OUR STORY
Built from a feeling we never wanted to let go.
If you've ever buried your nose in your dog's paws and thought - yes, this is exactly where I'm supposed to be right now - then you already understand why Lil' Toe Beans exists.
WHY WE MADE SUNNY
It started with two lifelong dog lovers and a phrase that stuck.
Years ago, Ray and I discovered the term "toe beans" - the affectionate name pet lovers use for those round, squishy little paw pads that look just like jelly beans. It started with cat lovers and quickly spread to the dog community, because honestly, how could it not? We've owned dogs our whole lives and have always been a little obsessed with their paws. Ray holds them, rubs them. We're that kind of pet family. When we'd spot someone walking an adorable dog, we'd nudge each other and say "look at that lil' toe bean" - and it just stuck.
THE COMFORT BEHIND THE IDEA
We saw how something weighted and touchable could bring real calm.
I’ve spent time working with the neurodivergent community and witnessed firsthand the power of sensory and tactile objects — how something weighted and touchable can genuinely calm, ground, and comfort a person in ways that are hard to explain but impossible to ignore.
That experience never left me.
Then something clicked.
When Squishmallows and Labubu took over our household — through our kids, our friends, our family — something clicked.
The world clearly had an enormous love for plush. But nobody had done anything that captured the specific magic of a pet’s paw.
That moment.
SO WE BUILT IT.
From an idea to Sunny becoming real.
We brainstormed endlessly to bring the first concepts to life, found the right manufacturing partner, worked through prototypes, and after a year of dreaming, building, and refining — Sunny the Golden Retriever became real.
First Concepts
Ideas, sketches, and late nights bringing the vision to life.
Prototypes & Testing
We created, tested, and refined until it felt just right.
Finding the Right Partner
We found a partner who shared our standards and our heart.
Sunny Becomes Real
After two years of dreaming and building, Sunny finally came to life.
Lil’ Toe Beans is our dream.
Lil’ Toe Beans is our dream — mine and Ray’s. It’s something we built from scratch for every pet lover who gets it. Who knows exactly what it feels like when your animal’s paw finds your hand, and you never want to let go.
