Bark & Bites - Water Toys

The dog days of summer have arrived, and it’s time to get wet with your favorite four-legged swimmer. Grab your best friend, a beach towel, sunglasses and sunscreen and head to the nearest water hole. Here are a few of my favorite water toys I came across the web!

  1. Bumi by West Paw Design is made from flexible zogoflex material and your pet can stretch this one out all the way to the pool.
  2. The Wet Wubba toy is perfect for water and it is fast to dry when playtime is over and can be used as a tug and toss toy anytime.
  3. These dog pool floats are just what the doctor ordered. Imagine floating side-by-side with your best friend … taking a snooze. You can even get the extra-large one and float with your pet!
  4. This safe and pet-friendly alternative will keep your pet cool and entertained and your lawn will thank you.
  5. This chew toy absorbs and holds in liquid that is slowly released as your pet plays. This fun and flexible toy helps keep your pets hydrated and entertained while they chew away.

Here are a few links to recommended water safety products, including pet sunscreen, goggles and life vest, to keep your pets playing happily during the dog days of summer.

  • Kurgo Surf n Turf Coat - The Kurgo Surf n Turf Coat is both a lifevest and a three season shell in one.
  • Doggles - Protect your pup’s eyes from sun, sand, water and windblown debris with Doggles
  • Doggles Pet Sunscreen - Keep pets protected from painful sunburns and irritations.
  • Safety Turtle - A loud alarm instantly sounds at the Base Station when your pet — and his device — ventures into the water.
  • WaterDog - An automatic outdoor pet fountain that attaches to your hose spigot. 
  • HyperKewl Dog Cooling Vest - Keep your pooch cool this summer with the HyperKewl evaporative water vest

We are teaming up with Newfandhound for this weeks Bark & Bites link list (she will be posting on Saturday) - so make sure to hope on over to see what links she has for you!

 

In Bark & Bites, Dog Gear & Accesories Tags
9 Comments

Luna Has Purple Paws

I generally feel like I do a good job preparing and packing\nfor the dogs before we go on any type of road trip.  I get all of their bedding situated in the back seat;\nfood and water staged in the car door pockets, toys, leashes, and harnesses packed in a little doggy suitcase, and poop bags\nhandy in every remaining storage cubby throughout the car.  It's all very routine, so before we drove to Arizona to visit family, I got everything squared away in the car for the journey in record time.  Unfortunately, coming from a very temperate climate, I hadn't quite thought about protecting the\ndogs' pads from the hot Arizona pavement (or if the thought had crossed my mind, I hadn't acted on it). \n

At our first rest stop break east of Los Angeles, I noticed Luna doing a hot-foot-not-so-happy-dance; the temperature was getting\nclose to 95*, and she was having a fit walking on the ground.  Penny didn't seem to mind, as I didn't have\ntime to groom her feet prior to traveling, so her pads were hairy and protected.  We found some shade and made the best of it.   Unfortunately, as the trip progressed, things got worse - after crossing into Arizona, each rest stop had pet-specific areas (presumably to prevent animal waste from accumulating near the picnic tables), but unlike the human-only sections, there was NO shade provided - ZERO! This was true rest stop after rest stop - not a single awning; nothing but leafless Palo Verde trees (whose foliage-less limbs do diddly for shade).  Shame on you, Arizona!  Since we didn't have a reputable pet store\nalong our route through the barren desert, we made our rest stops quick, knowing that Luna was\nuncomfortable on the ground.  Once we got\nto Tucson I knew that I needed to find a pair of booties to protect Luna\u2019s\nfeet, especially if we were going to be there for two weeks.

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I generally feel like I do a good job preparing and packing for the dogs before we go on any type of road trip.  I get all of their bedding situated in the back seat; food and water staged in the car door pockets, toys, leashes, and harnesses packed in a little doggy suitcase, and poop bags handy in every remaining storage cubby throughout the car.  It's all very routine, so before we drove to Arizona to visit family, I got everything squared away in the car for the journey in record time.  Unfortunately, coming from a very temperate climate, I hadn't quite thought about protecting the dogs' pads from the hot Arizona pavement (or if the thought had crossed my mind, I hadn't acted on it). 

At our first rest stop break east of Los Angeles, I noticed Luna doing a hot-foot-not-so-happy-dance; the temperature was getting close to 95*, and she was having a fit walking on the ground.  Penny didn't seem to mind, as I didn't have time to groom her feet prior to traveling, so her pads were hairy and protected.  We found some shade and made the best of it.   Unfortunately, as the trip progressed, things got worse - after crossing into Arizona, each rest stop had pet-specific areas (presumably to prevent animal waste from accumulating near the picnic tables), but unlike the human-only sections, there was NO shade provided - ZERO! This was true rest stop after rest stop - not a single awning; nothing but leafless Palo Verde trees (whose foliage-less limbs do diddly for shade).  Shame on you, Arizona!  Since we didn't have a reputable pet store along our route through the barren desert, we made our rest stops quick, knowing that Luna was uncomfortable on the ground.  Once we got to Tucson I knew that I needed to find a pair of booties to protect Luna’s feet, especially if we were going to be there for two weeks.

 I ended up ordering a box of the Pawz disposable booties\nafter talking to Sugar\u2019s mom about them. \nLuna took to the boots quite well as they are a light weight natural\nrubber that really doesn't feel like boots at all.  They were easy to put on and take off, and\nthey protected her pads when we were outside. \nThey also stayed on during our car trip back home, and came in handy at\nour rest stops and bathroom breaks.  The best part of the boots, according to my husband, was watching Luna walking around awkwardly for the first few minutes after we put them on her...

I was not asked to write a review about the boots, I just\nthink they are a great product and they are now filed away in my brain for necessary\ntravel paraphernalia. If we lived in Tucson, I would probably have the dogs\nwear a boot like the Ruffwear brand that comes with a hard rubber sole.  These kinds of boots would do well in the\nTucson environment where the pavement is always hot, and you have to deal with\nrocks and other dangerous things like scorpions, which we did run into:

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 I ended up ordering a box of the Pawz disposable booties after talking to Sugar’s mom about them.  Luna took to the boots quite well as they are a light weight natural rubber that really doesn't feel like boots at all.  They were easy to put on and take off, and they protected her pads when we were outside.  They also stayed on during our car trip back home, and came in handy at our rest stops and bathroom breaks.  The best part of the boots, according to my husband, was watching Luna walking around awkwardly for the first few minutes after we put them on her...

I was not asked to write a review about the boots, I just think they are a great product and they are now filed away in my brain for necessary travel paraphernalia. If we lived in Tucson, I would probably have the dogs wear a boot like the Ruffwear brand that comes with a hard rubber sole.  These kinds of boots would do well in the Tucson environment where the pavement is always hot, and you have to deal with rocks and other dangerous things like scorpions, which we did run into:

What ways do you keep your dog's feet protected from the\nscorching summer temperatures?  Or do you\nnot have to worry about it in your part of the country?

We\u2019re participating in this Saturday\u2019s Pet Blog Hop, hosted by Life With Dogs, Two Little Cavaliers and Confessions of the Plume.  Thanks again to our hosts for putting on the hop!  You can join the hop by visiting any of those three blogs. 

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What ways do you keep your dog's feet protected from the scorching summer temperatures?  Or do you not have to worry about it in your part of the country?

We’re participating in this Saturday’s Pet Blog Hop, hosted by Life With Dogs, Two Little Cavaliers and Confessions of the Plume.  Thanks again to our hosts for putting on the hop!  You can join the hop by visiting any of those three blogs.