Puppy Love Petwear Bandana Review

We're famous!! Check it out...our very first review!! It's delightfully entitled "How to make your cute pets cuter" and written by gorgeous Mary at The Critter Sermon:

So very excited indeed...and very flattered! So many lovely compliments *blush* Here's a little excerpt:

" I came across a stall selling handmade Bandanas..they were SO cute! There was a little dog next to me who had just been bought one and he was sitting there proudly wearing it!...I was greeted with smiley helpful faces and more importantly dog lovers! I showed them photos of Darkley and said about how I was hoping to adopt Holly and all the issues we were having with that...

So with Holly home and more than happy to be dressed up I wanted to get some made for Holly and Darkley... The awesome thing is that if you want a particular colour or something extra snazzy for your pup they will try and do it if they can...As they are handmade they can be made exactly how you want for your pups and best of all at such a reasonable price- because dogs will be dogs and I knew full well that mud and all sorts will end up on them!... They can happily play in them too, they don't bother them in the slightest! They are also made with Velcro at the back so if the bandana gets caught it wont hurt them at all as it will just undo (which is good to know with my clumsy pups...but i haven't had any problems!)

...it is so nice to buy handmade things and not the same old stuff from pets at home! "

We met Mary and her Mum at the Dogs Trust Harefield Open Day back in August and we kept in touch through the Puppy Love Facebook page yet only discovered her wonderful blog earlier in the month.... I can't believe we didn't know about it sooner!!! Packed full of news, anecdotes and tips it's a fab read and I strongly urge push you all to go read & then of course follow/subscribe to The Critter Sermon... Now!! ;) And of course by doing so you also get to coo over pics of gorgeous rescues Holly & Darkley ... Adorable!! x x

9/11 Dogs Ten Years On

10 years ago today, the world changed. Big time. 

As George 'dubbleya' Bush said in a rare moment of sincerity & depth, at yesterday's memorial for Flight 93 in Pennsylvania ... 

“When the sun rose in the Pennsylvania sky 10 years ago, it was a peaceful September morning,” he said, “By the time it set, nearly 3,000 people had lost their lives." 

Even a decade on, whenever I look at the images from that day, my brain still struggles to process that what I'm seeing is not a movie still or some angry computer game. Today we want to honour the bravery of all involved in the rescue operation at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and those heroes of Flight 93 who really were the first to stand in the 'War on Terror' or whatever the politicians term it. To us, they just fought back and triumphed against pure evil. 

Of course, it wouldn't be Puppy Love if we didn't move on to the heroes of the furry variety... and we can't believe that somehow we missed this story over the last ten years! Maybe it has something to with the leaky eyes of grief and outrage but at last we have discovered the story of Michael Hingson and his guide dog Roselle who were working on the 78th floor of Tower One of the World Trade Center when the first plane hit Tower Two. Together, beautiful yellow lab Roselle leading the way, they began the evacuation and ended up just 100 yards away when Tower Two collapsed. And her fellow guide dog Salty also did the same for his owner in another area. I never have words for the loyalty of dogs, just a big lump in my throat. Roselle, like so many of the rescue dogs who worked on 9/11, has now crossed the Rainbow Bridge but just like the thousands who lost their lives that day, and in the resulting conflicts and attacks around the world, they will never be forgotten. 

Over 350 dogs worked at Ground zero and Boston journalisist Laurel Sweet worked with vet Dr Cynthia Otto who was treating their injuries from searching through the debris ... "I think the dogs were the only thing that kept people going at Ground Zero," Sweet quotes Otto as saying. "You'd actually see their faces change when a dog walked by."

Dutch photogrpapher Charlotte Dumas has tracked down the 15 still living FEMA doggies and complied a beautiful book called 'Retrieved' which is available now... 

If you don't want the leaky eyes, and believe me they'll come big stylee, click away now, as here are some of those doggie-heroes :

From the NY Times: Bailey, age 14, Thompson Station, Tenn. She went to the Pentagon following the attacks of 9/11.

