Time To Rethink What Your Pups are Eating

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CheckYourPetFood #CollectiveBias. We are so excited to share our favorite new pet food today!

Happy dogs, happy life - that's my motto! We are definitely dog lovers through and through. We literally don't spend a day away from them unless we absolutely have to. We cater each and every day, as well as each and every vacation to making sure our pups are happy, healthy, and enjoying the right food. Above, you can see our cousin dog Mickey, the English Bulldog. She also LOVES this food so much and could not wait for her turn to show off her new favorite food.

We care about each and every dog in our families, as well as our friends' pets, and we often get asked what sort of food we feed our dogs. That's probably because everyone knows we are such dog lovers. 

TIME FOR A REALITY CHECK

It may be time to do a reality check on your dog food. Does it contain real meat? Is it grain free? If not, it’s time for a change…for something that is a better value both to your pet and to you! Meijer has great products for your dog that are full of quality ingredients and at a great price. I love shopping at Meijer for Purina® Dog Chow and Purina® Beneful® products, and I encourage you to do the same. We brought some on our latest vacay, and the dogs were super happy about it.

We treat them like family, so making sure they are fed the right ingredients makes me know they will be happier for lots of years to come. Our two beautiful girls, Porter and Cabbie are definitely food-motivated. This means that I can even give them a few kernels of dog food as a treat, so I stick to their diets properly, and I do not overfeed them. I'd be lost without these dogs, they're my everything! 

NOW THROUGH MARCH 3, 2018 - GET $1.00 OFF Purina® Dog Chow (32 lb and smaller) and Purina® Beneful® with mPerks coupons at Meijer!

Porter is only a year and a half old, so she was a bit harder to motivate to sit still. The whole time we were taking photos, she only wanted to sit near the dog food :) She kept pawing at the Purina Dog Chow making sure we knew which one she wanted! While she wouldn't actually sit there long enough to take a portrait of her, I thought this in-action shot of her giving Cabbie a kiss was pretty cute. She loved the food so much.

TREATING THEM LIKE FAMILY

Re-think What You’re Feeding Your Dog - take a closer look at your dog food, and compare its quality and value to what can be found in Dog Chow and Beneful.

Feed Them Like Family - Our dogs are 100% part of the family, too. That means feeding them quality nutrition.

Take Them On Walks and Give Them Plenty of Exercise Through Play Time - I try to walk the dogs for at least one hour, five times a day, weather permitting (basically only rain or SUPER freezing temps will keep me from doing this). While this may seem like a lot of time, I think of those hours that I may spend watching TV or playing on my phone. Time flies, so it's fun to refocus your energy and free time on your pets when possible.

Provide A Comfy Dog Bed - Our pets do need a comfortable and supportive bed. Meijer does have a ton of great options, and while some beds may be made from cute fabrics, above all else, I always make sure to look for a bed that has super thick, supportive memory foam and a washable cover.

Include Them In Travel - like I mentioned before, we always try to take our dogs on vacations with us. We make sure to stay in pet friendly hotels, go camping, or rent a rental house that's pet friendly. More and more, establishments are welcoming well behaved dogs with open arms, so do a quick search for dog friendly travel, and you may find something new! Otherwise, feel free to do a staycation with your pets, and treat them like royalty in your own home.

Take Time To Do Special Dog Activities With Them - while we humans have TONS of things to entertain us like our phones, tablets, games, conversations with other people, etc, dogs only have a limited amount of entertainment just within your home. I love taking the dogs on special car rides to the dog park, pet store, or if I will only be in a store for a few minutes, I sometimes take the dogs for a ride then too. They absolutely LOVE that extra stimulation of a new setting, smells, or environment. 


FEATURED PRODUCTS:

Purina Dog Chow Natural Plus Vitamins & Minerals Dog Food 4 lb

Purina Beneful Grain Free With Ream Farm-Raised Chicken Adult Dry Dog Food 12.5 lb

Now is the time to take advantage of the in store savings, and MPerk deals at Meijer! Here are a few more tips that make me choose Purina products! 

Quality Doesn’t Always Mean a Fancy Label - Just take a look at Beneful and Dog Chow. Both brands come loaded with quality nutrition, and they’re backed by Purina—a leader in pet nutrition with 90+ years of experience.

Every Dog Deserves Real Meat - Dogs love real meat. It’s what they seek in nature, and what they deserve. And you deserve to buy it at the prices you find when you shop Dog Chow and Beneful at Meijer.

No More Compromise - Think you can’t get real meat dog food at a price you can afford? Think again. That’s what Reality Check at Meijer is all about—finally, you can get real meat at the right price and don’t have to settle for lower-end dog foods.

Better for Them, and My Budget - Tout the benefits of feeding your dog real meat, quality nutrition like Beneful and Dog Chow, and the positive impact it has on your wallet when you save at Meijer.

What to Look for in a Label - Meat, or meat flavor? Real meat, of course. Showcase the quality ingredients found in Dog Chow’s and Beneful’s label as a part of a ‘label lesson.’

Real Ingredients, Right Prices, Remarkably Easy - Reality Check is all about finding real meat dog food at the right price, and it’s even better when you throw in Curbside shopping—it becomes super easy, too. Order Dog Chow or Beneful for pickup or shipment to your door, and you’re done. You can do it with the rest of your regular grocery shopping for even less hassle.

Connect with Meijer on Social

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/meijer/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/meijer / @meijer

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/meijer

Instagram - @Meijer

Connect With Purina On Social

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/purina

Twitter - https://twitter.com/purina / @Purina

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/purina

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/purina/

Instagram - @Purina

Thanks for stopping by!

