New Bandana designs! Twilight inspired ...*swoon*

OMG Puppy Lovers... it is now less than 2 weeks until Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part One is out at the cinema! Very excited indeed here at Puppy Love HQ! Next Friday we shall be staging our very own Twiathlon with our gorgeous friend Nicola and watching all 4 films in succession... I know, i know...lickle bit nerdy but it's only like the boys watching successive football matches on a Sunday afternoon right?! Lols. In honour of the Sparkly One and (not quite so much but still) the Furry One, we have a new addition to our bandana collection.... Twilight inspired Team Edward & Team Jacob designs!! 

Made with 100% cotton, and fastened with Velcro, each one is handmade and embroidered using our lovely embroidery machine with really nice, slightly sheeny Mettler embroidery threads. They are available now in our eBay store from £6.99 and as always come in all sizes. As an extra treat for you...scroll down after the jump for the Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part One movie trailer!! *SQUEAL!* x x

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

Trick or Treat!? This week's Friday Funny...

BOO!! It's Howl-o-ween weekend Puppy Lovers!! Who's dressing up? Mr Buzz and Miss Hunbun have their Halloween bandanas ready and also a special treat for the 31st... a Vampire costume for Buzzy and a Pumpkin for little missy. Piccies will be coming, no fear!! We hope you all have a spooktacular time if you are going to a party or just staying in with a scary movie and popcorn. Remember to get those treats in for the trick or treaters! Here's a cute little Halloween themed Friday Funny for you from Little Guy who look like he could be Lubo's long lost cousin! Such a cutie! And clever too... Enjoy! x x

Spooktacular Halloween dog bandanas & this week's Friday Funny!

Wow...Friday again already! Is someone spinning the earth faster or something?! This week has flown by here at Puppy Love HQ where we have been busy making lots of spooooky skull and blood curdling bat bandanas for Halloween...which is only a couple of weeks away now! We still have a limited amount of fabric left, so if you'd like one get to our online eBay shop vampire-speed fast by clicking here. Prices start from £3.99 with free P&P and as always, come in all sizes from XS to XL.

Halloween is one of our favourite holidays and we will certainly be getting into the spooky spirit with a pumpkin, sweeties & a scary film on the 31st! What do you have planned? 

Dressing up is a must and if a spooktacular bandana just isn't flamboyant enough for you, check out this week's Friday Funny for some crazy costume ideas! 

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!! >> 

London & UK Riots and the brave Police Dogs and Horses

We did have a blog post about Dogs Trust Salisbury ready to publish today but we just couldn't not mention the horrendous rioting that has been going on in London and now in cities across the UK over the last few nights.

Photo courtesy of the Daily Mirror 

I have certainly never seen anything like it in my lifetime, and i don't think I can think of another time in UK history when the drive behind such mindless violence and looting is seemingly just pure greed and destruction. All of us here at Puppy Love are sickened by the behaviour of these vandals and thugs - the majority of which are in their teens! It is scary and sad to think that this is what a portion of the next generation is capable of. They have no respect for anyone or anything - including themselves. There has been criticism as always of the police force but really with such limited resources and such a large number of rioters we think they are limited in the way that they can react. It is truly flabergasting to watch the footage on the news of these looters and how easy it is for them to cause such havoc with no police or otherwise around to grab them. But our biggest praise always goes to, surprise surprise, the animals. We never fail to be moved by pictures of the police horses and dogs who do such an amazing job and are so brave and calm in the face of craziness. Tonight on Sky news it was reported that 5 police dogs have been injured in the rioting so far and we are sending them lots of love in the #pawcircle to get well soon. They are so loyal and do their jobs so well... all for the reward of a tennis ball bless them! We also send out love to all those animals affected by the violence and of course their humans. Stay safe everyone and join the stand against the rioting by joining the Facebook group to clean-up here  or by using the twitter hashtag #riotcleanup and visit the site www.riotcleanup.co.uk x x

Photo courtesy of Demotix

Photo courtesy of the Daily Record

Photo by Lee Massey

Showbiz Saturday: Britain's Got Talent Dog Act Finalists

Happy Saturday everyone! This week's Showbiz Saturday post is dedicated to home-grown showbiz doggies... Unless you've been living in a cave (international Puppy Love-rs excused of course! ;) ) the last few weeks you'll know it's been all about Britain's Got Talent in the run up to the big final tonight. With acts such as Michael Collings, Razy Gogonea & much talked about in the press, 12 year old Ronan Parkes, it should be a great final...but we feel that the great British public have let us down with their voting habits yet again...there are no doggie acts in the final!!! *sniffles* Here is our little shout-out to all the gorgeous doggies who took part ... you're all totally P-AWESOME winners to us!!!! 

