Archive | July, 2010

Do It Yourself

30 Jul

Inspired by my mom’s guest post on Doggie Stylish the other day, I’ve been sniffing around the internet to find some other great DIY tutorials for pet stuff. You can really instructions on how to make anything, if not everything! Lacking some of the finer motor skills (and not to mention opposable thumbs) to complete these tasks on my own, I hope my mom gets the hint and gets to making some more stuff for me. So here’s around-up of some of the great craft and DIY tutorials you can find for your dog.

Clothes

  • Turn a felted cardigan into a dog sweater with Martha Stewart.
  • Are you a knitter? Chopped Tomatoes has a free pattern for a very adorable, “bucalicious” dog sweater.
  • Have any large socks without a pair? Howcast has a video to show you how to turn it into a sweater for a bitty pup.
  • Instructables user scoochmaroo can instruct you on how to make a Snuggie for your chilly pooch.
  • If you’re anything like my mom and wish your pup could fit into little human clothing, Obsessively Stitching posted instructions on how to adjust a little human tee to fit your dog.
  • The DIY Network can show you how to make a party ready doggy dress.

Costumes

  • Does your dog dream of flying? Instructables user ArtisticBabe can show you how to make a cute pair of puppy fairy wings.
  • Last year for Halloween I was a punk rock ballerina. My outfit was not complete without a tutu which you can learn how to make over at Craft:.
  • Martha Stewart‘s cute Frenchie Sharkey was a moth last year. She shows you how to replicate the costume on her site.
  • Show people how much you dog lights up your life with Switch’s light up dandelion costume.

Neck Wear

  • Interested in your dog rocking a martingale collar like me? You can make one with the help of Doggie Stylish’s tutorial.
  • If your pooch is into something a bit shinier, Martha Stewart can show you how to make a lovely diamond dog necklace.
  • If you have any leftover pet food bags, turn them into an ecofriendly collar with Craft:.
  • Using The Bark’s tutorial, you can crochet a cute neck scarf for your dog.
  • If you have a harness wearing dog, Instructables user Doggie Stylish (sound familiar?) can show you how to make one with grosgrain ribbon.

Toys

  • If you’re having trouble finding a toy to suit your heavy-chewing dog, make one with the help of Instructables user J3443RY.
  • Have an old sweater lying around? CraftStylish can show you how to turn it into a squeaky toy.
  • Craft: has a great tutorial about making a braided rope toy using fabric.

Beds

Misc.

  • If you want to make a new leash, Anna Maria can show you how.
  • Make traveling with your pup a breeze by making CraftStylish’s collapsible pet bowl.
  • For natural flea repellent, check out Craft:’s lavender based formula.
  • Messy eater? Keep their food station neat with Martha Stewart’s pet place mat.
  • Bath time can be a bit easier if you make CraftStylish’s knit a mutt mitt.

I hope some of these inspired you to get crafty. Your dogs will definitely appreciate it.

Happy tail wags!

Guest Post

28 Jul

My mom, in all of her crafty goodness, was asked to do a guest tutorial over at Doggie Stylish! Here’s what she made (with me modeling of course): If you would like to learn how to make an adorable hairbow for your pup, check out the tutorial here.

Happy tail wags!

Gracie Lynn

27 Jul

Ever since I did an interview with my kitty brother Harry, Gracie Lynn my kitty cousin has been hounding (or would it be catting?) me to interview her. Unlike Harry, Gracie Lynn needed no tail pulling. And luckily for me, I didn’t have to promise to lay off the pouncing and random acts of slobber.

What is your full name?: Gracie Lynn! My mom (your mom’s sister) came up with Gracie and your mom added Lynn. It can be neat to have two names but they are rarely used together unless I am in trouble and I am often in trouble.

Do you have any nicknames?: Gracie, Dracie, Peanut (because I’m so itty bitty and pocket sized. Though if a human were to try and put me in their pocket I may have to scratch them), Puffy Butt (I have a really fluffy tail), and Bean (I think this is also a size thing).

