A couple nights ago, I had this dream about my mother’s cat trying to climb the livingroom drapes (again). So, over breakfast, I gently suggested to He Who Hogs The Power Tools that he should design and build a nice scratching post
tower thing for my mother. (Well, for her cat, obviously.)

He heard me out, sighed, and went back to flipping the glossy pages of Extreme Kitchen Makeover Magazine into his Raisin Bran.

Okay. Not interested right now. I get that.
Moving on…

Then today I came across Kitty Mansions‘s new video of the most staggeringly huge and elaborate kitty climbing tower EVER. They call this model of cat tower “Buckingham Palace” — for obvious reasons.

(Lots more where this came from, pussycats! KittyMansions.com.)

Too much?

Then take a peek at this Modular Cat Castle:
Ultra modern, sleek, even downright manly — with not a scrap of pastel-pink shag or dangle-spring birdy-toy in sight.

Also, this “cat playground” is huge, apparently. I’m not quite sure of the size when it all comes together, never having laid eyes on a Cat Castle in real life — who travels in those high circles? — but the carpeted beams that form the structure (and hold up the 11 faux-fur hammocks provided for kitty to snooze in) are 13.5 inches long. So, I’m figuring (a) it’s got to be better than five feet high and (b) some assembly is most certainly going to be required. On the plus side, it should be comparatively easy to transport, when disassembled, as it’s mostly all straight beams and fabric bits.

It’s by the same feline-friendly design firm as Stairway to Cat Heaven, which you may have seen before. Same idea, different configuration…

And just think about that convenient U-shape.

Couldn’t you slip the cat castle around a single bed, and pretend to your overnight guests that it’s just a hip designer headboard they aren’t cool enough to have heard about yet? Sure you could! (It’s not like the cat is going to rat you out, tee hee.)

Oh, and the bits of catnip in the corner?
Heh.
Just a coincidence.

Who let the dogs out? It doesn’t matter! because…
He Who Hogs The Power Tools built us this very lovely wooden pet gate for our porch (or “verandah,” as we usually call it), so the dogs can hang out in comfort and safety, while we do yard work or whatever.

So, the dogs are free to go into the fenced side yard off the other side, if they need to “do their business,” but the pet gate on the driveway side means they can’t get out and run loose in the yard — possibly to get lost or end up on the road or find a skunk to play with. You like?

A couple of design features in this gate I particularly like:

For one thing, there’s no ugly hook-and-eye or latch to fumble with, if your hands are full of dog leashes or grocery bags — the gate fastens with a knob attached to a slider, neatly hidden inside the top rail. It’s easy to use; in fact, you should know this is not a child-safe gate because a smart toddler can figure it out in about 2 seconds. So far, we haven’t found a dog who could open the pet gate, though — but then, to be fair, I haven’t tested it on a wiley Border Collie!

Also, you know how wooden gates, especially those that go across a wide opening like this one, tend to sag down at one side, over time? Here, the corners are reinforced with steel, but the metal is cleverly hidden inside the gate frame so as not to spoil the looks. I do think it’s a pretty good-looking piece of woodworking, too. See how the design of the gate matches the porch railing: almost too elegant for This Old Farmhouse!

I’m probably not the only dog owner who has spent a ridiculous amount of time and effort on making sure her spoiled dogs are comfy.

The best dog beds I’ve found yet – meaning the most practical and durable – are a couple I got about 8 years ago at the hardware store. Basically, they’re bags of chipped foam stuffing inside a zippered cover made of PVC-lined canvas.

There wasn’t enough of the original stuffing, of course, and it all balled up in one corner within a couple weeks – you’ve got to go to the really high end dog beds for adequate stuffing, don’t you find? – but those PVC/canvas covers were pure genius. You can just hose those beds down when they get dirty!

Eight years later, I’m still using those PVC-lined canvas dogs beds (well, the dogs are still using them, to be precise) although I’ve long since swapped out the old chipped-foam stuffing for a few layers of egg-crate foam I got secondhand on Kajiji.

