Pawcurious Vet Blog: With Pet Blogger and Veterinarian Dr. V

The Well Groomed Dog: Molly Mutt Clean and the Dyson Groom Reviews!

Last week Brody descended into that category known as “ripe”. You know, when you go to pet your dog, then your hand comes up in a cloud of dog essence and you have to use your foot to keep him off the bed because you don’t want that stank hanging around. That kind of ripe.

The timing worked well since I had a couple of items I’ve been waiting to try out for just such a stinky occasion: Dog shampoo from the Molly Mutt Clean line, and the new Dyson Groom vacuum grooming attachment.

Wash by Molly Mutt

First, Brody got lathered up with the sample of Wash I received from Molly Mutt, who you might know better as the maker of the eco-friendly Stuff Sack duvet that’s forever on my ‘Favorite Things’ lists.

The Clean line is free of parabens, synthetic fragrances, and sulfates, all things that are highly unnecessary when you have a sensitive dog and you don’t want to strip off all the oil in their skin.

The Wash had a nice herbal scent (rosemary and peppermint). I hate the smell of synthetic fragrances- my own laundry detergents are scented with natural oils or nothing at all- so this was welcome to my nose.

It also doesn’t come out of the bottle super concentrated like a lot of dog shampoos. I dislike those “do your own dilution” because it comes out of the bottle thick as syrup and makes it really hard to spread over the dog. The Wash was the perfect consistency right out of the bottle.

Brody dried very gently fragranced, shiny, and clean. And ready for round two with- DA DA DUMMMM….the Dyson Groom! I was ridiculously excited about getting to try this out.

Dyson Groom

I’ve been singing the praises of Dyson vacuums for a decade now, after watching in wonder how efficiently it managed to eliminate the house tumbleweed population.

When I saw Dyson came out with a grooming attachment, I actually squealed out loud with glee. I never do that over household cleaning items. Dyson was kind enough to send me a Groom attachment for review, which I wasted no time in putting to work.

The Groom attaches with an easy snap like all Dyson attachments. The Groom itself is a slicker brush, which recedes under a cover when you’re not holding the button down. So you vaccum the dog to pull all the hair up, lift your finger, and whoosh- it gets sucked into the vacuum. No more having to scrape the detritus out of the brush, picking up the leftovers from the floor, etc.

Because I’m impatient, I didn’t spend any time getting Brody acclimated to the sound of the vacuum or the feel of the device. I just plopped him in my lap with a rawhide and had at it. As you can see, he was severely traumatized:

(In case you skip the video for fear of seeing a traumatized dog baying in fear of the almighty vacuum, the trauma remark was 100% facetious.)

Koa enjoyed it too, though for obvious reasons Apollo got a pass on this one. It was so nice to not have to spend 15 minutes after brushing cleaning up the floor! It’s my new favorite toy.

Great for: Long and medium haired dogs, mellow dogs, people who hate brushing up hair

Use with caution on: Nervous dogs, dogs scared of the vacuum, dogs with sensitive skin (the bristles are metal).

Use only if suicidal on: Cats, lions, significant others, that itchy spot on your back

Available at the Dyson Groom website.

The Dog Ate My Fashion Sense

Oh, there were so many choices here, so many hideous items out there for us pet lovers. Where did we go wrong? Are we forever doomed to the land of fanciful vests and fanny packs, or is there still hope for redemption?

The good news is everyone recognized “ugh” when they saw it, so I say yes, we should not despair. It took me some time to whittle down the choices, but I think it was worth the wait. So without further ado, I present to you in no particular order the finalists in the Inaugural Reader’s Choice Best of the Best (or should it be the Worst of the Worst?)

(more…)

Style Report: It’s ON like Donkey Kong

A couple of months ago, I was at a party when a complete stranger ran up to me, embraced me like an old friend, and said, “ANTHRO!”

I startled, thinking for a moment she said “ANTHRAX!” but then I realized she was referring to Anthropologie, the store where I bought the dress. That was my introduction into The Madness.

I didn’t realize Anthropologie was not a store but a sisterhood, whose induction requires only the purchase of an overpriced but adorable piece of clothing, and then they have you. This woman leaned over like a dealer peddling her illicit feathery wares and murmured to me the name of a blog, to which I am now somewhat addicted but I won’t say what it is because I’m afraid my husband will block it if he finds out because it’s leading me down a dark path. In this, a woman goes to the store, tries on items in the dressing room, takes pictures with her iphone in the dressing room and posts reviews. I find it strangely compelling.

There is a whole group of these bloggers, like Fight Club except it’s cardigans and pleated skirts. They all wear boots and pose with one foot turned in like they have to go to the bathroom, looking longingly off to the side of the camera while twirling their hair in their fingers. The motivated ones find graffiti to pose in front of and use soft focus effects.

