it's that time again...

Oh, yes... it's time for Christmas collars once again. I'm putting them in the shop a little earlier this year because I'll be closing down the shop the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

From about November 1st until December 23rd last year, I was getting about 3 hours of sleep each night (and pulling an all-nighter at least once a week) to get all of my orders out on time. And while I was SO incredibly grateful for the business, I literally began to hate the holidays because I was sleep-deprived and REALLY cranky. I had zero time to shop for or wrap gifts, spend time with family and friends and if it weren't for my mother, I probably wouldn't even have had a Christmas tree.

So I'm determined to actually enjoy Christmas this year... hence the reason the shop will be closing on November 27th.

So make sure to order early this year... I think the new styles are pretty cute! And my classic Poinsettia collar, along with my tartan bowtie collars, are back in the shop this year too!

football season is upon us!

Just for you Bulldog fans... 

Happy Friday friends... It's football season folks and I'm excited! I love this time of year, and I'm sending good thoughts to my Clemson Tigers. My blood runs orange and if you've never experienced the most exciting 25 seconds in college football, you don't know what you're missing!

I just added a new collection to the shop this morning that features a new style of bow collar in college team colors. So far you'll find the University of Georgia, University of Alabama and the University of Texas. I'll be adding Clemson, South Carolina, Ole Miss and Iowa (and perhaps Auburn) next Friday.

You might be wondering why a Clemson collar wasn't the first version I made. Well... it's freakin' hard to find cute "true" purple fabrics for some reason! I'm on a mission this weekend to locate a purple fabric that will work and as soon as I find it, rest assured a Clemson collar will follow close behind!

And if you have a favorite team that I haven't listed, you can always contact me for a custom order...

back to school!

My newest collar... just in time for Back to School shopping! It would be super cute for those pups headed to obedience and training classes. Or it would be the perfect gift for a favorite teacher that loves her four-legged best friend!

happy 8th birthday oliver!

Just wanted to wish the old guy in my house a Happy 8th Birthday... I can't believe that little scraggledy pup I found wandering around in the rain on Valentine's Day so many years ago is eight years old! Love you and your giant ears sweet boy!

beat the heat with honest kitchen ice pups

Honest Kitchen Ice Pups are awesome. I recently ordered some for my crew, and they are now Ice Pups' biggest fans.

Honest Kitchen is an amazing company... I highly recommend their regular foods as well. But the Ice Pups are so great for summer. It's basically a tin filled with a healthy mix that you combine with warm water. And in an age where I can't pronounce half the ingredients in many foods I find, it's so nice to find simple and healthy products. Ice Pups have eight ingredients... Chicken, Turkey, Whey, Dandelion, Asparagus, Watercress, Honey, Parsley.

You just freeze the mix in an ice cube tray (I used this ice tray that makes little bone-shaped treats), and in no time you'll have icy treats that dogs LOVE. And another great feature is that you can serve this warm as well... so in the wintertime, you can offer it to your dogs as a toasty treat.

missing my brother...

My brother is spectacularly awesome. I know that as his older sister I'm sort of obligated to think he's that way, but all bias set aside... he really is amazing.

He's an F-18 Hornet fighter pilot in the U.S. Navy. And he recently deployed aboard the Navy's newest aircraft carrier - the U.S.S. George H.W. Bush. My mom, sister-in-law and I are constantly trying to come up with creative and different things to send him while he's away. So I figured that I should just use what I have at my disposal - the dogs (and my cat!).

 

just to make you smile

I'm sure LOTS of you have seen this video, but I'm posting it anyway. It makes me laugh so hard every time I see it, and I never get tired of it.

I think what makes it so funny is that if a dog could talk, this is exactly how it would go...

new kid...

So what was that I was saying about enjoying having only four dogs for a while? Yeah, y'all didn't buy that right?

How handsome is that kiddo above? His name is MacDougall (Mac for short) and he's been crashing at my pad for about a month now. And he's precious. And large. And fluffy. And I love him.

