Ways to celebrate Dress Up Your Pet Day, support pet adoption, and help local animal welfare organizations.
Did you know January 14 is Dress Up Your Pet Day? And while it sounds like a whimsical day to have fun with your favorite furry friend, it’s much more than that.
Dress Up Your Pet Day was founded by Colleen Paige, a celebrity pet lifestyle expert and animal advocate. The annual event is meant to be a fun day that not only gives pets special attention, but also helps promote pet adoption.
“The one thing that I feel important to note is that as silly as this day may seem to some, all of my holidays have the underlying goal to help save lives and give homeless animals as much exposure as possible,” says Paige on the official Dress Up Your Pet Day website.
Our team at the Good Dog Hotel & Spa in Broad Ripple loves to have fun, but we take pet adoption and animal advocacy very seriously. That’s why, in the spirit of this special day, we are passing on some of Paige’s suggestions for celebrating. In addition, we’d love for you to share any photos you have of your pet all dressed up, as well as your adoption stories!
Dress Up Your Pet Day Celebration Ideas
1. Adopt a pet from your local shelter or rescue. There are more than just dogs and cats that need homes, pets such as bunnies, guinea pigs, hamsters, birds and farm animals need forever homes too.
2. Dress your pet in a comfortable and safe costume or cute clothing and take photos to share online. You can actually bring happiness to strangers through your beloved pet. Tag #DressUpYourPetDay and post on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
3. Donate blankets, food and toys to animal welfare organizations in honor of your pet.
4. Volunteer at your local shelter and offer to play with some dogs or cats available for adoption, clean cages, litter boxes, large animal stalls or anything else they need help with.
5. Write your Congressman and ask that he/she support the ban of puppy/kitten mills and gas chambers in your state.
6. Hire a professional photographer to do a photo shoot of your pet(s) in a special outfit or costume.
7. Have a Dress Up Your Pet Day party and invite your friends to bring their dogs. Take lots of photos!
8. Film your pet prancing around in fun attire and post it on social media with the tag #DressUpYourPetDay.
9. Paint your face up as your favorite kind of pet, wear kitty ears, bake animal shaped cookies for your kids, or dress in pet-related fashion.
10. Get the kids and pets together and have a neighborhood “Pets on Parade.”
SHARE YOUR PHOTOS AND STORIES
When’s the last time you dressed up your pet? We want to see your photos! And if you have pet adoption stories to share, we’re all ears. Post them here, or hop over to our Facebook page and share them with all our followers. To find out more about Dress Up You Pet Day, click here.
Meet Chewbacca!
Hi!!
My name is Chubaka but my friends call me Chewy! The vet thinks I am almost 5 years old and that I am a mix between a Great White Pyrenees and a St. Bernard. On this one beautiful day, I showed up at a “roller derby meeting” at the “Circle City Socialites”. I was a stray dog and my parents found me there. They instantly fell in love with me and took me home.
Some of you might think my name sounds familiar. I’ll give you a hint…My sister’s name is Leia!!! For all the winners out there – you won!!! My parents LOVE Star Wars!!
In the movie, Chubaka is an immense, fur covered warrior of great strength and loyalty. He is a wise, sophisticated being with exceptional skills in starship piloting and repair. And this, my friends, pretty much describes me!! My friends call me the “gentle giant”. I weigh approximately 120lbs, I have a lot of fur, and I am super-sweet!!! Chubaka also makes funny noises in the movie, just like me. I talk back to my parents and they say I sound like Chubaka from Star Wars. My favorite thing to do at Good Dog is play in daycare. At first, I was very scared of the floors. I don’t like slippery floors at all and I was afraid when they were a little wet. Now, I am used to the floors and I love to come in and play.
My parents also bring me and my sister Leia to Good Dog Hotel and Spa for grooming. We like getting clean and pretty, it just makes us feel so good. That’s all for now!! See you guys around town!
Article Written by Veronique Brown
Definitely a Mother Hen!
I know we have all heard about Momma dogs taking in a kitten as their own. We may have also heard about a gorilla taking in a kitten as her own, but I don’t think we’ve ever seen or heard anything quite like this story!
Mable, a one-year-old hen, has taken to keeping these puppies warm by snuggling up to them while their mother, Nettle, sits out in the yard at a family owned farm in Strewsbury, UK.