Bretagne from Cypress, Texas, arrived at the site in New York on September 17, remaining there for ten days 

Moxie, 13, from Winthrop, Massachusetts, arrived with her handler, Mark Aliberti, at the World Trade Center on the evening of September 11 and searched the site for eight days

Tara, 16, from Ipswich, Massachusetts who stayed for 8 days from Sept 11th

Kaiser, 12, pictured at home in Indianapolis, Indiana, was deployed to the World Trade Center on September 11 and searched tirelessly for people in the rubble

Guinness, 15, from Highland, California, started work at the site with Sheila McKee

Merlyn and his handler Matt Claussen were deployed to Ground Zero on September 24, working the night shift for five days

Red, 11, from Annapolis, Maryland, went  to the Pentagon

Abigail, left, was deployed on the evening of September 17

Tuff arrived in New York at 11:00 pm on the day of attack to start working early the next day

Hoke from Denver searched for 5 days

From the NY Times: Orion, age 13, Vacaville, Calif. He worked at the World Trade Center for five days after the attacks 
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2033628/Surviving-9-11-rescue-dogs-scoured-Ground-Zero-bodies-commemorated-decade-difficult-mission.html#ixzz1Xdnr20gt

Northampton Market Square Dog Show & this week's Friday Funny

We're staying close to home  for this weekend's show.... about 5 mins walk away actually!! We are sooo excited for Sunday's Fun Dog Show & all round Fun Day in our hometown :) Last year we had a lovely time... after we got our head around the totally surreal feeling of being on our very own market square lols! This year the show is bigger & better with more stalls, more space and more fun and once again is raising funds in aid of local charity Animals in Need. They are a fab little charity in Little Irchester & really do rescue ANY animal in need, not just your usual pet menagerie. When I volunteered there I also helped look after hedgehogs, ferrets, squirrels, blackbirds...the LOT! Integrated into the site is Maxicare which is a dog rescue which along with taking in strays etc, also save dogs from pounds who put animals to sleep so they do an invaluable job and constantly require support & supplies so increased awareness through this event is fantastic. This weekend is also the 22nd annual Northampton Balloon Festival and we are hoping to catch up with our gorgeous staffie model Benson & his almost as gorgeous *winks* mama Jayne from Fake Bake Princesses who are visiting for the festival so if anyone is town for the Hot Air balloons, come down and say hi to us!! Entries are taken from 10.15am and you can download your entry form here. 

It's also time for our weekly Friday Funny & today's is one to make you squeal with delight. Here is the absolutely divine Kiwi, an Alaskan Klee Kai puppy, discovering a lime wedge for the first time! Enjoy!! x x

Dogs Trust Salisbury Fun Day

So last Sunday was the fabulous Dogs Trust Salisbury (@DT_Salisbury) Fun Day!! It was our first Dogs Trust event of the summer after we had to cancel Kenilworth last month due to that evil summer flu I generously passed around to everyone *oops!* The day was once again a roaring success with lots of lovely stalls for doggies and their bipeds...including a doggie bobbing for hotdogs stall, a timed doggie dash, bric-a-brac, pancakes, beer tent, fun dog shows, an attempt to break the world record for the biggest simulntaneous sit and MORE! *and breathe*...

Once again we had a fantastic time meeting all the gorgeous dogs and their wonderful owners. The total raised is an amazing £18,450.53!!! Wooooo!! A big paws up to gorgeous Leslie who organised the day and is a constant   supporter of Puppy Love *big hugs lovely lady!* 

World record attempt in Progress - Photo by Helen Smith

Unfortunately there just weren't quite enough doggies to break the record of 629 but an amazing 463 did take part! Wow!! And it was such a lovely sight to see - and sooo quiet! I think alot of doggies got ALOT of treats over those 3 minutes :) 

Photo by Helen Smith

Photo by Helen Smith

We also met up with our 'I'm Deaf' bandana muse & model, Jasper!! It was sooo lovely to see him & his family again and hear  how well he is getting along now. He also won a rosette in the show! GO Jasper! Kathleen, Becca & his fursis Poppy have done so well training him and making him feel happy & secure - you're stars! Again Kathleen and family have been great supporters of our products - thankyou so much lovelies! *hugs* 

Photo by Helen Smith

We also met Helen Smith of Reflectionz Photography who is an amazing photographer and took some wonderful shots of the whole day AND the Puppy Love stall! They are awesome - thankyou Helen! And not forgetting Artist Patricia Davies who is a brilliantly talented lady - see her fab pet portraits at www.patriciadavies.co.uk.

