***UPDATE – Scam Alert*****
Stars have been reduced to 0 out of 5
Thirty days after my first request that the subscription be cancelled and the subsequent hard sell that was detailed in the original review, my credit card has been billed again. Review of their BBB Report shows that this is a standard business practice.
2.5 out of 5 stars
If you spend any time at all on Facebook or Youtube, you’ve heard of BullyMake boxes. They are heavily advertised as “a monthly box for power chewers” that offers a combination of extra-tough toys and dog treats that are shipped to your house. Those advertisements regularly include professional style reviews – perfect lighting, carefully set backgrounds, glowing reactions, etc. – that had me suspicious of whether or not they were legitimate customer reviews. After several weeks of being inundated by these advertisments – and watching my pupy chew his way through the world around him – I decided it was time for mom to weigh in.
What is BullyMake?
As mentioned in the introduction, BullyMake is a monthly subscription service that delivers toys and treats to your pup on a monthly basis. The standard box included 4-6 items which usually consists of 2 “featured” toys and 3-4 different treats. They do sometimes include an additional toy. There is a second option for a “toys only” box which they market as the option for dogs with allergies. This box comes with 4-5 toys and, due to my concern about not knowing where the treats are manufactured*, was the option I chose.
What does it cost?
Depending on the length of your subscription – monthly to month, three month, six months, or twelve months – the advertised price varies from $39 (month to month) – $31 (Twelve month) per box. There is an additional charge for the toys only box. My cost was $48 for the month to month subscription with an additional toy. This brings my total cost per toy to an average of $9.60 which is in line with what I would pay at the local pet supply.
Important note: The BullyMake website is not as clear about the month to month subscription as they could be. They have it listed as “1-month subscription”. To me, this meant that I was ordering one box, so I was startled to be charged the next month. In their defense, if you click on the details, it does say “This plan auto-renews when completed, and you may cancel renewal at ANY time!”.
Do all dogs get the same thing?
On this, I’m not exactly sure. On the website, it says “Every item is hand selected based on your dog’s weight,” but on the website, it shows one set of featured toys per month. I’m not exactly sure how that is customized to weight.
Let’s move on to what is in the box!
Who did my testing?
This is Gizmo.
He is a 68 pound, 7-month-old mutt (literally – we tested his DNA) who has yet to find a chew toy (that he likes) that can stand up to him. Squeaky toys, stuffed toys, butcher bones, rawhides, braided bully sticks – you name, he destroys it in a fraction of the time that it takes most dogs to lose interest and move on to something else. He is the definition of an extreme chewer!
Most of his victims get thrown away too quickly to have in the picture, but this is what he destroyed in a single hour not too long before we decided to try this box.
Our first box was the December BullyMake Box
BullyMake Vanilla Scented Candy Cane
The first of two “featured” toys in the December box. It is a scented, hard nylon toy. Gizmo has absolutely no interest in playing with this toy. He mouthed it a few times, walked away, and nothing that we have done has succeeded in enticing him to play with it.
Red Crinkle Stocking
This one was a huge hit for the ten minutes (literally) that it took him to destroy it. (Replaced under BullyMake’s two-week guarantee.)
Nuts for Knots rope bone
Another hit that lasted less than an hour after he began to play with it. (Not replaced.) We don’t have pictures of the destruction because he literally ate the rope.
SodaPup Lifesaver
This was the second “featured” toy in the December box. I tried filling this with spray cheese and with peanut butter (separately, of course) and, other than licking it clean, Gizmo has no interest in it.
Blue Pyramid Toy
This was the highlight of our first box! Gizmo fell in love with this at first sight, and I actually had to fight him off just to try and get a picture of it. It lasted about an hour before he chewed through and pieces began to come off in chunks. (Replaced under BullyMake’s two week guarantee.)
Replacement Toys for December
Both are made of a slightly flexible nylon instead of the hard nylon that the candy cane is made of. He plays with them for a few minutes every now and then and, so far, they are in perfect condition.
January Bullymake Box
White Knobby Bone
The hit of the January box! I had really high hopes for this bone, but it ended up being another toy that looked amazing, but couldn’t take the abuse. In the picture with the knobs chewed off, Gizmo had been chewing on it for less than five minutes. Literally. This toy didn’t make it five minutes.
Black Crinkle Bone
Gizmo loves crinkle toys. He really, really, REALLY loves crinkle toys, and this one was another hit. Unfortunately, It was also another toy with a ten-minute lifespan.
Yellow Bouncy Sprocket
This one is the first “featured” toy in the January box and an on-again-off-again hit. It’s designed to hold treats, but they fall out as soon as any pressure is placed around the perimeter (like the dog biting down), so it’s really not great as a treat toy, but it does bounce and roll which is good for a few minutes of play. It has held up so far.