Owners Edward and Rose Tate said that Mable was hatched there on the farm a year ago and would have gone onto someone’s dinner plate had they not decided to keep her. Fortunately for Mable, she was in an accident with a horse. The horse stepped on her foot and because of that they decided to bring her in to their home!
About the same time, their dog Nettle had given birth to a litter of pups and after just a few days, she was up and about in the yard. Mable saw her chance and began roosting these puppies to keep them safe and warm while Nettle was out. She is truly a mother hen!
Article Courtesy of Kara Poole
What A “Toe”-riffic Mutt!
We have all heard that dogs can sense when something is not right, even when it comes to our health. Here is an amazing story that we came across this week about a dog who went that extra mile in making sure is beloved master stayed by his side.
Jerry Douthett, a 48 Michigan man, woke up on Saturday night in late July to find that his Jack Russell Terrier, Kiko, had chewed off his right big toe. Douthett said that Kiko always lays with him on the bed at night but when he awoke on this particular night he discovered that his foot was wet and bleeding. He then looked at Kiko who was looking right back at him with blood on his mussel.
Douthett’s wife rushed him to the hospital only to find that where their dog had chewed, there had been a massive infection caused by the Type 2 diabetes that Douthett was unaware of. The surgeons finished by amputating the remainder of his toe.
“The moral of the story is that the dog saved my life, because otherwise I never would have gone in to see a doctor,” says Jerry.
Even one of our Good Dog staff members can relate to this incredible story. Kara Poole works at our front desk and had this to say:
“My aunt had breast cancer a few years ago and before she was seen by our family doctor, her dog, Abby, would nestle under her right arm pit and scratch at her continuously. When she had discovered the lump and went to our doctor, she was told that night that the same spot Abby had been so fixated, was the same spot as the cancerous tumor. Abby knew that there was something that wasn’t right about that spot. This didn’t surprise me because Abby was a rescue and her bond with them has always been so unique.”
Article Courtesy of Kara Poole
Just last week, suite101.com sent a report on ways to help clean up the gulf. Here is what happened:
As oil continues to gush into the Gulf of Mexico from the April 20th BP rig explosion reaching disastrous proportions, once again, man’s best friend, the dog, may be able to help.
How Oil Spills are Cleaned Up
Fortunately, for experts dealing with oil spills, oil and water do not mix. As oil continues to gush from the leaky rig off the coast of Louisiana, it rises to the surface forming a millimeter thick slick which floats. Depending on location, waves, currents, and weather, various methods of clean up may be employed.
While experts struggle at capping the leaks in the depths of the Gulf of Mexico, others work to control the growing oil slick on the surface by using long floating booms with a skirt which hangs below the surface to contain the oil and keep it from spreading. These booms are made from oil absorbent fibers such as hair, fur, and wool stuffed into casings such as nylon pantyhose.
Well, we have everything we need to do our part. So, that’s why we’re collecting our dog hair. Eyewitness News even came in and did a story on it.
One lb of fur can clean up a quart of oil. Since we have it, we’re sending it. If you would like to help contribute too bring your dog in. We’re located off the Monon Trail and 54th. Check us out on the news!
Want more details? Send us an email to info@gooddoghotel.com
Do you have a funny dog? We’re talking one (or more) that that has some serious stomach crunching antics, crack-you-up kind of funny, that would put cats on YouTube to shame kind of dog? Well, we’ve seen some of the funny business that happens around Good Dog Hotel’s attendees, so we’ve decided that it’s time for a competition!
Everyone LOVES funny animals, and so do we! We’ve been collecting some great videos of our pups having fun and enjoying themselves in Day Care, and now we want to give you the chance to get in on the fun!
So pull out that Flip Cam or video cam and start rolling! If you catch your dog doing something fun, funny, ornery, or cute, take a video of it and join our contest! Upload it onto YouTube or Vimeo account and send us a link to info@gooddoghotel.com. In the subject line, type ‘contest’. We’ll be featuring the videos on our site, and everyone will have a chance to vote. This contest is open to ALL Indianapolis dogs.
We must have all the videos in by May 21st. The voting will begin the last week of May and we’ll give you instructions on how to vote coming up. Follow our stream on Twitter and Facebook to keep updated and we’ll be using these streams to make your dog a star.
Our Video Challenge will run through the month of May, and we will announce the winner at the beginning of June! And just like our Halloween Costume Contest, we will have some amazing prizes!
Bring on the funny! Questions?
Happy Friday!