Now here’s my conundrum: I like those Emma Pillsbury-esque clothes. I do. But I also like clothes with animals on it. Big surprise there. Unfortunately when people design clothes with animals, and dogs and cats in particular, it tends to be something like this: (more…)

Grooming Giveaway!

Winners: Wipes go to Jeanie and the Furminator to our very last entry, Tina! Congratulations!

With the holidays coming up, the last thing you want is a stinky pet cuddling up to Santa and scaring him off with her delightful doggie odor before he gets a chance to leave the goodies under the tree. To that effect, I have declared today the Pawcurious Day of Beauty with some super pampering giveaway items to keep everyone squeaky clean!

Giveaway Number One: Wipe that Frown Upside Down with John Paul Pet

Paul Mitchell is a leader in the human grooming world, so it only makes sense that they would develop a line for our furry compadres as well. (The Tearless Shampoo made its holiday debut in our house last week to great effect when my four year old translated “Don’t let Brody out, it’s too muddy” as “Take Brody outside yourself and discover the mud puddles as a team.” We both smelled like a million bucks after that debacle.)

For you, I have a a duet to keep your pet’s face a happy haven: John Paul Tooth and Gum Wipes and Ear and Eye Wipes. I like wipes- they’re convenient, disposable, and although nothing beats tooth brushing and dental cleanings, any activity to debride that yucky tartar off is going to make a difference.

Each container has 45 wipes, so there are 90 total.*

Giveaway Number Two: Tumbleweed Eradication Device

I also have in hand my favorite grooming device of all time: a Furminator. I’m not one to notice grooming items a whole lot, but this really is a standout tool and I tell owners about it all the time. It’s so effective at removing undercoat that I’ve learned to use it outside, lest I spend the next hour vacuuming up the vast piles of fur that get ejected out onto the floor.

The winner of this giveaway gets a brand new deluxe cat Furminator. (It’s a bit small for dogs, but you could certainly use it on one if you wanted.)

To enter, simply comment below with which giveaway you want to enter: the wipes, the Furminator, or both. Any additional commentary is optional though certainly encouraged as I like a good furball story as much as the next guy. Contest closes Thursday 12/9 at 1 am pst.

FTC Disclosure: Items with a (*) were provided by the manufacturer for the giveaway.

Howliday Gift Guide: Inside my house

For today’s reviews, I chose three items I’ve used in the past week and one I’ve wished for this week.

(more…)

Howliday Gift Guide: Haute Dogture

Being an animal lover comes with its share of stigmas and stereotypes. Perhaps there is some truth to the idea that we are more likely than our un-petted counterparts to have some stray cat hair on our clothes, for example, but to assume said clothes are more schlumpy than those of your average person is just not right. I prefer to think of it as fashion-forward: cruelty free fur. It’s a revolution, actually.

I would say my time in the frumpy world of yoga tracksuits had more to do with two kids running around than having pets in the house. I love nice clothes. I just never get a good excuse to wear them.

Which brings me to my point: Expressing oneself as an animal lover does not need to be mutually exclusive with being chic. You do not need to resort to novelty Malamute socks, for example, or these “sheek and stylish sequined vests“. (I do recommend clicking on that link, just because it’s worth seeing once in your lifetime, but you might be slightly traumatized.) Isn’t it time we showed the world we are not a collective bunch of people walking around with “Nothing Butt (insert choice of pet)” shirts?

So for today’s edition of the Howliday Gift Guide, I chose some pet-related couture that even Tim Gunn would approve of. These aren’t practical pieces, but personal expression pieces rarely are. Carry on. (more…)

Giveaway! Sirius Republic Collars!

It’s about time for a giveaway, don’t you think? And I’m so excited to have this one for you all. It’s the start of autumn, so what better way to usher it in than freshening up your pet’s fall collar couture?

Sirius Republic is an e-tailer specializing in handmade collars and leashes. They have a wide selection of buckle and Martingale collars, which are fast becoming one of my favorite types of collar for our resident wild man.

Martingale collars, if you are unfamiliar with them, tighten up when pulled but are looser at rest, providing an extra measure of security for the type of dog who easily pulls out of a standard collar in moments of zeal or other types of enthusiasm.

Owner Jennifer Zhang makes all the collars and leashes by hand. When she offered a sample to review, I told her I wanted to try a quick-release Martingale but I wasn’t sure which width would be best for Brody. She sent me a wide 1 1/2″ as well as a 1″ but suggested the 1″ would probably be best for Brody. She was correct. Just one of the many reasons I like working with and promoting small business owners!

Here we have a festive mushroom style modeled by our own in-house autumn himself:

The collars themselves are very sturdy and professionally finished. I am an admitted collar snob so I try to steer away from the dull, the mass-produced, and the flimsy. This is none of these things.