Pawsome Stick™:
The Pawsome Stick™ is the second featured toy for January and another toy that he mouthed, spit out, and won’t play with. I’m not quite sure that hard nylon is really an appealing thing for dogs to chew on. It will probably last forever because he won’t touch it.
Rope Bone
Gizmo loves rope toys, and this one is a hit! He has played with it quite a bit, and it is (fingers crossed) still intact 7 days after we recieved it!
The Guarantee:
“All toys sent come with our BULLYMAKE 14 DAY DURABILITY GUARANTEE!” Well, sort of. They do honor this, but it’s not as cut and dried as they make it sound.
When our first toy was destroyed, I contacted the company to report it. Before I heard back, the second toy was shredded on my living room rug. I mentioned that in the response to the email they sent about the first toy. They asked for pictures (reasonable), and I sent them. Then I found out that, because I’d reported two ruined toys within my 14 day guarantee period (of which there was still 10 days left), no more toys would be replaced. And – important to note – they don’t extend the replacement guarantee to replacement toys.
Broken down: If I had waited until day 13 to report the ruined toys, everything destroyed apparently would have been replaced but you can’t report them one by one – your first replacement request per box voids the rest of the guarantee and there is NO guarantee on replacements.
“Erwin (Bullymake)
Dec 17, 6:46 PM CST
Hi Brandie,
Thank you for bringing this to our attention and we are so sorry to hear that two of the toys were destroyed already.
We do have a 14 days replacement guarantee on all of our toy.
Your replacement request has been approved. Please know that replacement toy will take at least 7-10 days to get shipped because this will be handpicked separately. You will receive an email confirmation once shipped.
You may request another replacement shipment 30 days from now if you experience something similar in your next box – although we are confident that we will send you more durable items for your dog! We also do not replace replacement toys, so please keep that in mind as well!
Thanks so much for choosing us and allowing us to ship you something better for your pup!
Sending Happiness,
Erwin👍
Customer Support
Bullymake.com”
Customer Service:
This is the biggest problem I ran into with BullyMake and the biggest reason I wouldn’t recomend them. I received excellent customer service when I needed the toys replaced, but, when I tried to cancel – remember, “you may cancel renewal at ANY time!” – it went downhill very quickly.
They turned on a hard sell approach to keep me from canceling, even after I explained that the toys simply weren’t tough enough for my puppy. They offered discounts, suggested skipping boxes, and offered to change my shipping schedule but they still haven’t canceled.
Response one from a customer service representative named Marty when I asked to cancel:
“if you’d like to stay on board but skip some boxes – we can totally do that! We realize some pups don’t require a Bullymake Box every single month. We can set you up on every 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th month shipping!”
Response two from Marty when I declined his offer after I reiterated that problem isn’t the price and that their product doesn’t work for us.
“I just want to share a few options that might work for you before closing your account.
What if I could lower your monthly rate ($40/month) with extra toy and place you on less frequent shipping? For example, every 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th month we could ship you a box! Would this be doable?
We can also put your account on hold and you can reactivate whenever you’re ready to have another box.”
Response three from a customer service representative names Anna that came when I refused Marty’s second offer:
“I totally understand and we are serious about our durability, and it’s impossible for us to know exactly what your dog will play with and what they won’t. However, for this one time, I am happy to send a replacement toy of different materials if you’ll give us another chance and stay on board with us! We definitely want to make Bullymake work for you!
One of the benefits of being a member is we guarantee your satisfaction. As such, I can replace any items you are unsatisfied with or destroyed within a 14 day period of you receiving your box.
I can mark a special note like: “Send tug toys – send rubber toys – no chicken – etc” for your replacement(s).
We’d love to continue to serve you so please let me know if you’d like to receive your replacements and stay on board with us!
Let us know your thoughts!”
Resolution:
As of the time I am posting this review, my subscription still hasn’t been canceled. Sadly, I suspect it will require me becoming nasty to get it done.
Overall value:
Not great. While the average price started at $9.60 per toy, it increases significantly if you factor in the toys he won’t play with, the toys that were destroyed and not replaced, and the amount of time and effort that went into dealing with the problems. There are plenty of other places you can order dog toys from online for around the same price point and have them delivered to you without the headache of trying to cancel a subscription with this company.
So, in mom’s opinion? 2.5 out of 5 stars total. Even if their toys are sturdy enough for your power chewer, I’d suggest skipping it due to the headache of dealing with their company.
Customer service: 1 out of 5 stars
Product quality: 3 out of 5 stars
*I chose to skip the treats that are included in the standard box because I don’t know where they are manufactured. A friend who subscribes to BarkBox receives them, and the bags she has received say “distributed in the USA” but there is no indication as to what country thy are manufactured in. It is not uncommon for animal treats from certain countries to be contaminated.
In Mom's Opinion 