There have definitely been some exciting things going on. After an amazing bulldog party last month, and some great Butler Blue II visits, Good Dog Hotel has decided, along with Blue’s Mom and Butler University, to become THE official grooming sponsor for Mr. Blue II. That’s right! Butler University’s beloved Mascot will be frequenting our salon often. Blue II is a 6 year-old male bulldog, and he’s kind of a big deal. Acting as BU’s mascot and good luck charm, he gets to go to all the games and even got to go to the Final Four!!
That being said, today’s dog blog is a guest post by Butler Blue II himself!
It’s true, a clean dog certainly is a happy dog and thanks to my pals at Good Dog Hotel & Spa in Broad Ripple, I will be both clean and happy for a long time to come!
Of course, I’ve been those things for a long time, but now I’ve got the sponsorship support to make my cleanliness that much easier to come by as I’m pleased to announce that Good Dog Hotel & Spa is now the exclusive and official groomer for Butler Blue II (that’s me!).
During all of that March Madness stuff I got a call from Jen Funk, a fellow Butler grad who worked at Good Dog Hotel & Spa and wanted to recognize Butler’s advancement to the Final Four. To commemorate the occasion, she was planning a “Bulldog Party” and was offering a discount to all bulldogs (four legs) in the neighborhood that wanted to get cleaned up for the big game.
Of course, she invited me to attend as an appearance fee, she granted a full-service grooming. You may remember the occasion being televised by many of the local TV stations and featured in print thanks to The Indianapolis Star. (http://photos.indystar.com/galleries/9232-blue-ii-spa-and-party)
I still have people telling me they loved watching my spa treatment and frankly, I loved it so much that I wanted to come back for more. So the kind folks at Good Dog Hotel & Spa were happy to oblige and now I get to come back whenever I want! To know me, is to know clean and happy from now on!
In case you missed out on the excitement of the aforementioned Bulldog Party, Good Dog Hotel has PHOTOS and VIDEO on their website (www.gooddoghotel.com) for viewing. Be sure to check it all out!
I’m looking forward to partnering with Good Dog Hotel & Spa on many projects and special events in the future. They are good bunch over there and I’m happy to add them to my sponsor lineup, which includes…
Woodland Animal Hospital (Dr. Kurt Phillips)
WellPet & Holistic Select
City Dogs Grocery (Susan Smith)
VCA Animal Hospitals (Dr. Deb Rowley)
Good Dog Hotel & Spa
Many thanks to Good Dog Hotel & Spa owner, Matt Kurtz, my contact, Jen Funk, and all of the great people there. Here’s to a great partnership!
Now get your dog to Good Dog!
Blue II
P.S. Don’t forget to follow Good Dog Hotel & Spa on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/gooddogindy and look for them on Facebook too!
P.S.S. I’ve got another partnership to announce very soon and there’s potential for even more on the horizon! Stay tuned!
(Butler Blue’s original post can be seen here on his blog.)
We’re not only excited to be the exclusive groomer of Blue, we’re excited to be an official sponsor of Butler University as well. We’re proud of our Butler Bulldogs!
(Note from Blue’s Blog) Butler Blue II is the official mascot of Butler University. Born 3/27/2004, this 60 lb. English Bulldog is enjoying his 6th year as mascot of the Indy-based, 4,000 student, liberal arts institution. His blog is a look into his world as well as an account of his adventures as retold by his parents, Michael and Tiffany Kaltenmark. While his blog wasn’t created until Jan. 2008, Blue has actually been on the job since May 2004, thus Blue will be looking back as well as looking ahead. Enjoy the read!
Nora with her new owner
We need to take a second out to thank every single person who put the word out about Nick and Nora. We’ve been looking for a place for these two amazing dogs for quite a while now. We’re happy to report to you that they have found a home. Although they won’t be living together, the people who adopted them are best friends, so they will get to have lots of play dates, and will also be frequenting Good Dog Hotel since they get to stay in Indianapolis.
We wrote a blog post a while back about how we really feel dog adoption is one way we can give back to our community. We don’t necessarily specialize in adoption. It’s not something we always do however if there is a need and we find the dog, we don’t mind taking it under our wings.
Broadripple has always been a great spot for dogs. With the Monon Trail running right through, and Good Dog Hotel being located right off the trail, we get the privilege of running into all kinds of different pooches. If you’re ever in the area and are considering dog adoption, please swing by. We’re more than happy to introduce you to our dogs up for adoption, give you a tour of our dog space and answer any questions you have.