So all in all a wonderful day making new friends and catching up with old whilst spreading the Puppy Love... we can't wait for next year Leslie! Book us in! ;) And be sure to check out the latest additions to our customer gallery - some real beauties! x x

Photo by Helen Smith

More photos after the jump!! >> 

Dogs Trust Kenilworth Open Day

As those of you who follow us on Twitter may know, we have been booking our Summer 2011 events over the last few weeks... and our first confirmed event is.....

Dog's Trust Kenilworth's Open Day on Sunday July 10th 2011

This was our first event EVER back last summer and gives us the warm & fuzzies so we are so excited to have been invited back and to see all the Kenilworth staff and doggies again! We will bring you more details soon but be sure to expect lots of lovely stalls, raffles, yummies and a fun dog show x x

Weekend in Wales with Dogs and Sand Dunes

Hello Puppy Love-rs! Sorry this post is a day late, we had a lickle accident yesterday with an 8mm knitting needle... Ouch!

We had the most wonderful time in Wales for the Royal Wedding weekend!! Big love to Karen, Neil and the doggies for making us both so welcome and being all-round lovelies! We had a great day on Friday, watching the wedding in style with a scrummy brunch and on Saturday we visited Barmouth for the best Fish & Chips in North Wales by the beach and then drove on to Shell Island for fun in the Sand Dunes! It was Soxi's first time at the beach and although she was a little unsure of the water, she loved playing in the sand & even made a friend! We were amazed to see the number of starfish though - do hope they were ok and there is not a problem in the local environment. No fear though, Karen is a one-woman-starfish-rescue team & was helping them get back into the water. We also stocked up on some amazing new fabrics on Sunday including gold leatherette, pink leopard and black glitter faux fur.... pics & new items coming soon!!  

To view the full album, click here 

It was also Lee's birthday yesterday...25 years young!! Unfortunately he had to work after taking the Bank Holiday Monday off so we took him in a special delivery ...

Paws for Japan Day in aid of World Vets for the animals of Japan

Today is Paws for Japan Day!
Paws for Japan is uniting all animal-lovers across the world in a bid to raise as much money as we can for all the animals affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan last week. There are lots of fun things happening all across the internet today - including a special edition of the monthly #pawpawty on twitter, hosted as always by the woof-a-licious Dougal from Dougal's Den, a blog hop which you can join or check out here after the jump, and tons of promotions and giveaways...all with one aim in mind - helping animals like these:

This beautiful dog would not leave his injured pal behind and it is a perfect demonstration of the loyal devoted nature of animals. Major *leaky eyes here*. Amazing news though...both dogs were rescued and are now recovering in a shelter. Animals like these need rescuing by professionals who can sooth and treat them - please please donate using the ChipIn widget below...

All funds raised by Paws for Japan will go to World Vets who are currently deployed in Japan rescuing and treating animals affected by the disaster. Sooo... for a chance to win a p-awesome custom made Puppy Love bandana for your pet AND help out this great organisation and homeless, ownerless, voiceless and injured animals... have a go at our special Paws for Japan Prize Draw!!

There are 3 designs to choose from and to enter is sooo simple....

1) Fill out your details below or email your details to: puppy_love_petwear@hotmail.co.uk
2) Donate as much or as little as you can,using the secure donation site, ChipIn ... preferably in pennies...but if you can't just send your prayers for all our furry (and not-so-furry) friends

Woof-a-licious!! The winner will be notified by email after Buzzy picks a winner out of his bowl on Sunday! See more of the fab Paws for Japan events, including the Blog Hop, going on after the jump>>

Help Japan

Over our last few posts, we have been full of excitement for Crufts and our new online store... but away from that, since Friday we have been following the situation in Japan very closely and our heart has been breaking. Words can not express the devastation there and we send SO much love to all the people and animals affected by the disaster. We want to highlight the animals of Japan in this post as they are the ones who have no voice to tell us they are hurting and are often overlooked. Here are some ways we can all help our Japanese fuuriends and of course their owners too. 

