everything pets + a tiny human
Happy December everyone. Santa paws will be here before you know it!
We are particularly excited for this Christmas because it will be Baby Gia’s first Christmas. Let the fun begin!
We wish you a blessed holiday season with all your loved ones.
Download your December calendar here
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For us Christmas is about spending quality time with loved ones and of course that includes our four legged children! This year will be Charlotte, Duke and Peaches’ first Christmas so it needs to be a special one.
The big fat man dressed in red will be making a delivery for them too… Since it is difficult to find nice bunny goodies where we live, I like to make homemade gifts for them using bits and pieces I found around the house. The goodies I did find in the shops include a children’s ten-pin bowling set, because bunnies actually love playing interactive games with you. A doggy interactive toy, a new cat tunnel, an outside enclosure play pen and I made some homemade bunny treats (recipe below).
Homemade Bunny Crackers:
These are by far the easiest bunny toy to make. You simply take a toilet roll holder, fold in the one side, fill it with whatever your bunnies go crazy for like pellets, dried flowers and dried herbs or fill it with fresh goodies like carrot sticks, celery bits and herbs. Then fold in the other edge. Your bunnies will love throwing this around while trying to get the yummy stuffing out. I like to use different size ones (some toilet roll holders and some kitchen roll holders) to make things more challenging for them.
Bunny Treats:
I enjoy making homemade treats for the babies because that way I know exactly what is in them. No hidden dyes or preservatives, only ingredients I know are safe and healthy for them.
Ingredients
1/4 cup bunny pellets, blitzed up
1/4 cup blitzed oats
1 mashed banana
1 large carrot cooked and mashed into a puree
Directions
Pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees. Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl until everything is nicely combined. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Spread the treat mixture evenly so it is about 1cm thick. Bake in the oven for +-30 mins or until the treats are cooked and hard. Take them out the oven, cut into small bite sized squares and allow to cool. Store them in an airtight container for on hand treats. Your bunnies will LOVE these… You can play around with the ingredients, choose your bunnies favourite veggies, fruit and herbs but please be mindful of what is safe for your furry loves to eat!!
We are at a comfortable stage where the bunnies can be around Oscar and Zara, so this Christmas is going to be lots of fun. Both Oscar and Zara love opening their Christmas gifts so they are going to have to show the bunnies how it’s done, perhaps even help open theirs!
Whatever your Christmas plans are this year, we hope you have a wonderful and safe celebration!
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When we got asked to do a product review for Vagabond-Dogs we were over the moon with excitement! Not only are their dog accessories super stylish in looks but they are hand crafted and designed with so much love and care too.
Vagabond-Dogs is a brand that is all about the love of dogs. They are using Vagabond-Dogs as a platform for advocacy and charity, and being a new brand they are building up their network of advocates, so if you know a dog charity that needs support please contact Vagabond-Dogs directly on hello@vagabond-dogs.com
In our brief email conversations, I instantly knew that Ted and Nelly are the real deal when it comes to loving animals. They have put everything they have into creating Vagabond-Dogs as well as into supporting animal shelters and rescuing pups in need.
When I opened our delivery box, each collar was neatly wrapped in tissue paper. It looked so neat and tidy I didn’t want to ruin it by ripping open the tissue paper and causing chaos. But I did because I couldn’t contain my excitement any longer! What we received were four beautiful collars. We received the Born Free range that has a boho signature design engraved absolutely perfectly into each collar. The quality of each collar is outstanding and guaranteed to last a lifetime. The inspiration behind each collar comes from life. Be it architecture, design, fashion or nature. The Born Free range was inspired after many trips that Ted and Nelly look to Joshua Tree National Park in California.
It was hard to decide which colours for which pup. I feel they are unisex and once I began photographing Oscar and Zara wearing their new gorgeous collars, I was right! All four collars look fantastic on both Oscar and Zara. I will definitely be mixing up who wears what on our outings and adventures.
Who doesn’t love a brand that works hard to give back and support the dogs out there who are less fortunate than our own. So go on, support Vagabond-Dogs. Help them achieve their dream by heading to www.vagabond-dogs.com and spoiling your pups, it’s totally worth it!! Oh and did I mention they offer worldwide shipping….
Don’t forget to follow them on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram.
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Happy New Year everyone! We hope you all enjoyed the festive season and welcomed 2017 with open arms. We are very excited to see what this year has planned for us and we hope it is a fabulous year for you too.
We hope you enjoy this months calendar featuring Oscar and Zara with their favourite emoji pillow 🙂
Click here to download your January calendar
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My mom and I were fortunate enough to visit the Little Critters Rescue Club at the beginning of November. We took some much needed supplies and we wanted to spend some time and get to know each Little Critter. We fell in love with all the critters, including the permanent residents! It is such a special place and one that is close to my heart, especially since Valentine and Duchess came into my life. When Lauren opened the door we were greeted by the cutest pack of wagging tails. Marmite, Peanut, Misty, Molly and Barney to be exact. Isabel who is one of Lauren’s rescue cats quite proudly showed us where the Critters were and then demanded some tummy tickles as a reward for her efforts.
