Tuggy Toys + Foster Babies

While I had planned a fun review for you today, someone *might have* forgotten to snap the photos... oops!  I swear I got the shots during our last review photo shoot day, but either my phone ate them (I'm sticking with that theory) or we must have called it quits before we got through the entire pile of goodies.  Looks like we'll be doing another photo shoot day as soon as the temps cool down a little bit.  In the meantime...

Did you catch our final installment of the #InspiredByCrafted campaign that we've been on with Hill's Pet and BlogPaws for the past few months?  I had an amazing time being a part of it.  Not only did I get to learn a lot, I got to share what I learned with you!  And as a direct result of what I learned about Hill's, Penny is eating Hill's Ideal Balance Large Breed puppy food (only because the Crafted line doesn't have a large breed puppy option yet).

For this last installment, Hill's asked us to post about something that the campaign inspired us to do... something we've been wanting to try, or that might be outside of our comfort zone.  I chose to take a shot at making Fleece Tug Toys.  Scroll back to yesterday's post to see more, and enjoy this video clip of Penny showing off the end result of Mama's craftiness...

Here's one more clip, which was destined for the trash bin thanks to Tut's photobomb, but after watching it, I decided it was too cute to press "delete."

She adores her new tuggy and so far, has only managed to chew one piece of fringe part way off.  I think this woven style of knots is really going to hold up (versus the two braided tug toys she's unraveled already) and will definitely be making more.  Inexpensive and easy to make + machine washable + a puppy who loves them = a win!  (In case you're wondering, neither Tut or Sophie have shown much interest in the toy as of yet)

Speaking of inexpensive to make, this one in particular was made with fleece fabric I found in the pre-cut remnants bin at Walmart for next to nothing.  The pink zig-zag and grey fabrics you may have caught in yesterday's post were bought at full price, but still quite inexpensive. 

I wish I had thought to make these tug toys back when we had so many puppy fosters coming through the Lapdog house!  I would have loved to have sent one home with each of them... not only to give them something else to take from their foster home (every one left with a favorite toy, and many with a snuggie blanket), but it would have given their new humans a little break, knowing their new pups had something they could chew on!

Speaking of those foster babies that I adore so much, did you catch the updates of Booth and Maverick last week?  I stole borrowed a couple more photos this week...

First up, the first foster boy who truly stole my heart, Dustee. His Mom started volunteering at one of our local shelters and often bring little house guests home with her. I can't tell you how much that makes me smile. Not only did they give Dustee the loving, forever home he so deserved, but now they're paying it forward and helping so many others find their forever homes as well. Here's Dustee (on the right) chilling out with a recent foster of theirs...

Here's a very calm, cool and relaxed Miss Addison.  She was already adopted when we agreed to pick her up from the transport and foster for a couple of days while her new family was out of town.  It was our pleasure to help Addie on the journey to her forever home, and I'll never forget how excited her Mom was to pick her up... complete with flowers in hand for me!  So, so sweet.

Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday!  Knitters, don't forget to enter to win a copy of The Essential Guide to Color Knitting Techniques!

Mischievous Babies

There's really not a whole lot of mischief going on around here today.  Well, unless you count last week's sleepless nights incident. Lola developed a UTI which resulted in a trip to the Emergency Vet for antibiotics and a couple of exhausted humans after those sleepless nights. She's doing much better now, thankfully, and the humans spent part of the weekend catching up on zzz's.

There's a little human mischief going on with trying to get all of our holiday preparations and shopping completed.  I'm sure we're not the only ones with long To-Do lists however, so instead of dwelling on that today, let's all smile!  I have a few foster baby updates to share and nothing puts a smile on our faces like cute, mischievous pooches, right?

First up is the tiny tot, Maverick.  He just got a new blankie and is all set for another New England winter...

Little Rosie is always getting into something!  Her Mama managed to snap this super cute pic of she and big sister Rascal snuggling in their chair.  Yes, I said their chair.  Don't you just love the cover? 