• ARK - Animal Rescue Kansai - this local animal shelter is preparing for a massive influx of animals following the quake and tsunami and already have some facilities in place and a team of experienced staff able to deal with traumatised animals. You can donate through paypal on their site. 

• Japan Animal Rescue and Support - the Japan Cat Network, together with Heart Tokushima and Animal Friends Niigata has formed Japan Animal Rescue and Support and are taking donations online through ChipIn.

• Join the Japan Earthquake Animal Rescue and Support Facebook group and fanpage for up-to-date information on how to help.

• International Fund for Animal Welfare - they will be deploying a team to assess needs regarding animal rescue. They are encouraging support through donations, which will be used to buy pet food, veterinary supplies, vaccines and other necessities for animals needing help.

• World Vets - a non-government organization (NGO) that provides veterinary aid around the globe in collaboration with animal advocacy groups, foreign governments, US and foreign military groups and veterinary professionals abroad. They are getting supplies and a first responder team ready to deploy to Japan.

World Vets is the charity of choice for the Paws for Japan #Pawpawty on Twitter this coming week... on March 17th, instead of celbrating St. Patrick's Day and the 2nd year anniversary of the #PawPawty, there will be a day long event in conjunction with the Paws For Japan Day. If you'd like to get involved with Paws for Japan, here's how to pawticipate:

How to Participate

1. Grab the badge(s).

2. On March 17th, post, tweet, or share on Facebook about the World Vets effort for animal relief in Japan. Be as creative as you wish in promoting the cause!

3. We will create a blog hop using Linky Tools. Please add your blog link.

4. If you are a retailer and would like to donate a portion of your profits that day to World Vets relief effort, let me know and I will share that on Thursday. As always, giveaways are also a great way to support the cause.

Crufts 2011

Aww...it's all over for another year now after gorgeous Jet the flatcoated retriever claimed his THIRD Crufts title... this time as Best In Show! Jet is 9 and it was lovely to see an older doggie (who is still very much in his prime) take the title.... but to us they really are all winners! Every single doggie there (over 21,000 of them too) was absolutely beautiful to us and are awarded the Puppy Love 'You're P-awesome' award.

Photo @ The Daily Mail

We had a wonderful time there at the NEC on Saturday and met so many lovely people & doggies. There is so much to see and next year we will be going to 2 days for sure! We didn't go to the main arena and show-rings as really we just like to see the charity stalls and stands - like the wonderful Galen Therapy Centre who gorgeous Karen is training with and Support Dogs UK. Here is a demonstration of Canine Myotherapy in action... doggie was so relaxed, she fell asleep! 

Sarah from Galen Therapy at work

We also saw some fab doggie products, like the 100% bio-degradeable bowls at Beco Things. Here are a selcetion of the goodies we picked up:

Almost as soon as we arrived, we met up with Soxi's Mami & Papi, Karen and Neil who are truely two of the loveliest people in existence! We had such a giggle and Karen proudly sported her Puppy Love 'Race Cars not Greyhounds' Shopper all day. You can get one for yourself here! We can't wait to go visit them and gorgeous Soxi, Brooke and Dino later in the year :) 

Now, I know some of you will already have heard of serotonin boosters and how the sunshine can make you feel happier and is great for your well-being etc etc...maybe some of you wild-ones have heard of some of those recreational drugs too? Well, we have found something even better! It is very exclusive and we feel very lucky indeed to have been able to have been given some for free..... introducing the BEST smile and well-being enducing treatment on the planet... Cassie Cuddles!! ;) 

It was so lovely to meet support dog Cassie in the reals and her p-awesome mommy, Sylv who has the coolest hair-do and is truly an inpirational lady :) We found out too, that not only is Cassie extremely beautiful, she is also very very clever as she wasn't trained until she was 4. Before that she was Sylv's pet doggie. The bond between the two of them was so wonderful to see and gave us the *leaky eyes* when we left them. Happy leaky eyes though - not sad ones :) Hope we can visit them both again soon!! We are making Cassie a little fleecey hoodie for after her hydro-therapy sessions. 

