under the blanket

A lot of people have seen at least one of the pictures of Poppet under a blanket. It's her favourite pastime to find something to bury herself under and settle in for a great nap! My husband actually loves to  build little caves from pillows, blankets, towels and clothes for her to find. We have pictures galore of Poppet under things, Milly not so much - she finds it a ridiculous pastime!
If you have any pictures of your pets with blankets please share them with us on Facebook. It doesn't matter whether they're on or under a blanket, we'd love to see them. Please visit our Facebook page and leave a picture for us.

under the blanket

Fuzzy felt, Doppleganger and Splat!

The name Ben McFuzzy Lugs was what first attacted me to this Etsy shop and then it was my addiction to fuzzy felt dopplegangers. But then I found these bookmarks, or 'splats' - another way to have a replica of your furry little one! So, the lady behind these 'splats' obviously has a great sense of humour but she also uses upcycled fleece or nuno and creates them from a photograph of your pet. They're the perfect size for a paperback and so cute with only it's body sandwiched between the pages of the book.

Fuzzy felt, Doppleganger and Splat!

Aussie Naturals

Remember a time when you got by with an old slipper or ball of wool to play with your pets? Now, there's a huge array of toys out there made from ropes, fancy felts, plastics and colourful rubber etc. In this sea of playthings I recently spotted these and was instantly struck by how robust and substanial they are. With a close look I discovered they are made from a vegetable fibre that grows along the Ganges River in India.
Jute is one of the strongest natural fibres and totally hamless to your dog. So, when you want something that is 100% natural, renewable, chewable, biodegradable and recyclable these Aussie Naturals are for you.

This is made from water buffalo leather and spins in the air, but is easy to grab in the mouth. The boomerang (also made from the same leather) has a cotton filling, whilst the crunchy wool Koala Bear has a a natural coconut biodegradable fibre filling. Plenty more to see on their site.

When playtime is over pile everything into this leather bucket for another day.

 All products are designed in Australia and hand-crafted in India. Make sure to watch this space as they have more exciting products out soon made from a Jute and Cotton mix and great stuff for cats too!

Aussie Naturals

Pedigree Adoption Drive - #dogsrule

It's heart-warming that so many bloggers out there are doing great things for animals in need. If you have a blog (and it can be any kind of blog) you can help too! Each year, more than 4 million dogs end up in shelters and breed rescue organizations. Pedigree created The PEDIGREE Adoption Drive to help the plight of these homeless dogs.
It's so easy, just write a post and for each blog that publishes a post about the Pedigree Adoption Drive by Sunday, September 19th, Pedigree will donate a 20lb bag of food to shelter dogs!
Now, all you have to do is:-

1. Add your link to Life with Dogs or Two Little Cavaliers
2. Make sure you 'like' The Pedigree Adoption Drive on Facebook
3. Add #dogsrule to your tweet and include it in your post too.

Isn't that simple, tell as many of your blogger friends as you can, so we can help even more dogs.

Pedigree Adoption Drive - #dogsrule

An early Worthy Wednesday

I saw this posted on Dog Milk last week and just had to include it in my Worthy Wednesday feature. It really is all for a good cause, Species Spectrum is (in their words) 'creating a buzz for rescue, shelter and sanctuary animals through modern design, photography and wit'.
They have a unique collection of greetings cards with a fun picture of the animal, whether it be a dog, cat, pig, fish or bunny, complete with a humerous bio of the pet. Everything has been done just right by printing on recycled paper and donating a portion of the sale to rescue animals. There are so many on the website to choose from, go take a peek!

An early Worthy Wednesday

Paws for Cause

The 2010 BC SPCA Paws for a Cause walk for the animals is this weekend. It's BC SPCA's signature event bringing together animal lovers all over the province.
There are 36 different locations joining in to try and beat last years success by raising more than $1.1 million for animals in need.

Visit their website for more details.

Paws for Cause

Perfectly matched

Is it a must that you have earrings to match your necklace and shoes to match your purse? It's not high on my list of prorities, but I would definitely kit out my pooch in this perfectly coordinated and eco-friendly range from Thayer and Ridge - so perfect for the Sunday morning walk in the park!