How did you come to be apart of our family?: Well it all started when my kitty momma met my kitty daddy. Oh, you want me to skip that part? Well after all the scritching and scratching, my kitty mom who had no home, was scooped up by a nice family of humans. They realized she had a full belly of kittens so they decided to keep her and give the babies to nice homes instead of overload their local shelter. Some how our humans found the humans that were desperate to rid themselves of me (well, I’d like to think they were. I am quite the hellion) and here I am!

Do you like living with us, more specifically me?: Oh I really like you! You will wrestle with me when Harry won’t and you’re a great cuddle buddy. Though, it does make me mad when you steal my toys, especially the crows’ feathers your mom brings in for me to play with. Living with your mom is the best too as she lets me help her with her crafts. Well, she lets me watch and only shoos me away when my tail is in danger of being sewed. And the humans rarely get mad when I’m up to no good (and like being in trouble, I’m often up to no good).

Up to no good

What is your favorite food?: I think the question you should be asking is what ISN’T my favorite food. I love food! Specifically the stuff our grandmother makes in that warm oven box thing. I’m the reason that the humans’ dinner, once prepared, must immediately go under cover or else I will help myself. I especially like chicken, tuna, bacon, and cheese.

Do you have a favorite toy?: FEATHERS! I will scratch anyone for a nice feather. Luckily our home seems to be a favorite pecking ground for crows so your mother often treats me with a feather one of the crows has left behind. Besides that, anything and everything is my toy. Oh, and make sure you watch you straws around me; I will grab them and run off with them.

As the humans often say, our home would be rather dull without the constant shouting of “Gracie Lynn!! No!!” And her sweet presence of course.

Happy tail wags.

Like Cats to Water

26 Jul

Have you ever seen a wet cat? It’s usually not a common site unless an outdoor kitty gets caught in a rainstorm. A majority of cats dislike being drenched (Gracie Lynn and Harry being of that group), but there’s one kitty that has benefited from a few laps in the pool.

Last month, a 6 year-old cat named Nazzaning was rushed to the vets after suffering from what seemed to be a fractured front paw. After an MRI, it was discovered that Nazzaning actually had swelling on her spine which was causing her paw to be paralyzed. the cause of the swelling was never determined, but she started under going treatment at the NYC Veterinary Specialist. Eventually, her neurologist  suggested Nazzaning undergo something that would make any cat’s tail puff; hydrotherapy.

(photo source)

Nazzaning, being of the Turkish Van cat breed who are born swimmers, started her hydrotherapy sessions at Water 4 Dogs. Water 4 Dogs usually only caters to canine patients, so Nazzaning was the first cat to ever be treated. After showing slight hesitance and fear of the water, eventually she took to it like, well, a dog (a dog that is not me).

A typical hydrotherapy session for Nazzaning starts with a half-hour walk on a submerged treadmill. A human therapist spots her and makes sure she keeps proper paw placement and maintains balance. After the treadmill, it’s a swim (or kitty-paddle) around a 4 1/2 foot pool. The swims helps to strengthen a pet’s limbs and provide all-over exercise. Along with the three times a week water sessions, Nazzaning would also be treated to at home massages and stretching sessions. All of this work helped to successfully rehabilitate Nazzaning whose humans says she’s back to being demanding, moody, but above all, loving.

Happy tail wags!

Source: tonic, Today

Gulf Spill Pets

23 Jul

If you’ve been following the coverage about the Gulf oil spill, you’ve seen some of the horrible devastation done to the sea life. It’s a sad truth that we, humans and animals a like, wish was a nightmare. Not only are the sea turtles, birds, fish, and other swimming and floating creatures suffering but there are those on shore that need assistance as well.

Human families that depend on the water for their livelihood are facing a financial crisis. Being forced to choose between feeding the human family members or the four-legged ones or having to move to find work, families are having to give up their beloved pets. Thankfully, The Louisiana SPCA has set up the Gulf Coast Companion Relief Program to help the residents of Terrebone, Jefferson, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard parish who are in the fishing industry and are facing losing their pets. The relief program is offering free vet care including spay or neuter surgery, basic health exams, vaccines, and microchipping as pet food. As of now, the program is on a first come first serve basis and will continue to run as long as supplies and funds last. They are asking for donations which you can read about here.

Pheobe is a dog affected by the oil spill.

