Good idea on the dog toy, I used a rubber bow bumper/roller off my bass boat trailer, I replace them all and one was in good shape so I saved it for a spare. I saw the stops on eBay and they look just like the boat bumper/roller I had saved only cut in half, so I cut it inhalf and I had two winch hook stoppers. They work good but if your not paying attention (asleep) I'm sure the winch would pull the hook through the rubber.