And just today I noticed that there’s a 3 inch gap along one seam, so I’ll need to make a few repairs…

Really, there’s just one drawback:

They’re kind of more like crate pads than proper dog beds now.  While that’s actually perfect for my elderly Golden Retriever, who struggles to get to her feet if her bed is too soft, a flat canvas-covered pad is just not cosy enough to suit my two skinny pups on a winter night. The Greyhounds are more the fluff-up-the-bed-and-nest kind of dogs… and if you can’t fluff it, they don’t consider it an adequate dog bed. Sulking and fidgeting will occur. Also, loud sighing.

Now, I’ve got a friend who found a wonderful dog bed at one of those big department stores off in the Big City, and only about thirty dollars, too!  It’s an oval cushion with a sort of big fat bolster attached along one side and the ends. We call it “The Princesss Bed” – it’s sort of a rich girly brocade kind of fabric, very luxurious-looking. In fact, it looks comfortable enough to put in your own boudoir for lounging on. I’ve got my eye out to get one of those, but haven’t found it in local stores yet.

Meanwhile, Value Village and the Salvation Army Thrift Store to the rescue…

You can get a double or queen sized comforter for between ten and fifteen dollars at a secondhand store, if you don’t mind some truly eye-popping colours and patterns.  (I did end up making an envelope of a nice plain beige fabric, just like a big pillow slip, to cover up a comforter that had huge ugly purple cabbage-roses all over it. Yes, I bought such a monstrosity –  what can I say? It was cheap; and I was desperate for dog bedding, thanks to a foster dog with a yen to redecorate.

Throw a couple of those big of comforters around, on top of the foam pad dog beds, and voila! you’ve got oodles of sleeping space for the canine kids!

Okay, so it’s not tidy.  Or all that attractive, although the dogs don’t seem to mind.  But, hey, it’ll do for now, suitable for both the sleep-flat dog and the pair of nesters… and my quest for the Platonic Ideal of a dog bed shall go on.

One of our dogs has decided that slippery floors — tile, laminate, hardwood, anything but carpet— are freaky and he’s walking over them like Bambi on ice! You know, all stiff-legged and trembling. And walking like that, the poor dog’s paws seem to slip all the more easily.

My dog-trainer friend Carol suggested using something called Paw Wax, which softens and protects the pads and helps to give the dog better grip on slippery surfaces.

I think it’s worth a try — the only other anti-slip pet product I’ve found is an aerosol spray called “Show Foot” that’s mostly used by people with show dogs, to keep the dogs from slipping on the smooth floor in a competition ring. I’m not crazy about spraying products into the air, however — expecially around my dogs — so Paw Wax it will be…

Carol says you have to be careful use enough wax on the paws or they can become even more slippery, but the paw wax is good for use all year-round and helps to protect the dog’s feet from everything from hot pavement in summer to ice and road-salt in winter — bonus!

Update: I’ve found another option for helping your dog (especially an old dog) walk on slippery floors like linoleum and ceramic tile: SortKwik Fingertip Moistener. You’ll find it listed with office supplies, not pet products, because it’s made for people who have to sort documents or money for a living, an anti-bacterial good that makes their fingertips just a little bit sticky. It won’t do much to protect against cold and salt on the roads (nothing beats dog boots for that) but a little bit on the dog’s pads — together with being sure to keep the nails well trimmed to improve the dog’s traction on smooth surfaces — provides just enough grip to help the dog do better walking on those slippery floors!

Okay, okay, I know you’ve probably all seen this amazing YouTube video before — the one where a whole group of trained dogs are home alone and they decorate the Christmas tree — but let’s enjoy the smart doggies one more time, heading into the holidays!

This is like a Christmas pageant for a dog training school (in Hungary, isn’t it?) and a really clever idea! If you watch carefully, you’ll be able to see what behaviours each of the dogs has been trained to do (opening the cupboard door, pulling the garland, carrying the Christmas balls, or whatever) and how the bits are all edited together to make this impressive show…

But you’d never see a video like this coming out of a dog obedience school in most major cities in the US or Canada.

Want to know why?