Lauren started Little Critters Rescue Club out of pure love and adoration for smaller pets such as rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, mice and chinchillas. The club is a rescue, rehabilitation and re-homing center, but of course some of the critters that come in become permanent residents, mostly because they are special needs critters.
We met Gladys who was an abused little guinea pig girl who now has scars across her back. Her fur is long enough to cover them up and when you look at her you would never know just how hurt she was before she came to Little Critters. She was so friendly to my mom and I, we even got little piggy cuddles. She melted our hearts!
Lady is another piggy permanent resident who was so over bred that her bottom eyelids suffered such trauma from inbreeding that they now protrude outwards. She also has ovarian cysts and has had many ovarian issues as a result from all the breeding and she needs constant care. We also got piggy cuddles from her and she was such a sweet heart.
And then there is Odette, who is very special to Lauren! She has kidney failure and needs three supplemented feeds a day to make sure she gets all the vitamins, proteins and fluids she needs!
Then we met Sooty and Sweep, two cute baby bunny sisters! Lauren hand fed these babies and taught them everything they know. Luckily at the same time they came in, another guinea pig family came in and the three amigo baby guinea pigs and Sooty and Sweep became inseparable. Luigi, Herbie and Peanut are such curious little boys. My mom and I could have sat for hours listening to them chat amongst themselves, feed from their mom, explore their surroundings and play with Sooty and Sweep.
The Critters live a life of luxury while at the club. They have access to a massive mansion that has ramps, pillows, hideouts and lookouts. When they are not relaxing in their mansion they have access to the most awesome herb garden where they can run free and just be Little Critters! There is also a playground for everyone to enjoy with things to jump over, hide under and gnaw on.
Visiting Little Critters has inspired me and given me new ideas on how I can improve Valentine and Duchess’ play room, hutch and outdoor area.
Before any adoptions, strict home checks and interviews take place. It is very important that anyone wanting to adopt is doing so for the right reasons. Lauren will also educate the adoptive family on proper care, food requirements and how to keep your Little Critter truly happy.
These critters were abused, abandoned and not cared for, yet they still have enough love and trust in them to allow us to show them what its like to be loved, it honestly is heart warming.
This Christmas I ask you to please think of these Little Critters.
Before Valentine and Duchess came into my life I had no idea just how much effort goes onto making sure they are kept happy and healthy! Meal times are a lot more than a lettuce leaf and a carrot. Despite their size, their food bill and toy bill is costly. I can’t imagine having more than two Critters to feed and look after. If you can, please donate any amount to the Little Critters Rescue Club. They always need Burgees Pellets, Timothy Hay, blankets to snuggle in, and interactive toys. You can contact Lauren on lauren.namer@iburst.co.za and please be sure to follow them on Facebook (click here) and Instagram (click here), every share is one step closer to finding these Little Critters their perfect forever home!
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It is exactly one month today until Christmas Day and if you haven’t already put up your Christmas tree and other festive season decor, I’m sure you will in the next week or so. I put our Christmas tree and decor up on Sunday and of course Oscar was right by my side, sniffing tinsel and stealing baubles just to make sure he approves of this years colour theme. I have always loved decorating our house with Christmas cheer, however Christmas decor can be dangerous for our furry loves and the festive season as a whole can be stressful for some of our pups, so here are some ways to Christmas proof your home and make the festive season enjoyable for your entire family…
Decorations: Christmas means tinsel, ribbons and lights all of which can be a hazard to your pooch! It’s not a bad idea to anchor your Christmas tree securely so your pup can’t push it over. Hang breakable, glass ornaments well out of reach. Cats absolutely love tinsel! Try and decorate your Christmas tree with the tinsel towards the top and woven tightly in between branches.
Festive plants: I love decorating our home with festive plants and flowers but unfortunately these plants are toxic to Oscar! Please keep poinsettias, holly, mistletoe and amaryllis out of reach!
Santa costumes: Although there is nothing cuter than dressing Oscar in a Santa Clause outfit, I have to be mindful of his comfort and tolerance level! Please make sure your pups festive outfits are loose fitting so they are able to walk, hear and breathe easily.
Gifts: Oscar absolutely loves opening his own Christmas presents but I have to be careful he doesn’t swallow any wrapping paper or ribbons too! He loves tearing paper apart and just making a fun mess for himself to play in. Be sure to watch your pup carefully around loose bits of wrapping and ribbons left on the floor as these can be a hazard if swallowed!
Loud noises: Oscar gets spooked by his own shadow so Christmas crackers and fireworks are a big NO-NO in our home! Please be mindful of your pets when having fun with party poppers, popping champagne, Christmas crackers and balloons, all of these loud noises can send your furry love into a panic.
Fun: Remember Christmas time should be fun for your best friend too. Involve him wherever possible! Play a game with their new toys, take them for extra long walks and make time for special time with your pooch-a cuddle goes a long way.
Above all else, be safe and enjoy yourselves this festive season!
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