DIY Raised Pet Feeder: Free plans for building a raised pet food stand

 

We added a new addition to our family a couple of weeks ago, an adorable 7 month old Border Collie named Hannah!

Now everyone say “Aaaawww!” She’s pretty cute and just as mischievous! We acquired her from a very nice family who bought her as a puppy, but didn’t realize how much energy and time is needed for this breed nor did they have a big yard for her to exercise in.  So, they felt it would be better for her if she went to a home where she could get the exercise and attention she needs to be a happy, well-behaved pup.  Since we live on property, we have plenty of room for her to run and play (although we are still working on the “well-behaved” part of the pup! 🙂 ).  To welcome her to the family, I decided to build her a personalized dog feeder!  (Okay, so maybe it was more for my benefit than hers since we already had a store-bought plastic elevated feeder left over from our previous dog who died last July, but I wanted something a little prettier and something made by me.)

Here’s the raised pet feeder I built for our sweet, crazy pup:

 

It was very quick and easy to build, I completed the entire project in a weekend!  Here are the plans for building this cute feeder:

DIY Raised Pet Feeder Materials:

Wood:

Quantity	Size
1	1″ x 12″ @ 4′
1	2″ x 2″ @ 8′
1	1″ x 2″ @ 8′
1	1″ x 4″ @ 4′
1/4 sheet	beadboard

Tools and Supplies:

Miter Saw	Jig Saw	Drill/Driver	Kreg Jig
Circular Saw	Ryobi Airstrike Nailer	5/8″ 18 gauge brad nails	Rustoleum Gloss White spray paint
Wood Glue	Wood Filler	1 1/4″ Kreg pocket hole screws	Stainless steel dog bowls (2)

Cut List:

#	Board Type	Cut to Size/Length:
1	1″ x 12″	19 3/4″ long x 10 3/8″ wide
3	1″ x 2″	16 3/4″
1	1″ x 4″	16 3/4″
4	1″ x 2″	7 3/8″
4	2″ x 2″	10″
1	beadboard	6 1/2″ x 16 3/4″
2	beadboard	7 3/8″ x 3 3/4″

DIY Raised Pet Feeder Instructions:

First,  cut the 1×12 board to size.  Using a miter saw, table saw, or circular saw,  cut the 1×12 board to 19 3/4″ in length.  Next,  using one a circular or table saw,  cut the 19 3/4″ 1×12 lengthwise down to 10 3/8″.  The finished dimensions of the board should now be 19 3/4″ long x 10 3/8″ wide.

Next, measure the inner and outer diameter of the bowls you will be using in the feeder.

Next, determine the location for each bowl on the feeder, and mark the circles you will need to cut.  To do this,  mark the center location of each bowl on the wood.  Then, using a template made from the bowl, or using measurements, draw a circle for each bowl (the circle should be just slightly bigger than the inner diameter of the bowl, and smaller than the total outer diameter, including the lip).

Using a large drill bit,  drill a hole at the inside edge of the circles (this will allow the jig saw blade to fit through to cut the circles).

Next,  using the jig saw,  cut out each of the two circles (make your cut just inside the drawn circle as you don’t want to accidentally cut the circle too big – ahem, not that I know this from experience or anything… :-/

Now, cut four 2×2 boards to 10″ each (if you have a taller dog, you may want to make your feeder taller than this and will need to cut longer 2×2 boards).

Using the Kreg Jig,  drill two 3/4″ pocket holes into one side of one end of each 2×2 board.

 

Using wood glue and 1 1/4 pocket hole screws, attach a leg to each corner of the 1×12 board.

Now, time to cut the 1×2 boards! It’s so fun when your project begins resembling it’s intended use! (Well, maybe that’s just me, but hey it’s the little things in life that make me happy!)

Cut three 1×2 boards to 16 3/4″ in length each.  Drill 3/4″ pocket holes into both ends of one side of each board.

Attach one of the 1×2 boards to the top front of the feeder using wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.

Attach a second 1×2 board 5 5/8″ below the top 1×2 board (the top of the lower board should start 5 5/8″ below the bottom of the top 1×2 board).

Next, attach the third 1×2 board to the top back of the feeder using wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.

Now cut the side 1×2 boards.  Cut four 1×2 boards to 7 3/8″ each.  Drill 3/4″ pocket holes into each end of one side of each board.

Attach one 1×2 board to the top of each side using wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.  Attach a second 1×2 board 3″ below the top side 1×2 (the top of the bottom 1×2 should begin 3″ below the bottom of the top 1×2 board).

 

Time to cut the bead board. Cut one piece of beadboard to 6 1/2″ x 16 3/4″.  Cut two pieces of beadboard to 7 3/8″ x 3 3/4″ each.

Attach the larger piece of beadboard to the back of the front 1×2 boards using wood glue and 5/8″ finish nails (I used my Ryobi Airstrike nailer for this which made attaching the beadboard a breeze!)  Repeat this process and attach the smaller pieces of beadboard to the back of the side 1×2 boards.

 

 

Okay, last cut! Cut a 1×4 board to 16 3/4″ in length.  Drill 3/4″ pocket holes into each end of one side of the board.  Attach the 1×4 board 5 5/8″ below the top 1×2 board using wood glue and 1 1/4″ pocket hole screws.

 

Now, it’s time to sand and paint your feeder!  After sanding, I sprayed the feeder with multiple coats of Rustoleum Gloss white spray paint, letting the feeder dry between each coat.

I wanted to personalize the feeder, so I purchased  small script MDF letters at Hobby Lobby and painted those gloss black.  Once the feeder was dry, I attached the letters spelling out my dog’s name with wood glue.

 

Since most dogs tend to slobber a lot (at least all of my dogs have done this, but I tend to have slobbery breeds. Gotta love those slobbery but oh so sweet Goldens! We’ll see how Border Collies fare on the slobber scale!) I also coated the feeder with three coats of outdoor spar urethane (I used the Varathane water based finish).  And now, some more pics of the finished project:

 

 

I’d love to hear your comments and feedback below!  Thanks for stopping by!