Sirius Republic also offers a unique New Collars for Life Guarantee. Anyone with a dog knows collars have a shelf life just due to living on a hairy dog neck, so for a company to offer a free replacement after two years is pretty impressive.

I’m already eyeing some of the other styles in stock- I mean, Koa kind of needs this one, don’t ya think? Roawr!

But enough about me- it’s your turn to get your hands on one! You have two ways to enter the giveaway for a collar from Sirius Republic:

1. Go to the website, peruse the collection, and leave a comment below saying which collar you would like to have.

2. Become a Facebook fan here. You need to comment on this blog post telling me you did that so I can make sure you get your extra entry!

Entries close Saturday, September 11th, at midnight PST, right about the time shenanigans at BlogPaws will be wrapping up.

Things to smile about: Fetching Tags

I had NO idea I had so many knowledgeable chicken experts reading this blog. Truly, thank you for the encouragement and all the fantastic links. I have my work cut out for me. I even found out my receptionist is on a similar chicken kick and she pointed me to a place that is selling 8 month old laying hens. Score!

There are all sorts of things that put me in a good mood this week. I put new tags on everyone’s collars, and they are seriously, seriously cute tags. Since people tend to frown on dressing up 80 pound dogs in cute outfits, I have to rely on accessories for the cute factor, so there you go.

The lovely Jen Cleere from Fetching Tags offered to send me my very own set of tags for the menagerie, and as soon as I saw how adorable they were I said, “Yes, please!”

(more…)

Product Review: Sleepypod Air and Crater Dot

Our product reviews have been heavily skewed towards the dog type items lately. When Sleepypod asked if I was interested in reviewing a couple of their cat items, Apollo started kneading and drooling all over the keyboard.

1. Sleepypod Air

The Sleepypod Air is a carrier geared towards those who fly with a pet in-cabin, though it’s obviously usable as a regular day-to-day carrier as well. Its claim to fame is the ability to compress length-wise from 22 to 16 inches, which would allow you to fit it completely under just about any discount carrier’s most claustrophobic seat.

This is the uncompressed version. Pretty, isn’t it? I refuse to buy any carrier covered with pictures of kittens with angel wings. This looks modern.

If you own a cloth carrier, you know the tendency of the top to collapse in on itself. The sides on this air are much stiffer, allowing it to stay upright.

This side shows the sleeve that you can pass a luggage handle through if you’re zipping through the airport. You can also use the straps to secure the carrier with a car seat belt. (more…)

Product Review: Kyjen toys

When I was given the opportunity to review a selection of dog toys from the Kyjen company, Brody shot me a look that said, “You’d better take this one, lady.” Not that he isn’t as spoiled as they come anyway, but I’ll admit the majority of his playthings are the usual easily destroyed types that I get at the store. I was already interested after so many of you raved about the line when I was looking for suggestions for the Holiday Guide, so this was a no-brainer.

They sent a large assortment for our perusal.

From left to right, we have an Egg Baby, Huck Em,  Magic Hat with Rabbit, Hard Boiled Softie,  Squeaker Mat, and a  Bottle Buddy (which is a cool way to recycle plastic water bottles.)

Before poor Brody even got a chance to investigate the booty, I had to play with them and do a squeak assessment. My three year old helped out. We decided the squeak mat was as delightfully loud and cacophonous as promised. (Which is a good thing, 3 am excepted of course.)

The true squeaky winner, though, was the Hard Boiled Softie- an unassuming penguin with a really hard rubber squeaky ball inside. When squeezed, he lets out a gasp not unlike a dying rhinocerous collapsing on top of an accordion, loud and drawn out and melodramatic.

Needless to say, Brody loved this one. He took it and followed my husband from room to room in the house going “squuEEAAAAAAAKKKKKkkkaaaaaaaaaa” over and over until it was confiscated. In other words, an enormous hit.

We did a few side by side comparisons to see if any of the other toys could compare to that one, as well as to his favorite toy, a large stick from the backyard out of frame on the left.

Hmm.

Well, I am a retriever after all, so let’s check out the other bird.

He liked this one well enough, until I pointed out to him it was STUFFED with SQUEAKY EGGS! Then the party really started.

He fished them out, threw them against the wall, chased them down the hill, and buried them in the holes he dug while I was setting up the camera.

Squirrel!

Then he carried it around and snuggled with it.

Hey kid, you’re blocking my light.

I was trying to get him to pick which bird he liked best, but then he saw an egg in the distance:

So intent on the egg was he that he didn’t even notice his ear flopping in the breeze.

Boy, did he feel dopey when I told him.

Brody hasn’t put a dent in any of them, but he is a little more gentle on toys than some other dogs. So, I’m going to pass these out to some friends with aggressive chewers, who have given up on finding squeak toys that last more than a day. We’ll see how they do.

I’d like to give at least one away too, but I can’t promise being organized enough to send it right now so I’ll probably hang onto them and give some away later this month.