It’s the Howl-iday Season! Including your Pets in your Traditions

The Holiday season is here and other than a cute stocking with your Pup’s name on it, pets can easily be forgotten from holiday traditions. So rather than wait until Christmas morning to finally share a special treat with your dog, we have some great tips that include your fur babies in the holiday fun all month long. Doggy Christmas Advent Calendar One of my favorite traditions growing up was getting to open small gifts as part of an Advent calendar leading up to Christmas but I thought why should kids have all the fun? So we enjoy the season with and Advent calendar with our dog, Yenko. Follow these steps to create your own Doggy Advent Calendar:

• Look for small drawstring bags at your local dollar store or craft store. You can purchase 12 bags representing the 12 Days of Christmas or have 25 as a countdown all month long.

• We add different treats, small dog toys, or write out activities that we know our dog enjoys, such as the nosey nose game, tug of war, or hide and seek.

• Tie up each bag with a cheerful ribbon, you can write out numbers on the bag with a red marker, too, to help you keep track of the days.

We like showcasing the Advent Calendar differently every year. In the past, we have placed them around the tree or hid them around the living room along with other holiday decor. You could attach each drawstring bag to string on the mantle or above a credenza. Just be careful to keep the bags out of reach from your dog. They can be just as naughty as children sometimes and may want to sneak to get their treats early! Bake Doggy Holiday Cookies If you’ve never baked homemade dog treats before, the holidays are the perfect time to start making this a special tradition for your pet. We have a super quick and easy recipe that makes a batch of fresh and delicious treats for dogs. You can bake these to include in the Doggy Advent Calendar or as a stocking stuffer. A batch of homemade dog treats are also a great gift idea to give to your extended furry family dogs or to friends’ dogs. Either the dog cookies are made with minimal ingredients and are so much better for your dog than store bought treats. Homemade Peanut Butter and Banana Dog Treats Prep Time : 10 minutes Cook Time : 10 minutes Only three ingredients!

• 1 ripe banana (preferably overripe)

• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (make sure it does not contain xylitol which is poisonous to dogs)

• 1 cup old-fashioned oats

• Parchment Paper

• Rolling pin (optional)

• Cookie Cutter

Preheat your oven at 350 degrees Mash your banana in a mixing bowl Add the peanut butter and old-fashioned oats and mix them together Using a large sheet of parchment paper, spread the mixture out to your desired thickness with a rolling pin or your fingers, we recommend a thickness of 1/4” Cut out your shapes using the cookie cutters and place on a baking sheet Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden in color Cool your cookies before giving to your dog. Make Some Dog Gone Cute Ornaments I love the idea of creating an annual Christmas ornament in honor of my dog. A super quick and easy ornament is to use Modge Podge to transfer a cute picture of your pup onto a simple wooden round. Craft stores usually have lots of plain cute ornament shapes to decorate and you don’t have to be Martha Stewart to have a nice homemade ornament. You can also repurpose our Combine Dog Co. Holiday Treat Ornament to make a custom globe ornament. After you’ve shared the treat with your dog, simply drop in a photo along with a small handful of fake snow, tie off with a ribbon and it’s a quick keepsake of this year’s Christmas. Not only will your dog get a super delicious treat waiting for them on the tree but you’ll have a nice memory captured in a cute ornament. It’s the Howl-iday Season If crafting is not your thing then there are so many more ways to include your four-legged best friends in the holiday cheer. Take them along with you shopping in a dog-friendly outdoor holiday market featuring small local businesses, or bring them to pick out the Christmas tree. Perhaps you’ve been invited to an Ugly Sweater Party but what if you organized and hosted an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party for Dogs at your local dog run or dog-friendly park? That’s sure to be a fun and photo-worthy time the whole community can enjoy! The most important thing is to be mindful about your pets so that the Holiday frenzy doesn’t get you wrapped up in everything else and they get forgotten. If you go shopping after work or have a holiday party to attend, make sure your pup gets an extra long walk that day. Since you may have family and friends visiting, make sure both your guests and your dog are comfortable with each other to avoid anxiety for everyone. Our pets are often the ones we turn to when we need to destress so make the Holidays a happy season for them, too.