(photo source)

The Louisiana SPCA is also send transports of adoptable dogs to shelters like SPCA, Inc in Florida as well as the Houston SPCA in Texas in hopes of finding these pups forever homes faster and allowing more room in shelters for incoming animals. The Humane Society of the United States has also thrown their help into the ring. At the end of June, the HSUS took 33 dogs from two overcrowded shelters in Louisiana and brought them to a couple of shelters in Washington, D.C. At the beginning of June, they delivered 12 tons of cat and dog food to Plaquemines Parish and distributed it to families in need.

Jojo

(photo source)

If you are interested in adopting an oil spill affected pet, there are two shelters, Plaquemines Animal Welfare Society (or P.A.W.S.) and St. Bernard Parish Animal Control Center, in Louisiana that are open for out-of-state adoption. You can search their adoptable animals through their PetFinder pages here and here.

Happy tail wags.

P.S. Both Jojo and Pheobe are currently being taken care of at P.A.W.S. and are looking for their forever homes. You can find their PetFinder pages by clicking on their photos.

Sources: The HSUS, The Louisiana SPCA, ecosalon

Wordless Wednesday (Sort Of)

21 Jul

Every so often I like to use Wednesdays’ posts to showcase a few of my favorite photos, mostly including myself. I mean, can you honestly tell me that you can’t stand to see my cuteness all the time? I’m just THAT adorable. But this time, instead of just showing off my curly mop of hair and beautiful brown eyes, I’ve decided to post a photo of me and my favorite human:

My mom

Happy tail wags!

Himalayan Dog Chews

20 Jul

A couple of weeks ago, the Krazy for Pets newsletter arrived in my inbox (what? Your dog doesn’t have e-mail?). This particular article talked about a really unique product called Himalayan Dog Chews. These chews are a type of cheese made using an ancient recipe perfect by Himalayan locals. The chews are 100% natural, fair trade, and only contain the ingredients yak milk, cow milk, lime and salt.

My mom was incredibly curious about the chews, and always wanting to feature unique products on my blog, she contacted the company and asked if they were willing to send us a sample. They were more than happy to send us some! I was under the impression that the Himalayan Dog Chews were going to be slightly soft as they are a cheese. Surprisingly, the chews were hard and smelled faintly of hay (the stuff cows and horses like to eat). I didn’t quite know what to do with it at first. I threw it around a bit and pounced on it, but after a nibble I realized it was quite tasty. Because of the hardness (similar to that of a nylabone), it took me over an hour just to eat 1/4 of it. My mom took it away from me at that point as she wanted to see if the chew would aggravate my tummy. There were no symptoms (loose or runny stool, gas, vomiting) of it upsetting my colitis, so I was cleared to not only finish the first treat, but to also start on the other two in the package! The chews left no stains and hardly any crumbs so it was couch approved too.

There is some discrepancy in the pet community as to whether or not dairy, and therefore cheese, is good for dogs. As long as a dog is not allergic, cheese should be fine in moderation. In fact, a lot of reward-based obedience trainers use little cubes of cheese to praise good behavior. So, if your dog isn’t allergic to milk, Himalayan Dog Chews would be prefect, especially if you’re looking for something to keep your dog busy or have a heavy chewer. It took me at least a week or so to finish off my first chew, and it definitely gave my jaw a work out.

Make sure you check out the Himalayan Dog Chew website for their FAQ and a list of stores that carry the treats organized by state and province. If you would like to order online, Krazy for Pets carries small and medium.

Happy tail wags!

(FTC disclosure: I was supplied Himalayan Dog Chews by the company for free with the intent of writing a review of their product.)

Change is Good

19 Jul

As Friday was Blog the Change day, Be the Change for Animals held a blog hop featuring all the blogs who were talking about the causes or things that were important to them. Mom and I visited as many blogs as our brains and eyes could handle, so I thought we’d do a little wrap up of some of our favorite posts and causes.

Of course I only talked about the tip of the iceberg that is all the wonderful bloggers, furry or not, that talked about things important to them and made promises to help garner change. If you would like to see the entire list of participating blogs, scroll to the bottom of this post.

Were there any posts that inspired you to make a change?

