Pampered as they are and should be, they still must know who their boss is. Animals are not aware of the notion of democracy, what they know is to listen to and obey the alpha in their group. When they live with people, a human must be obeyed, a human must be the leader.
However, they need to be spoiled especially if they were rescued. When I say spoilt, I don’t mean to let them do what they want and take over the control you’ve been establishing all that time together.
More play, more treats, more walkies and more caress is what spoilt means in the dog sense. You still have to be the alpha of your team.
Well, during holidays I love to please my family and as my pets are equal family members they are pleased too. For this reason, we tend to have as many celebrations as possible. Each weekend is our little celebration.
I love making treats for everyone because they are all used to homemade and not readymade stuff from the store. Nevertheless, sometimes they have to make do with the ones from the store, too.
If you are not sure how to pamper your four-legged family members check out my Halloween ideas for dogs!
First, the Most Needed Stuff
Check out what they need the most at the moment. They wouldn’t mind anything that comes from their favourite people.
It’s been a long since you bought a bed for your dog. It is definitely time for a new one. Surprise your best friend with a very comfortable bed with a visco-elastic memory foam mattress.
This kind of memory foam has been used for years for humans with joint problems and has proved effective. This is the first case, that I have heard, that something was tested on humans prior to giving it to animals. It is usually vice versa. However, it confirms the comfort.
The memory foam fits the body and allows it to sink into it thus keep the natural body warmth and relieving strain from joints and the spine.
Good rest and sleep are very important for a dog. They can be achieved right in this fantastic orthopaedic bed. It is especially beneficial for older dogs.
It’s got three softly padded sides perfect for the headrest, it is anti-slippery and easily maintained. It has a zip, so you can easily wash the outer part and thus keep your dog’s hygiene on a high level.
For more info or purchase, please click here
Of Course, Some Treats Must Go with It!
If you have a little time, then three-ingredient homemade treats would perfectly go with the new bed. They are super easy and simple to make!
I am a lover of homemade everything. The DIY is my preoccupation and I am sure I can do whatever I want but I just need time. Just! – the very simple word that changes everything.
However, when I have time, I make those treats with rolled oats, peanut butter and a ripe banana. You can find the detailed recipe everywhere on the net, but I will explain the simple procedure.
The ingredients are measured in cups: 1 1/2 cups of rolled oats (blended into fine flour), 1/2 cup of peanut butter and 1 large, ripe, mashed banana. Make a nice medium soft dough, roll it out, play with shapes and eventually put it in the oven for 15 minutes at 350°F.
I love shapes. The most usual shape I use is the bone shape. But for special occasions, I also use special shapes. For Halloween, any scary shape comes into consideration – from bones, spiders and brooms to pumpkins and ghosts. These are easy to cut even in the absence of cookie cutters.
This is a perfect treat not only for four-legged but also for two-legged family members. It is a gluten-free treat with no sugar, oils or additives. So healthy and delicious.
As simple as that because my life is too complicated to make delicate stuff. For intricate things, I go to the pet shop. Pet shops are my last resort when I just don’t have enough time to make anything else.
More to Go with the Celebration – Homemade Pumpkin Treats
Again homemade, but this time more Halloween-ish because of the pumpkin ingredient. Joking aside, pumpkin is a very healthy vegetable used in many diets for better bowel function.
The detailed recipe can be found online, but I make those treats, you can guess, in the simplest possible way.
1 cup of freshly cooked unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 cup of whole wheat flour
1 egg
Just make a nice medium soft dough of these ingredients, roll it out, make shapes and bake in a preheated oven at 350°F.
Voila! The treats for the whole family are ready to be tasted! Healthy, nutritive and digestive treats!
No Time for DIY Treats?
Ok, I completely understand today’s way of living. Sometimes we get upset about not being able to do something we like. But it’s not up to us! So don’t be annoyed, you’ll get your dog annoyed, too.
Cheer up, there are other ways we can make our dogs happy. Luckily, they are not so demanding, they only need us by their side. They need our warm hands to stroke them and our time devoted to them. Then, why waste our time preparing treats?
Grab your phone and order online the most lovable treat! The one that even cats steal from dogs.
Rocco BBQ Sticks in two different flavour varieties is a delicious chew for our pampered family members. My dog adores them and my cat steals them from her. Reading the reviews I discovered that they are not the only ones to fight for these delicious sticks.
However, they are a good solution when training your dog because they are chunkable. They can be broken into smaller pieces and given to the dog as a reward for a successfully accomplished task.
40% of poultry or 20% of beef sticks are individually wrapped to keep the sticks fresh.
How about some new toys?
They will certainly go mad about them! Dogs are known to love toys except for a few older ones that I know are very serious and would be better off with a bow tie or lady’s hat than a toy.
From chewy toys to active toys and even to the ones that involve brain activities like thinking and solving puzzles in order to find a treat. They will love it and you will definitely enjoy the quality time spent with them.
Watching them play, my mum says it’s like a sitcom. Pets are brought into specific situations and we are entertained by their way of managing the situation. It really is a better solution than watching a boring sitcom on TV.
To see the choice of toys click here.
For my gluttonous pets, I would definitely choose the Northmate Green feeder. It is a pad-shaped bowl with different-sized blades of grass among which you can put either food or treats and thus teach your dog not to gobble food and beg for more.
My rescues are the ones whose food disappears in seconds! You read it well – seconds not minutes! This is due to being starved for so long either with a bad owner or in the street. It would take me a lot of time to teach them that now they have regular meals and food should be eaten not devoured. With similar feeding bowls, my efforts are facilitated. They now spend tens of minutes eating! I am saved!
For more info or purchase, please click on the photo
Are These Suggestions Enough and Useful?
I hope I have given you some ideas, but if you need clarification or more ideas, please write in the comments below or contact us by email.
Whatever I choose for my pets, I pay careful attention that it is healthy and worth the money. It’s not that I am stingy, well maybe I am but only when I have to buy something for myself. I never regret any cent spent on the innocent ones.
However, I don’t want to spend money on something that is not worth it. I have many rescues in my care and even more innocent creatures waiting in the street for their turn to be saved. That’s why I have to take care of each dollar spent!
This year is special for many reasons. Especially for the world economic crisis so we have to act economically. We have to reasonably spend money and still keep them pampered.
For this Halloween, I decided on homemade treats for my big doggie family. I hope to get a homegrown pumpkin so that the treats will be perfectly healthy for all of us.
Above all, just make sure you spend more time cuddling, walking or playing with your dog. That is what is most important for them and not some special, costly presents so much valued by humans but not of such worth to our pets. The most important present to them is YOU!
What about you? What will you surprise your family with? Give us your ideas in the comments below.
