When it’s bedtime in our house, I trudge upstairs with the boys and lie down in Preemie Feet’s room. He is put to bed first, so I listen to his books before getting up and moving to Little Feet’s room for chapter books. Preemie Feet has been reading the Sally series of books and they are my favorite, by far. Stephen Huneck, artist and author, creates these great books based on his dog, Sally.
Sally has a big personality and the Sally hardcover books we take out of the library are just as large. Filled with humor and Sally’s escapades in this human world, the author captures the fun and laughable attitude of dog. The illustrations are printed from woodcuts that Mr. Huneck creates in his studio in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, a beautiful part of the US called the NorthEast Kingdom.
Sally Goes to the Beach describes a trip by ferry to a beach community by a group of dogs and focuses on Sally’s experiences on her trip. Preemie Feet frequently giggles throughout the book, which is a magical sound. And each page is a pleasure for the eyes. If you haven’t read these books to your kids or your dog, please do so immediately.
Stephen Huneck has his own website, where he tells his own amazing story, gives you a peek into the beautiful NorthEast Kingdom and sells prints of his art. You can find him here.
Category Archives: reviews
Book Review – Sally Goes to the Beach
Doggy Dining In Style
Wooden Doggy Dining Table by Richell
I’m getting older. The evidence is all over my chin (gray hair – yowzah!) And as we larger dogs age, it gets more difficult to eat from a bowl on the floor. Prop it up for us, please, and what better way to do that than with this stylish table from Richell.
Made of eco-friendly rubberwood, the platform can be raised or lowered to your dog’s specific height. I would appreciate snarfing my food out of these bowls on this lovely table.
It’s on sale here.
Handmade Dog Toys
I’ve been writing about behavior for awhile now and thought I should widen the scope of my blog. Dogs grow too, you know. So, for my first non-behavior post, I thought I would show you some great handmade dog toys that I found while cruising around Etsy (a girl’s gotta shop, no?)
First up is the Hoochy Poochy Humpty. I think I will just put the shop description here:
“hoochy poochy Humpty… dog toy…
its like an underground escort service
for your little bitch… I mean, DIVA…
it’s a boyfriend for your girlfriend..
or a girlfriend for your girlfriend..
who has the patience for the real thing!
Let her use her imagination of who it could be…
Her…Far Far away Tropical Island Lover Boy,
Super Dog the Super Hero,
Rock Star Bad Boy,
The EX-boyfriend…voodoo dog,
Or her Baby Girl..the girly girl kisser…”
Need I write more? You can go directly to the Etsy shop listing by clicking on the photo.
Hoochy Poochy Humpty from petsoul
Next up is the Tumble, which looks like a blast.
The ball is made from 100% reclaimed fabrics and thread and stuffed tightly with reclaimed fabric strips. How cool is that?
Check out the ball and other fabric toys in eleanorandmilo’s shop by clicking the photo.
Tumble Dog Toy from eleanorandmilo
A dog toy with personality… here is Otto the Owl from Lyonesque. The Lyonesque shop at Etsy specializes in using reused and repurposed materials to create handmade gifts.
Otto is one of the Great Beagle Migration series dog toys. A portion of the proceeds from each GBM dog toy sale will go to benefit the Kentucky Humane Society.
This durable toy comes in different colors and has been Beagle-approved and tested. That’s good enough for me! You can go directly to the Etsy shop listing by clicking on the photo.
Otto the Owl by Lyonesque
The Fleece Tugs from RescueMeTugz come in such pretty colors… (remember, I’m a girl.)
“If you haven’t had the pleasure of using a fleece tug, they are a softer more gentle version of the traditional rope tug toy you see in many pet stores.” Doesn’t that sound enticing? I am drooling just a litlle bit thinking about it.
Rescue Me Tugz are machine washable (A-Dog will love that!) and all proceeds go directly to Great Dane Rescue groups. Check out the many other offerings at their Etsy shop by clicking the photo of the tugz.
Fleece Tug with Ball from RescueMeTugz
And last, what a great way to re-use a pair of jeans! The Squeaky Jean Pocket Toy is a durable, re-purposed solution for puppy play from Kim’s Critter Designs.
A Member of Etsy for Animals (EFA): Artists Helping Animals, there is a great selection of toys, beds and accessories at Kim’s shop. Ten percent of sales go to a selected monthly charity.
Click the photo to check out the Jean Pocket.
Jean Pocket Squeaky from KimsCritterDesigns
That’s my round-up of doggie toys for now. I hope you dug branching out with me and the dog blog. Any comments or Woofs are always appreciated!