A special shoutout also to Cassie's fellow support dog, and our newest twitter friend, Merlin and his girlie Grace who were in the final of Friends for Life at Crufts last night...they also gave us the happy leaky eyes... and we are so proud of them! Winners to us and all your twitter family guys! And to our little minxy-moo's family and breeder, Jackie from Hitmonchan Cresteds who was there showing off that amazing Hitmonchan gene pool! 

All in all, a fab time was had by by all! Lee even for-go-ed the Arsenal game to stay longer! That's saying something! Crufts 2012 here we come... x x

More photos after the jump... >>

Crufts & Craziness

Wowza...this week has just flown by! 

We have been sooo busy here at Puppy Love HQ getting all our new products together ready for the new online store launch next week! Things are coming along well... teasers for you include an addition to our ECO© collection... hand-crocheted ECO© beds, glamorous Tuxedo bandanas AND new hand-knit sweater designs. We will also be shipping imternationally too from the new store...fab news! 

More great news is...we will be at Crufts this year at Birmingham's NEC! We don't have a stall but are visiting our fab friends Karen & Neil (gorgeous @Soxiloxi's Mami & Papi) at the Galen Therapy Stall and are very excited indeed. Galen Canine Myotherapy Treatment is a gentle and non-invasive treatment for muscular problems and there will be live demonstrations going on - if your doggie has any muscular isuues,, check out the therapy and get more info, including local practitioners, by clicking the link ... 

We will also be meeting up with beautiful @Cassie_Spaniel and her mummy, Sylv, on the Support Dogs UK stall! Support Dogs UK is a fantastic UK charity dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with epilepsy, physical disabilities and children with autism by training dogs to act as efficient and safe assistants. Each dog is taught tasks tailored to his owner's needs, enabling them to lead a fuller and more independent life... really an amazing charity! Aside from all the amazing things these doggies learn to do, a cuddle can make the biggest difference! And we've even managed to line up some special Cassie-cuddles for us too!! 

Only a few more sleeps to go now...  Crufts starts on March 10th and we will be there on the 12th. If you see us, or Galen & Support Dogs do come say hi!! x x

Puppy Love Petwear TV

Puppy Love now has our very own youtube.com channel: 

'PUPPY LOVE PETWEAR TV'!! 

Watch our brand new advert, subscribe & be youtube.com friends with us here! x x

Friday Funny

Happy Friday everyone! 

Here's this week's Friday Funny...

Have a great weekend! x x

New Year...New URL!

Firstly, let me wish you a very 
"Happy New Year!" 
Hope you had a fab festive season?!

2011 is going to be a very exciting year for us all here at PUPPY LOVE and we can't wait to share it all with you! From lots of fab new dog and pet products to a tour of the UK doing dog-shows and fun-days in the summer... there's going to be lots going on!! But our first bit of news...which is very exciting indeed... is that we now have our very own URL:

www.puppylovepets.co.uk

Be sure to tell all your dog & animal loving friends!! ;) x x

Buzz is on Facebook

Buzzy now has his very own Facebook profile!! Come say 'Hello!' and add him as a fuurriend here! x x

Did you miss us? x

We have missed u! We have been neglecting our poor blog for the last few weeks... we have been sooo busy though helping poor Mum sort out her disaster area of a bathroom *loong story which includes burst pipes and a soggy house!*... buying new fabrics & getting together our AW10 collection for you... and being throughly emersed in a series of books by the amazing author, Sunny. More on them in a later post as soo much to say...  but for today... a sneaky peak at some of our new fabrics!

We have also got some seasonal prints in...including sppoookkky Halloween & Christmas! Can't wait to get some fab items made up in them... will keep you posted!! :) x x