Who’s on your shopping list for gifts this year? Your pet, pets belonging to friends, neighbors, and family members, plus all those people who love and live with all those pets? Of course!
We’ve rounded up some suggestions from our friends online, gifts for pets and their people.
Tamara A Howard (New Jersey)
1) Paco collar(s)
2) Byte tag(s)
3) Dog beds or sofas
4) Personalized water/food bowls
5) Personalized puppy book
6) Food- or treat-dispensing toys
8) Waggle vehicle temperature monitor
9) PET INSURANCE
10) A new Furbo 360° (Declan P loves the original) or any camera that lets you speak with your pups and keep a watchful eye on them. Tossing treats is a bonus!
Trish McMillan (North Carolina) I love my Fi collar—it’s amazing to see how much my dog moves in a day, plus peace of mind to track her on off-leash hikes. Someone please buy one for each of my other dogs this year! She’s currently the #4 Dobe on the app!
Photo by Trish McMillan
Sandie Hanlon (Massachusetts) GPS collars are a great gift. Fi makes a really good one that works with an app on your phone.
Stephanie Presdee (United Kingdom) Have got Maverick a Flippity fish! Seen one of Denise O’Moore’s dogs carry his around and love it. I hope, as it moves, it will keep mine amused!
Cheri A. Moore (Washington) We used to make our dog (now gone) Christmas cookies from a favorite dog-biscuit recipe. Then when her humans were having a Christmas cookie, she got one, too. Trust me, she knew which tin was hers!
Linda C. Wood (Washington) Gabby really enjoys gnawing on beef knee caps (patella) and our ChowChow loved ginger cookies.
Amy Suggars (Ohio) I get my dog a big bag of marrow bones from the local butcher.
George Guba (New York) Be careful to find the right chews for your dogs. Many chew toys from the same manufacturer have different levels of hardness or chewiness. I had one dog that loved a hard Nylabone (can be a factor with other brands, too); a friend noticed that his bite was going wry (jaw twisting). Luckily, we noticed in time before permanent damage occurred. Others of my dogs never had a problem with the same chew. The same can hold true for bones and antlers.
Evee Linden (Connecticut) A scent class … a lot of them are offered online. It’s something for dog and owner to do together—builds confidence and increases quality time.
Alicia Graybill (Nebraska) Kong products, but specifically the Kong flyer. I have an Australian Shepherd named Cinnamon and a German Shepherd named Fergus who adore them. The two play tug with the flyers, play keep-away, and even retrieve. A really resilient toy for a pair of strong, active dogs.
Don Hanson (Maine) Out of all the food toys, nothing beats the Kong. It’s simple, durable, and not outrageously expensive.
Kellie Snider (Pennsylvania) Heated cat beds. Our cats use theirs all year around.
Jacqueline Greene Cpdt-ka (New Brunswick) Planet Dog Orbee Toy, Outward Hound (Canine) Flirt Pole.
Dale Ward (North Carolina) I bought this for Rhubarb on Etsy. A snuffle ball, a new adaptation of the snuffle mat. I hope she likes it. Oh, who am I kidding. It involves food so she’ll love it.
Julie Daniels (United Kingdom) Ooh, my dogs love these!
Connie Sagona Petit (New Hampshire) The StarMark Bob-A-Lot Interactive Dog Toy food-dispensing toy! Dexter thinks it’s the greatest! A friend gave it to him last Christmas and he still plays with it every single day!
Sherry Al-Mufti (California) I know my ball-obsessed Janey would absolutely LOVE a ball throwing machine!
Nan Kene Arthur (Arizona) Furbo remote camera and feeder.
Trillium Schlosser (Oregon) Control Unleashed®, or Control Unleashed® Book 2: The Puppy Program E-Book. Also the MyWoof Pupsicle Frozen Treat Starter Kit—this has been so much easier to fill and clean than the Kong was. It’s a little more than I would typically spend for a toy, but the tray is awesome and you can make four fillers at a time to use with one treat ball, instead of buying four Kongs. And it’s actually dishwasher safe and gets clean.
Steven Cogswell (Colorado) Dognition is fun.
Tamara A Howard (New Jersey) I bought “Ribosy Talking Pet Starter Buzzers” from Amazon so I can record words and the pups can learn how to “talk” with me. So far we’re almost there with “Outside” but there’s still a lot of work to be done. They’re 16 weeks old, so I’ll give them a break.
Adrienne Critchlow (United Kingdom) The greatest gift I can give my dogs is my undivided attention.
