loose sleeves. Keep children and pets out of the work area.

   • Tip At the store, pick straight boards: hold each one up to your eye and look down its length. Skip boards that bow, twist or have big knots near the ends.
   • Tip Measure twice, cut once. Most mistakes are a misread tape, not a bad cut.

2. 2Cut and label the parts

   Cut every part on the cut list. Cut the longest parts first: if one goes wrong, it can still become a shorter part.

   To mark a cut, hook your tape on the end of the board, make a small V with its point exactly at the measurement, and draw a square line through the point with a speed square. Put an X on the waste side.

   Cut on the waste side of the line, so the blade's kerf (about 1/8″) comes out of the scrap, not your part.

   Write each part's letter in pencil on a face that won't show, and stack the parts by letter.

   Sand the faces before assembly while they're flat and easy to reach: 120 grit, then 180.

   ✓ Lay the parts out and count them against the parts list. Measure a few: if one is off by more than 1/16″, recut it now.

   STOP. Let the saw reach full speed before it touches the wood, keep both hands clear of the blade's path, and never reach under a board you're cutting. Support long boards on both sides of the cut so the blade doesn't pinch.

3. 3Buy the bowls first and measure them

   Buy 2 stainless steel bowls with a rolled lip before cutting anything. Every brand is different, and the holes are cut to fit them.

   Measure across the outside of the lip at the top (the rim) and across the bowl just below the lip. Enter both, and the bowl's depth, in the options.

   With your numbers, each hole is 5 5/8″ across and the lip rests 11/16″ wide on the wood all round.

   Measure your dog standing: from the floor to the bottom of its chest. The top of the feeder (6″) should be about there, so the dog eats without stooping or stretching.

   ✓ Rim minus body is at least 1/2″, so the lip has wood to sit on.

4. 4Lay out the bowl holes

   Draw a line along the middle of the top (A), 5″ from the front edge. Mark the hole centres on it: the first 5 1/2″ from the left end, then every 9″.

   Set a compass (or a pencil tied to a nail on a string) to 2 13/16″ and draw each circle.

   Before cutting, turn a bowl upside down over each circle: the rim should cover the line with wood to spare all round.

   • Tip Use the bowl itself as the final judge, not the numbers: if in doubt, cut the hole a little small and sand it out to fit.

   ✓ Each circle is 5 5/8″ across, measured through the centre both ways.

5. 5Cut the bowl holes

   Clamp the top to the bench with the first circle hanging over the edge.

   Drill a 1/2″ starter hole just inside the line. Put the jigsaw blade in it and saw around the circle on the inside of the line, turning the saw slowly as you go.

   Sand the edge of the hole round and smooth with sandpaper wrapped round a can, then drop a bowl in to test. Sand more if it binds.

   • Tip Clamp the work so the line hangs off the bench, use a fine-tooth wood blade, let the saw reach full speed before it touches the wood and push gently: the blade bends if you force it, and the cut wanders.
   • Tip Use a narrow "scroll" blade for tight circles; a wide blade can't turn and will bind.

   ✓ Each bowl drops in and sits flat on its lip without rocking, and lifts out easily for washing.

   STOP. Keep the cord and your other hand away from the blade, and move the clamp before the saw reaches it.

6. 6Join the ends with the aprons

   Stand the two ends (B) up 18 5/8″ apart. Fit an apron (C) between them at the front and one at the back, tight to the tops of the ends, outer faces flush with the ends' edges.

   Glue each apron end (end grain: a thin coat, wait two minutes, then another) and drive 2 screws, 1 5/8″, through the end into it. Predrill and countersink.

   The aprons hold the ends square and stop the feeder racking when a dog shoves the bowls.

   • Tip Drill a pilot hole for every screw within 2″ of the end of a board, or the board will split. Then countersink so the screw head sits flush.
   • Tip End grain (the cut end of a board) soaks glue up like a straw. Brush on a thin first coat, wait two minutes, then add a second coat before you join the parts.

   ✓ Measure the diagonals of the frame from above: they match within 1/8″, and it stands without rocking.

7. 7Fix the top

   Glue the top edges of the ends and aprons. Lay the top (A) on, flush all round, holes centred between the aprons.

   Drive 3 screws, 1 5/8″, through the top into each end, and screws into each apron about every 6″, all countersunk. Keep them at least 1″ from the holes.

   Fill the screw holes with wood filler and sand flush when dry.

   • Tip Spread a thin, even layer of glue on one face with a finger or scrap: enough that a little beads out when you clamp, not so much that it runs. Wipe the squeeze-out with a damp rag right away, or scrape it once it turns rubbery; dried glue blocks stain and finish.

   ✓ The top is flush with the ends and aprons all round, and the bowls still drop in.

8. 8Sand and finish

   Sand every face and edge of the feeder with 120 grit, then 180 grit, always moving along the grain (the lines in the wood). Sanding across the grain leaves scratches that the finish makes darker.

   Soften every sharp edge and corner with a few strokes of 180-grit paper on a block, so edges don't splinter or chip.

   Vacuum the dust, then wipe with a tack cloth or a barely damp rag and let it dry 10 minutes.

   Use a water-based polyurethane or a water-based paint: they smell less and cure faster than oil-based finishes. Skip anything labelled "exterior only" or for decks.

   Brush on thin coats along the grain, sanding lightly with 220 grit between coats once each is dry. Three coats on surfaces that get wet or scratched.

   Let the finish cure a full 7 days before your pet uses it: pets lick, chew and sleep on it, and finish that is dry to the touch is not yet cured.

   • Tip Pine goes blotchy under stain. If you want colour, brush on a pre-stain conditioner first, or use a gel stain.
   • Tip Finish the back and underside too. Wood that is sealed on one side only can cup as the seasons change.
   • Tip Work in a warm, dry, well-ventilated room. Below about 50°F (10°C) most finishes dry slowly and cloudy.

   ✓ The surface feels smooth and even, with no drips on the edges and no dull, dry patches.

9. 9Set it up

   Stick a rubber foot under each corner of the ends: the feeder then stays put while the dog eats.

   Wipe up spilled water under the bowls rather than letting it sit on the wood.

   ✓ With your dog eating, its neck is roughly level and the feeder doesn't slide.