Blog for a Change

15 Jul

Today is Blog the Change Day started by Be the Change for Animals. Blog for a Change is a time for bloggers (furry or not) to hop on a platform (or soapbox, but I hate baths and baths involve soap so we’re going to call it a platform) and talk about something in the animal world that is important to them. The goal is to spread hope, make commitments, and inspire the pet blogging community and its readers to go, do, and make a change no matter how small.

As a part of the original Be the Change challenge, my mom and Angelica decided to donate 25% from the denim toys sold from The Smiling Pets to the Humane Society of Knox County.  It would have been easy to choose another product and do the same thing, or up the percentage but I’ve come to realize that humans tend to go the easy route by just giving money. While that can always be useful, especially for shelters like the HSKC that depend so much on community support, shelters and rescues also need people.

For a while last fall and winter, my mom started volunteering at the HSKC. She was incredibly hesitant to start as she thought volunteering was the equivalent of cleaning cat boxes. Cleaning is always a priority but if that’s not your kind of bully stick, there are always other things that need to be done. Hired staff are usually busy caring for ill animals, taking care of new arrivals, handling adoptions, and administering medicine so there are phones that need answering, paperwork that needs filing, mail to stuff and send, errands to run, dogs to walk, cats to socialize, etc. If there aren’t volunteers to handle all these tasks than the staff needs to do them on top of all their work. Because of my mom’s background in office work, my mom was given phone duty and filing, something she was very happy to do.

Sadly, dogs like myself can’t volunteer. It would be hard holding a leash or litter scooper anyway. In my place, my mother, along with her friend Angelica, has decided to walk dogs once a week at the HSKC. Though it’s a small step, those tend to be the ones that can really make a difference especially in the lives of the animals that are waiting to find their forever homes.

What will you be doing to be the change?

Happy tail wags!

Wedding Bells

14 Jul

Over the weekend my mother attended her best friend and my not-related aunt Evann’s wedding. Never having heard of this wedding thing before, I was told it is when two humans decide to mate for life (like wolves) and celebrate this by exchanging shiny baubles, playing music, doing the thing humans call dancing, and eating cake. It sounds like a lot of work and I don’t think I would ever get married to another dog (though some dogs do get married), but some day I think it might be fun to be included in a wedding.

A lot of humans are now including their dogs (or other special pets) into their wedding ceremonies. Dogs can be anything from an honored guest, the flower pooch, or the ring bearer. I’d liken myself to the flower dog especially since I’d look quite adorable with wreath of flowers around my neck.

Like this pup!

(photo source)

There are a few things to think about before deciding whether or not your pooch or pooches should be witness to your nuptials. How is their temperament? Do they mind being around a lot of people? Is there someone you trust that can be the dog’s handler and dog sitter during the ceremony? You would also want to check with the location, whether it be church, hall, inn, beach, etc. to make sure they are dog friendly. It would be quite disastrous to show up the day of the wedding and have your best furry friend turned away at the door. Make sure you inform the bridal party, groomsmen, guests and whoever is officiating that there will be a dog present. Some humans aren’t comfortable around dogs and some are even allergic. It is also a great idea to do a few practice runs with your dog, especially if you are expecting them to be the ring bearer. It is traditional for the humans to have their own wedding rehearsal, but having just a doggy one would allow him or her to get a feel for the place and be able to sniff to their hearts content.

There are also clothing options for the dog wedding-guest-to-be. If it’s a summer wedding it may be wise to go au natural (nothing is chicer that a clean coat of fur) with a collar and leash that matches the wedding colors. You can also choose a clip-on tie, a bow ties, a ribbon, or a string of pearls. For a black tie event you could buy your dog a nice tuxedo or a pretty dress. For ring bearing dogs, you can tie a ring pillow to the pup’s collar.

(photo source)

The biggest thing to remember is that dogs don’t always follow along. Though your practice sessions went smoothly, the actual day of the ceremony may not. So as long as you stay flexible, relaxed and have a few back up plans, everything should work out fine.

Congratulations and lifelong puppy kisses to Evann and my now not-related uncle in-law Alex!

Happy tail wags!

Sources: The Knot, Petfinder, Martha Stewart Weddings

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