Because they’ve got unneutered pitbulls running around off-leash in the same room as other dogs, including a tiny toy poodle. And with all the successful push for breed-specific dog bans we’ve had in North America, people have come to believe — misguidedly — that certain breeds of big powerful dogs cannot be trained or trusted.

Hope this happy little Merry Christmas doggy video helps to counter that narrow opinion, and help the advocates for breed-specific legislation see that all dogs are individual characters — just like people — regardless of their shape, size, or breed!

Have a Very Merry Christmas & New Year’s Holidays, everyone!
Woof woof!

There have been so many lovely stories of dogs who’ve been helped by the dog boot pattern I scribbled out and posted when I had to make a quick set of winter boots for my greyhound, Casey — it’s really pretty heartwarming.

Old dogs who slip on the ice…
Dogs with injured paws in need of protection…
Dogs with tender toes who are sensitive to cold…
Outdoor sporting dogs who need a little extra warmth and traction…

Like this GSD beauty, Storm, who lives in Canada’s cold far north:

photo: YKStorm

Pat‘s daughter took her German Shepherd dog out on a rescue mission — looking for a lost Corgi pup who’d bolted in a panic when he got scared on a trail. The pup was found and brought safely home — “fine and much more obedient after 3 days out in -40″ — but Storm lost one of her boots in the snow.

Pat used my pattern to make new doggie booties for her: a beautiful blue colour, extra tall for use in deep snow, with reflective patches for safety.

photo credit: YKStorm

Pat’s one of a growing number of clever and caring dog lovers who have improved on my simple pattern to suit their own dogs’ needs — by adding extra length or a stretchy cuff, experimenting with different non-slip materials on the soles of the boots, and sewing up waterproof versions of the fleece original.

Best yet, these dog lovers are very generous in sharing their ideas with others through their comments.

But that’s not the end of the good puppy karma. Some people — with Casey’s full blessings — are now making these dog booties for sale to help other dogs who have non-sewing owners, dogs in foster homes, and even as a fundraiser to help a greyhound adoption group! You know, I said that it’s heartwarming, all this sewing and creative adaptation… but it’s the sharing that really brightens up a dark winter day and gives hope that, even in tough times, we self-involved human beings can learn to be as giving and caring as our dogs.

If it broke you up to say good-bye to the Shiba Inu litter whose “Puppy Cam” webcam broadcasts stole hearts through the holidays, fear not — a new pooch passion’s here. Once again, we’ve got a chance to watch fuzzy adorable pups of exotic breeding as they romp and snooze and rip apart toys in the nursery — awaiting the time of weaning and adoption — but this time it’s a litter of Thai Ridgeback puppies.

Online video chat by Ustream

If you’re still pining for the Shibas, however — and who wouldn’t? — you’ll be glad to know that the original Puppy Cam madness continues. Richard Gere and the Puppy Cam Shibas are teaming up in a remake of Hatchiko, the Japanese tale of a brave and faithful little dog…

I’ve not seen the Japanese film, but a dear friend with whom I shared the love of a Shiba for a number of years gave me a copy of a children’s book called Hachiko Waits that tells the dog’s story — and if you’re a dog lover, and if you’re lucky enough to come across a copy, I’d grab it. (And if I were a publisher, I’d be haggling for the reprint rights, before the Hatchiko movie is released!)

Let the ooh, sweet doggie baby-talk commence!

This beautiful 12-year-old Golden Retriever has just moved in. She needed to find a new home quickly — and I thought about it for all of, oh, maybe a nano-second, when asked if I had room for a second dog.

Casey the Wonder Hound (my long-suffering greyhound), fortunately seems to agree that Cinder (that’s her name) is the kind of gentle, calm, refined lady-dog with whom he can share his domestic arrangements.

He’s still in charge of the squeaky ball — in fact, of any dog toy that sounds like prey in its final death throes — but she is allowed to wander about with a knotted rope or a Kong in her mouth, dropping it at people’s feet. Oh, and Cinder is also responsible for making sure that large amounts of white-gold fur are properly distributed all over the house; greyhounds aren’t famous for doing much shedding. And both dogs are sloppy eaters, but not inclined to guard their spilled food.