Treating With Nutrish Treats From Rachel Ray + Road Tripping With Dogs Tips

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #TreatingWithNutrish #NutrishPets #CollectiveBias

I found a new way to make my dogs behave better, haha! They absolutely LOVED these Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Dog Treats. Our two beautiful dogs had such a fun time helping me with this post, and planning and packing for our next road trip. I am excited to share some tips on Road Tripping With Dogs (and a puppy)! Our 8 year old Chocolate Lab has traveled nearly 60,000+ miles with us, and our recent road trip from southern Illinois to the Florida Keys was our Chocolate Labradoodle's first big road trip ever. Bringing these treats along with us helps immensely! They will do whatever we want when we temp them with treats, so I was so happy to incorporate these NUTRISH treats into our travels. 

HERE ARE THE AVAILABLE VARIETIES OF TREATS:

Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Deli Cuts
Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Meatloaf Morsels
Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Pawsta
Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Savory Roasters
Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Burger Bites

WHAT TO PACK FOR YOUR ROAD TRIP WITH DOGS + A PUPPY:

1-2 Gallons of water

Dog Bed

Keep Collars on Dogs + Leashes Within Reach

Dog Treats

Dog Food In A Gallon Ziploc Bag 

Doggie Waste Bage

Dog Toys

Chewies Like Rawhides

I found these amazing treats at the Winn Dixie grocery store in Big Pine Key, FL. They had these two varieties, the Savory Roasters and the Deli Cuts. In fact, I've already gone back a second time to get more treats, the dogs love them SO much!!

Look for them where you purchase your family's groceries! 

NO artificial flavors or meat by-products!! This is extremely important to me.

Safely USA cooked with the world's best ingredients. 

Note: Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Treats are intended for intermittent or supplemental feeding only. Please watch your dog to ensure Nutrish treats are thoroughly chewed before swallowing. Break into small pieces for smaller dogs.

How To Create A Halloween BOO Kit (A Dog Gift Basket for Halloween) PLUS 2 DIY Dog Toys

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser, Mars, Incorporated. All opinions are mine alone. #BOOItForward #PawfectBOO #CollectiveBias

So excited to present you with an adorable Halloween Gift Basket, that can be made with a few simple materials, and then given to someone as a surprise. This is all about gifting a fun, dog-related gift basket and then secretly giving it to someone who deserves it. The person I chose to gift mine to is our long-time family veterinarian, Dr. Tally at Central Hospital for Animals here in Carbondale, IL. 


Get tons of inspirations, and to see more of the BOO Kits on the here
And, visit BooItForward page on Walmart.comhere  BOO Kit
 BOO Kit

ADD THESE ITEMS TO YOUR BOO KIT BASKET

American Greetings® has a great selection of Halloween Items like treat/candy bags, stickers, tissue paper, gift bags, and Halloween Cards. These would make for adorable and thoughtful additions to fill any BOO Kit Gift Basket!

MY LITTLE HELPER, PORTER

Of course, my little chocolate Labradoodle and Chocolate Lab wanted to help with absolutely every step of this Halloween Boo Basket. They helped me make the toys, and Porter sat still for about 1 minute to help me shoot s few adorable puppy pics :) She just turned 10 weeks and she follows me everywhere. 


DIY MUMMY GIFT BASKET

MUMMY BASKET HOW TO:

1.) Cut cheesecloth (also called creepy cloth) into 2" strips lengthwise. 

2.) Wrap 2-3 strips around the basket and secure with glue in back.

3.) Cut out eyes from the sparkle foam. You will see that I simply cut two ovals out of the white one, then black pupils from the black foam. Glue the eyes to the front of the basket.

4.) Wrap and glue 2-3 more strips of cheesecloth around the basket, making sure to overlap the eyes just a little bit.

5.) Now, you are ready to fill your basket with all sorts of good things! Read on to learn about 2 Dog Toy DIY's, that are so easy!


DIY HALLOWEEN DOG TOY #1

These toys are simple, but my pups really love them. The fleece also cleans their teeth, and this toy gives dogs a really safe toy to play tug with since it's so soft. Here's how to make them:

1.) Cut 3 strips of fleece (any combo of 1-3 colors will do), and stretch the pieces as long as they will stretch. 

2.) Tie the 3 pieces of fleece together at the top, and use a clip board to hold the pieces, or ask a friend to hold the pieces while you braid them.

3.) Braid the pieces together, and tie the end up so the braid doesn't come loose. That's it!

DIY HALLOWEEN DOG TOY #2

This simple dog toy requires only two materials - 2 tennis balls, and 2 Halloween Socks. Dogs LOVE these toys so much! Make sure to use supervision when allowing a dog to play with any toy. 



SHOPPING FOR BOO KIT SUPPLIES 

I found the majority of the materials in this BOO Kit at Walmart. The MARS Pet supplies are all located in the Pet Care aisle at Walmart. I found these items, below, that I added to my BOO Kit. 

  • PEDIGREE® DENTASTIX™ Fresh Treats Small/ Medium (Doggie Dental Area)
  • PEDIGREE® MARROBONE™ Real Beef Flavor Treats Mini (Dog Treats Area)
  • CESAR® SAVORY DELIGHTS® ROTISSERIE CHICKEN FLAVOR WITH BACON & CHEESE (In the soft dog food area).

GIFTING THE BOO KIT

I decided to surprise my vet with this fun BOO Kit! I am sure she is going to LOVE it! Who will you surprise with the BOO Kit you create? Please tell me in the links below, and if you make your own BOO Kit, then also share that link too :)