So here's his story... I got an email the last time I was up in Greenville, SC about a six year old Bernese Mountain Dog that was living chained outside and the family didn't want him anymore. My heart about broke in half because I've always had a major soft spot for Berners, and I knew that as a Berner, he wouldn't live much longer because six years old is pretty old for that breed.

So the rationalization in my head went... "I'll just let him live out his remaining time with me. He won't be around much longer, and I'll make him comfortable and happy for as long as I have him."

Well, I showed up to the meeting with the people who had him (who, incidentally, actually brought him there ON THE CHAIN and not on a leash), and lo and behold, he was most definitely NOT a Bernese Mountain Dog. But he definitely was sweet and gentle, and I was a goner.

So now I have a middle-aged giant fluffball (my best guess at his origins is perhaps a Great Pyrenees cross) living in my house. He gets along splendidly with all my kids, loves everyone he meets, and is a model tenant.

Unfortunately, he does have some health problems that are beyond his control. He was never given heartworm meds, and so he is heartworm positive. And he had some x-rays done last week that revealed severe hip and elbow dysplasia. So right now we're working on pain management with fish oil supplements, glucosamine/chondroiton supplements and Rimadyl. And he's feeling so much better! And - don't tell him this - but big boy will have his manhood taken away tomorrow (he was allowed to wander prior to being chained up so I shudder to think how many mini-Macs there are running around Greenville County).

So glad you guys have met my newest addition! I'll keep you posted and up-to-date on his progress!

i love a good print...

I love it when someone manages to capture an aspect of the relationships we have with our dogs just through a simple illustration. I can't tell you how much this reminds me of my dad and Quincy. Ping Zhu is such a talented illustrator, and you can grab the fantastic print above at her online store here.

a legend lost

Elizabeth Taylor was the living definition of a movie star. She got her start as a child actress working alongside the most famous collie in the world, and one of her famous quotes is - "Some of my best leading men have been dogs and horses." She will be missed...

yum...

Get your cupcake on...

post its

Usually all I can think about when I see post-it notes is that episode of Sex and the City where Berger breaks up with Carrie on a post-it. Know the one I'm talking about? He leaves her apartment in the middle of the night, and just sticks a note to her computer that says "I'm sorry. I can't. Don't hate me." God, I miss that show.

Anyway, getting back on track here... How cute are these doggie post-its? I use sticky notes all the time for EVERYTHING so I'm going to buy these as soon as I finish typing this post!

japan

We all watch with heavy hearts as the events in Japan unfold, and I know most of us want to do whatever we can to help in big and small ways. All proceeds of the sale of these dog bandanas go to World Vets - a group who works in emergency situations with teams of first responders in disaster areas to asses and begin treatment of the animals affected by the disaster. Their teams are already on the ground in Japan working tirelessly to help as many animals as possible. So if you and your pup would like to support the work they're doing in Japan, you can purchase a bandana here or contribute directly to World Vets here.

something to strive for...

I've always loved this saying and now it's available as a hand silkscreened print in the sfgirlbybay shop!

easter time...

Meet the twins... Sylvia and Lewis... they're pretty cute, right? They're available in the shop through Easter!

thanks petsugar!

Head on over to PetSugar to check out their March must-haves... they're showing Pecan Pie Puppies some love! And while you're there, make sure to look around at all the other fun information they have available!

And if you want to win a free Pecan Pie Puppies collar, visit Life as a California Wife and enter to win!

dock dogs

 This Shepherd was obviously quite talented... I was sort of shocked at how well a couple of the Shepherds I saw did during the competition. I had assumed that Labradors and Chesapeake Bay Retrievers would dominate...

I got my chance recently to see my first Dock Dogs competition live and in person. It was SO much fun to watch these athletes compete. It was truly a supportive atmosphere with both seasoned competitors and newbies trying their jumps for the first time in a competition.

wisdom panel dna test

I have always wanted to try one of the DNA tests on my various mutts and mixed breeds. So a few weeks ago, I finally got around to it and ordered a test kit for Oliver - my slightly nutty but super sweet guy.