Not that I can't help but smile every single time I see photos of any of my foster babies, but there's something extra special about Booth, aka my little Boo.  Add in an adorable football costume and my face hurts from grinning ear to ear!

The beautiful Addie just celebrated her 2nd birthday.  She's such a big girl now!

And of course, there's Miss Belle.  If you read our blog regularly, you see her a lot ... since we get to see her all summer long at the race track!  She's truly a special little lady and holds a big piece of our hearts!

There's nothing better than getting a photo or update from my foster babies adoptive families!  I'm really enjoying their Christmas cards as they start to arrive.  We were not able to foster any babies this past year, but I hope we'll get back to providing a loving, temporary home to some special little tykes in 2014.

Social Media Tips for Shelters & Rescues

I've been working with dog rescues for several years now, mostly helping with adoptions and fostering some fantastic puppies and dogs throughout the years.  I've seen rescues struggle with everything from fundraising to getting their information out to the public.  Most of the rescues I've worked with are in the Southern states and adopt the majority of the pets out to New England states.  This makes it near impossible to promote the rescue and pets in person.

Enter social media.  A blessing for rescues and shelters everywhere, but especially for the type of rescues I've been working with. 

In honor of International Pet Blogger Month presented by BlogPaws, I wanted to share a few tips on how rescues and shelters can maximize the use of social media.

1. Take Great Photos.  "A picture is worth a thousand words" really rings true when it comes to showcasing homeless pets who are seeking a forever home.  First impressions are so very important. 

When someone is looking to adopt, chances are they are sifting through thousands of profiles online.  More often than not, a single line list of pets pops up with a name, short description and thumbnail photo.  That teeny-tiny little thumbnail photo needs to pop and catch their attention!  So many times I've seen shelters post fuzzy, dark, unattractive photos.  Sure, we all know how busy a rescuer is, but this is one aspect where you must make the time to get good photos!  They need to be clear and bright... get outside and use natural light whenever possible!  The subjects should be looking at the camera, happy and alert.   The photos also need to be up to date.  So often, especially with older pets who may take longer to adopt out, photos are old and "tired."  Updating them will give the pet a fresh face in the adoption world!

Whenever possible, enlist the help of local photographers who may be willing to volunteer their time.  Whether they're professionals or hobbyist, chances are they'll have great ideas for capturing photos that will help your pets stand out in a crowd.

I've retaken photos of many of the dogs we've fostered and had the rescues up date their pictures online.  Remember, the cuter and more eye catching the photo, the more looks the pet is going to receive and the more chances she's going to have to find her perfect forever home!

2. Share Those Photos & Profiles.  Seems simple enough, but so many shelters don't take advantage of this.  Post them to Facebook, Tweet them, Pin them to a board on Pinterest, Blog them, Instagram them with a link to the pet's profile!  

I'm known to share many pets on Facebook, as well as Tweet and Pin profiles often.  I love my "Adopt Don't Shop" board on Pinterest!  "Monkey see, monkey do" really comes into effect... once one person shares something, you know the ball keeps rolling as your friends and family start "liking" and reposting.  Everyone loves a cute animal picture.... share, share, share!

3. You Tube is Your Friend.  What's better than uber cute photos?  Videos!  Get out the cell phones or camera and take some short clips.  Post them to the pets' profile pages, as well as on You Tube.  You can even post short 15 second clips on Instagram. 

Some pets just come across better in video than still pictures.  Their personalities show through so much more in video.  Take advantage of this powerful - and free! - tool that we all should get into the habit of using more.  I started taking short clips of our foster dogs and having the rescues link them to their profiles... we instantly saw more hits on the profiles with videos attached! 

Here's a clip I had uploaded in 2011 of then foster baby Kelly, now Harper.



Remember, there are thousands of pets sitting in shelters right now, just waiting for their loving forever home.  Adopt, Don't Shop.  And share, tweet, pin and blog away about those babies who are longing for a home of their home!