So, really, it’s all working out quite nicely.

Want to see another picture of what might very well be the world’s most attractive geriatric Golden Retriever? Sure, you do!

All together now — Awwww!

Who says that dogs don’t appreciate art?

Bodhi’s homage to the art of Matisse — the elegant Henri dog toy — is crafted in toothsome polyester canvas-backed suede, a dog-pleasing texture for hours of playful pleasure.

A durable noise-making squeaker inside will amuse the dog, while your more sophisticated friends can admire the elegant (and yet, oddly bone-shaped) form inspired by one of Matisse’s most famous paintings, Danse II.

The Henri dog toy is double-seamed, non-toxic and machine washable, in three colors and sizes: 16” (turquoise), 12” (celery), and 9” (olive) as shown here.

Affordable art for your pampered pup, starting at $14.00.

Photo: Penny Sanford Porcelains

Home sewing fans know the satisfaction of making their own fashions. Now you can doll up your dog with the leftover fabric remnants, and set out in matching style!

Embellishment is the key word for high-end handmade dog clothes, so download Penny Sanford’s easy free pattern and sew a variety of these slip-on bandana scarf or tube-type covers… then decorate them up to be one-of-a-kind works of wearable art.

Your dog may not go out of his way to thank you, but this could be a wonderful fun project to do with a young pet-lover, if you have a young friend who wants to learn how to sew or do embroidery, etc., over the summer holidays. (And don’t skimp on the sequins!)

Now all I’ve got to do is figure out a variation on this pattern to dress up my greyhound’s martingale style collar that slips over the dog’s head in one piece instead of unbuckling…

If you’ve ever been owned by a cat, you’ll know what a charming pest a cat can be. Bored cats and the desks of busy people are (a) inevitably going to come together at some point, if there’s a cat in the house, and (b) not always a wonderful thing for productivity.

My own habit of obsessively hitting the Save button comes directly from an Important Life Lesson taught to me years ago by a fluffy grey tom named Jasper: A quick trip to the loo, then I stepped back into my home office to see Jasper bathing himself elegantly on my keyboard, one fluffy paw planted firmly on the Delete key. Amazing, how fast that cursor raced backwards and up the screen. And simple astounding, how quickly the screen went blank when the cat shifted round at my yell, successfully quitting the program before I could lunge across the room. Gone, the work of a hard three hours — all gone!

Ever since, and to this very day (although this is currently a dogs-only household, and the desk is my own once more) I save-save-save-save-save as if racking up high score on some Video Game of Life. So, a bad cat incident gave me a good habit, I guess… but something like this Cat Perch box (at The Refined Feline, via a comment at Matt Cutts‘ blog) would have come in handy. Apparently it works for chihuahuas and other tiny dogs (under 20 lbs.) too.

Kay Turple is a Canadian artist who makes amazing 3-dimensional dog portraits — all sorts of dog breeds, like this gorgeous fluffy Old English Sheepdog — working from your photographs to make a tiny true-to-life model in felted wool.

How does Kay make her miniature pets? She gives an overview of the needle felting technique at KaysK9s.com, but simply put –

Simply put, needle felting is the process of taking raw wool roving and using a barbed felting needle to sculpt it into shape. The sculpting is done by poking the wool thousands of times until the fibers interlock and felt together. This process is extremely time consuming, and each dog or cat normally takes 10 – 25 hours to create.

Indulge an urge, add something very special to a collection of dollhouse-scale miniatures, or commemorate a beloved companion animal. They run from 1″ to 4″ in size, or are made in standard 1:12 dollhouse scale. (She does cats and other creatures, too.)

These are true art pieces, not toys — and are priced accordingly, reflecting the many hours of skilled handcrafting that goes into each felted dog.

Best yet, a portion of all proceeds is donated to support the Ontario SPCA and local animal shelters. As well, Kay sponsors a shelter dogs — see a picture of Chico, the Chihuahua mix who is her current “foster pup,” at www.kaysk9s.blogspot.com. What more could a dog lover ask?