I chose to go with Wisdom Panel... and I've been very pleased with the entire process. They have the most breeds available out of all the DNA kits out there right now - over 185 to be exact. The kit had super simple instructions, arrived quickly and was easy to use. And once I sent it off, I received an email in just a few days to let me know they had received the samples. In less than three weeks, I received another email to let me know they had completed the processing, and Oliver's breed report was available online via PDF... yay!

Ollie is obviously a very unique and exotic looking dog, and for obvious reasons, I had always assumed he was mostly Dalmation (ahem, white with black spots? deaf with blue eyes? all classic Dalmation) with maybe a little terrier or something else thrown in to give him his giant ears. So you can imagine my surprise when I got this (click to enlarge):

Not a bit of Dalmation anywhere! And after I looked at the report, I was like "Duh... of course he's Husky and Australian Cattle Dog" but I had been so hung up on Dalmation his entire life that I'd never considered other possibilities. He's shaped exactly like a Cattle Dog, and has the blue eyes of a Husky.

This was SUCH a fun experience, so if you have a mixed breed pup and you want to know what you've got on your hands, I definitely recommend the Wisdom Panel test. You'll see your dog in a whole new way! One disclaimer... if you have a true Heinz 57... one who's grandparents and great-grandparents were also mutts, none of the DNA tests out there will be able to tell you very much unfortunately. Because there's so little purebred DNA to work with, it's hard for them to be certain about it. I'm about to test my Mona Mae, and I expect that I might have this problem with her, but I'll keep y'all posted on the outcome.

Wisdom Panel is having a special right now on their breed test, and you can purchase it online for only $69.99 plus I found a coupon code that should work for another $10 off! Just enter INSIGHTS10 during checkout (make sure you use ALL CAPS or it won't work).

my four-legged valentines

They're a pretty good looking crew if I do say so myself...

let's talk...

I realize I've let you guys down lately. I promised to be more diligent about blogging on a regular basis, and well... I've definitely dropped the ball on that one. Life just took over and somehow on my daily list of things to do, the blog got pushed to the bottom.

So now I shall attempt to prove to you that I am a changed woman, and I will attempt to reclaim my place in blogger-land by posting a lot more regularly.

One good piece of news that I have to share is that the precious nugget you see above is now living in her new forever home. Matilda was with me for almost a year and a half as a foster, so it wasn't easy parting with her, but it was what was best for her and the rest of my family of four-legged kids. She is the sweetest, snuggliest and most precious girl, but my Penny Sue hated her... with a vengeance... so she had to move on. She's with a great new family, and it's a wonderful situation for me because I will get to see her from time to time.

Because of Matilda's departure, I'm down to just my four dogs for the first time in a LONG time. I realize that four dogs might seem like a lot to many folks out there, but to me it feels downright calm and quiet! I kind of don't know what to do with myself. Well, that's not entirely true. Because it's chicken time people. That's right. I'm in the process of planning out my Palais de Poulet, and I hope to have my new coop built in the spring. Hopefully I'll have some feathered ladies moving in soon after, and I'll share them with you once they're settled.

So that's what's new with me... Oh, and there are fun new St. Patrick's Day collars in the shop so check 'em out!

thanks pupstyle!

A big thank you to Pupstyle for their feature on Pecan Pie Puppies collars today! Head on over and look us up, and while you're there, check out all the other fun things on the site.

sorry boys...

Nothing for you this time around. It's cold, dreary and my living room looks so bare and empty now that the tree is gone. So I was in the mood to make some pretty and colorful new flower collars to brighten things up.

My favorite one this time around is my new Spunky Bruiser collar above... my nickname for the one and only Matilda Rose. Isn't she adorable? If you think so, she can be all yours because she's available for adoption!

I've also been dying to make a new hydrangea collar in pink... and here it is... gingham is my new best friend. It's making a comeback people - it's not just for your Grandma's country curtains anymore. And I made the fun Purple Polka Dot collar on a whim, and it turned out so nice, I put it in the shop. As alway, you can find them all here.

instant monkey

Yes. Who can't use a little more monkey in the new year?