Gone to the Dogs

Wordless Wednesday has gone to the dogs... with appearances by a few former foster babies!

Foster Belle snoozing at the race track

Foster Izzy is all smiles for the camera

Foster Booth taking a break from playtime

Beautiful foster Addison striking a pose

One of our NELCAR family member's new Dobie pup

 

The 4-Legged Beauty Bias

Happy Dogs on Thankful Thorsday / Little Friday!  The Lapdogs have been very hard at work lately reviewing products for you.  Did you catch our recent reviews of the unique items from PAWW and Salmon Paws?  We have quite the overflowing stack of samples going on the kitchen table, so stay tuned... we'll be telling you about lots of great treats, toys and other doggy items soon.

Lola got to catch up with little Izzy (formerly Sake) a couple weeks ago (note to self... use the regular camera to snap active puppy shots instead of the cell phone next time).  The little girl is getting big!  It was wonderful to see her and how happy she is with her new parents.  Since my photos weren't so great, I borrowed the last one from their Facebook page.

 

Speaking of borrowing photos, I couldn't help but steal these two of Addie to share with you.  Isn't she beautiful? Seriously, I may be a little biased, but I think we have the best looking foster family!

We met up with Harper and her parents at the dog park this past weekend, but I haven't downloaded those photos off the camera yet I'll save those photos for next week!  Instead I'll give the rest of the Lapdogs a chance to shine today... Enjoy your day!

Happy Furball Monday!

Happy Monday!  The weather is a bit dreary around here today, so I thought I'd brighten the day with some foster updates. 

First up is Harper (formerly Kelly).  Boy is she getting big - she's almost 21 pounds now!  Her Mom told me they've been taking her for lots of walks and hikes, and she's starting to get more comfortable around strangers.  I just adore this little girl... she was definitely Sophie's mini-me and I think they helped each other to overcome alot of shyness.  Isn't she just beautiful?

 

Speaking of beautiful, check out these shots of Addie, the little girl with the big ears who was already adopted when she came up in February.  She just needed a place to crash for a few days until her family returned from vacation... and we were the lucky ones!  Addie is doing wonderful in her forever home and loves romping with her two human siblings.

 

 

Speaking of big ears... We only had tiny little Ace for a couple of days in December before our friends decided they wanted him!  Ace now lives with one of our original fosters from way back, Simon.  Don't they make a cute pair of boys?  I especially love the last shot of them napping.

 

 

Another foster from way back (2007 to be exact!), Cotton (formerly Bella) is doing great in her growing family.  She has an adorable human baby brother to watch over!

My sweet little Rosie is getting a little pudgy having a blast with her big sister Rascal and we've just found out that they are expecting human siblings later this year!  No, that s isn't a typo.... I better get knitting!

Our most recent little tyke, Maverick, is having a blast with his big brother Zac... and it looks like he is almost bigger than Zac already!  Mavie's Mom told me that he still likes to hoard things (both his and his family's).  The running joke whenever someone can't find something, is to ask if anyone checked Mavie's hording pile in the kitchen yet!  I'm happy to hear that he takes his snuggie and little piggie toy to bed with him each night still... it still makes me teary eyed thinking about that!

This post just makes me smile bigger and bigger as I write it!  It means so much to receive updates and photos from our fosters' forever families.  I can't tell them all how much I appreciate them - both for giving our extended family of babies loving homes and for keeping us updated.  Sweet baby girl Sake is still here with us - 3 weeks now!  I can't believe no one has scooped her up.  The rescue has relisted her as "Daisy" on the adoption sites, but I'm not sure the name really matters.  She's an absolutely awesome little girl with a heart of gold and superstar personality.  I selfishly wish someone we know would adopt her...

Snoozing in my lap on Friday night

Saturday morning... Zeus wanted to be lazy, Sake wanted to PLAY!

Sleepy Girls... Sophie & Sake