Pip & Puppy

Pip and Puppy were in the top 3 last night but the judges chose singer Michael Collings to go through to tonight's final. Absolutely gorgeous Pip and even more gorgeous Buddy wowed Simon Cowell, who wanted both acts to go through. As Pip sings note-perfect beautiful opera, little Buddy throws back his adorable little head and sings along. Soooo cute! We love you both & look forward to seeing more of you on the telly box!!

Angela & Teddy

12 year old Teddy the poodle is not the best doggie dancer in the world but he is definitely the cutest! In his twilight years, he is doing a brilliant job of jumping and reversing around objects and the piece du resistance... pushing giant balls and as shown here baskets! We think after his spot in the limelight, Teddy now needs to go home and have lots of relaxing time full of cuddles and treats and naps. Love you Teddy!

Donelda Guy with Mega & Biba

Mega & Biba are just soooo clever! And beautiful! We love their little sparkly anklets. Dog trainer Donelda Guy put on another brilliant show with the girls on Monday's semi-final. Dancing to Shirley Bassey singing Pink's 'Get the Party Started' the act was just so glam and fun! 2 of the best doggie dancers we've ever seen! Wooo... GO Mega & Biba!!

Mexican Mayhem

Mexican Mayhem are a fun little trio - Melanie and her two adorable little Chi's, Twizzle & Tucker. Melanie belongs to a training club and paid tribute to the late-leader of that club in Thursday's semi-final. Now, for us, what makes this act so fun is little Twizzle's complete headstrong minxyness!! It must come with the curls as our little curly madam is also rather minxy... whilst Tucker negotiates her obstacle course as directed by Melanie, Twizzle is having NONE of it!! Lols. We did think the loud bangs and pyrotechnics were a little unsettling for these two at the end of the act though and hope that they got lots of TLC when they got home.  Ai Chihuahua!! 

The Britain's Got Talent final is live tonight on ITV 1 at 7pm. x x

Don't forget, today is also Blog Hopping day... a great way to meet new furriends! Follow the all-new picture list after the jump >>

Cute-as- a-button Dog + Stick + Statue.... this week's Friday Funny

Wow, it's been a SUPER busy week here this week at Puppy Love HQ! We have been stocking up for the summer shows,  making bandanas for Greyhound Rescue Shropshire & Borders & Chasing Tails, visiting Rodney & Lubo AND gone into our very first independent stockist, Beanos near Hampton Court in London! More on that coming soon... It's sooo exciting!

After all that craziness we have really enjoyed searching through all the amazing animals clips & pictures on t'interweb but this one was our fave today... Sooo sweet!! Enjoy! x x

Dogs Trust Snetterton Fun Open Day on Sunday 12th June 2011

Another date for your diary Puppy Love-rs! We are delighted to confirm that we shall be at the Dog's Trust Snetterton Fun Dog Show and Open Day on Sunday the 12th June. The event starts at 12noon until 4pm and gates open at 11.30am for registrations into the show! More details to come on the Dogs Trust official site www.dogstrust.org.uk but expect raffles, tombolas, yummies and FUN FUN FUN!! For more information, you can contact the centre on 01953 498 012 or 01953 498 377.

Map data ©2011 Google, Tele Atlas - Terms of Use

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DIRECTIONS

Take the A11 (Norwich to London). The turning for the Centre is situated two miles south of Attleborough and two miles north of Snetterton race track. Take the turning for Snetterton Village and follow the signs for Dogs Trust. Please note if you are travelling from Norwich you'll need to follow signs to Shropham village and look for the signs to Dogs Trust.