There are collars too if you don't want to use the harness coat which are lined in a faux suede for comfort. All the products in their Eco-Friendly range are stain, water, bacteria and odor resistant. The fabrics contain NO toxic chemicals, heavy metals or carcinogens and are made using re-cycled energy!

Perfectly matched

Meet Lily

This a Lily, an older Maltese who was kept for breeding and then simply abandoned by her owners when she was no longer useful. Lily was dumped requiring urgent surgery on a malignant mammary tumor and extensive dental treatment.
The good news is that Lily was taken in by the wonderful people at Victoria Adoptables and given the love and care to nurse her back to a happy, healthy dog. The Blanket Fund for Animals was able to provide a donation to help a little with her medical costs. Currently Lily is in a "foster to adopt home" with another little dog and is happy and contented.

Meet Lily

Patch and Scott simply oozing quality

Don't you think these products from Patch and Scott are oozing quality? All the collars and leashes in their collection are handcrafted in Europe from fine top grain leather and bespoke components that come in a glorious range of  colours. Each design is available in a range of sizes to suit from the smallest to the largest of dog and can be adjusted to fit. Matching extendable leashes complete the look that has definitely been created for the style conscious dog!

Patch and Scott simply oozing quality

What could YOU make out of an old advertising billboard..

..that's right a dog collar! Totally pinching this post from one of my fave blogs Dogloading... I was really struggling this week to find something for my Worthy Wednesday recycle feature and ok, I know it's Friday, but so worthy of a post. Collars and leashes from recycled billboards...yep, whatever next! but I think I said that last week! So many make their way to landfills each year so why not make a dog collar :)

Apparently, the material wears like denim and gets a rich vintage look over time. They are very soft and durable even though they are made from rescued advertising billboards! Not sure on the process, but they are made in Colorado, and just love the label 'I used to be a billboard'

Check out Itza dog for their range named Ecollargy and even more interesting stuff!

Thanks Dogloading... great find!

What could YOU make out of an old advertising billboard..

Buttons and Bobbies

I have a really big urge to make some of these buttons. I think it probably needs a special machine to do it, but they look so much fun and such a great way to get creative! I found these on a number of etsy shops and picked out the pet ones, but there are oodles of great designs, especially some of the earrings, that have really unique styles.

1. Pinkish Coco
2. The Blue Kitteh
3. Jack and Jane
4. Cynical Redhead
5. Dorothy Wyn
6. Charming Couture
7. & 8. Aimoobaro

Buttons and Bobbies

Toki Poki - Pet trading cards

Hey, I found a great new idea for anyone who loves pets -  Toki Poki - and I love it! Think pet trading cards with a purpose and when you join you get 50 cards to hand around.
It's a community-centric site based on creating and exchanging personalised cards depicting pets. What a great idea to build a collection of cards representing all the pets in your area. This leads to meeting new people, making new friends, a better understanding of breeds and the building of community spirit - not to mention a great way for lost pets to get recognized and returned.
Meet Toki and her pals here

How would you like to chat with other pet owners, celebrate your pet's birthday and even build an online memorial in loving memory of a furry friend? They have more exciting things coming soon too!

Toki Poki - Pet trading cards

Animal sports

Okay, I probably say this every week, but I am repeatedly amazed at the creativity demonstrated by some people's recycling efforts! This Wednesdays 'recycling and helping animals' feature is very sports related. It involves tennis balls and old inner tubes from cycle tires - Whatever next!

The Dog Bed from Hugh Hayden Design has been constructed entirely of recycled tennis balls from the New York Metropolitan area that are woven together in a tight hexagonal pattern. Plop a cushion on the top and you have a comfy bed totally made from recycled materials. At the moment they are just for smaller dogs up to 25lbs but bigger ones will be coming out soon. If you throw the bed, your dog will probably bring it back :-)

Cycle dog make collars and leashes from recycled bike inner tubes! Apparently, in the US there are over 60 million bike riders and that can mean a lot of flat tires and old inner tubes. So, why not make a dog collar and leash with them instead of adding them to landfills. All you need do is to take your old tube to a dealer or send them to Cycle Dog and they will be put to good use. How very innovative is that!

Animal sports