Okay, here we go. This will be the penultimate Amazon Christmas shopping list. It’s about pets and other animals.
And this one’s not strictly Amazon. If you or anybody on your gift list is looking for information on raising chickens, goats, rabbits, or any farm animals the place to go is the Backwoods Home Book Store. You’ll find livestock books under multiple categories, including Animals & Pets, Food Production, and Self-Sufficiency.
I have NFI in BHM Book Store sales (except for two books I wrote). But without BHM, this blog wouldn’t exist. They’re good people.
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Now on to Amazon …
1. If your dog (or cat, for that matter) gets out much, especially at night, a Dog-E-Glow collar or leash is the ultimate in both coolness and safety. If that doesn’t suit your pet’s fashion-consciousness, there are lots of other lighted collars and gear to choose from
2. And when you and Fido are not getting out on these dark winter nights? Ava and I highly recommend a Chuckit! Indoor Launcher, guaranteed to spare your walls, furniture, and windows while keeping your most fetching furfriends entertained for hours.
3. Kongs are also a great way to provide entertainment and snacks at the same time. Just stuff ’em with kibble, popcorn, Milk Bones or whatever (maybe add a little peanut butter or melted cheese for “glue”) and your pooch will spend happy hours “working” to extract the contents. Kongs come in multiple colors, sizes, and strengths, including large, small or puppy-sized, and Xtreme (for the power-chewer in your life).
4. Also for the power-dog in your family, the Bamboo Combat Bone Tugger is the toughest tug toy ever. I know. You guys have given them to me for Christmasses past. And as long as you never let Spike go off in a corner and just chew on it (that is, you use it only for tug-o-war then put it safely away), it really is indestructible. Back when he was a young tough, Robbie could have told you that personally.
5. Let us not forget our kitty friends. For the bored feline, Amazon has a variety of interactive cat toys.
6. And for the cat who prefers boredom, but who would rather exercise it in more than one position or place, cat trees and condos are quite the thing.
7. While not exactly a glamor gift, Amazon also carries a selection of pet medicines (and other vaguely health-related items) for dogs, cats, and Other.
8. And don’t forget pet coats to keep your friend warm and dry. Some of them will also keep your critter insufferably cute, as well. I prefer the more functional ones. Last year the dogs and I were gifted with this camo raincoat with a warm removable liner, and boy has it been great (Robbie’s old bones really appreciated it today, when we had our first snow.)
9. Finally, Amazon has discounts on pet foods (including Purina and Science Diet) and special deals on supplies for all manner of pets, organized by type of critter. Dogs, cats, birds, fish, bunnies, reptiles, and amphibians. They’re not prejudiced.
For my last Christmas shopping column, I’ll return to one of the themes we started with: gifts and other goodies for preparedness.
Thank you all for using my Amazon links. You gave me a great November (second biggest Amazon month, ever; topped only by last November) and December is off to a fantastic start.
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If you missed them, here are the earlier Amazon shopping lists:
VI. Cyber Monday Week Deals in electronics and related things (some of which are going on until the end of the year).
IV. Gunstuff!
III. Maple bacon stuff! (Lots of good stocking stuffers.)
II. Warmth and light
My kitties have always LOVED Cosmic Catnip.
1984 is alive and well. Even more so than ever. Don’t believe that George Orwell ever envisioned people carrying around devices that could include the tv camera used to watch us all the time.
Oops, forgot to include the link explaining the comments above.
http://gizmodo.com/fbi-can-secretly-activate-laptop-cameras-without-the-in-1478371370
Slightly [OT]
Cops: “If we have to get a warrant…we’re gonna shoot and kill your dogs”
Fair use
http://reason.com/blog/2013/12/05/co…arrantwere-gon
Holiday cheer in KC.
I couldn’t pass up the DeWalt deal. Just trying to spread the holiday cheer. You are loved.
Oh … so that was YOU, FishOrMan. Boy, did I smile when I saw that one in the orders list!
I wouldn’t mind having six good DeWalt tools myself. But barring that, I was sure glad to have you purchase the DeWalt deal with my links.
Here’s what we’re talking about, for anybody who wants to know:
DEWALT DCK655X 18-Volt XRP 6 Tool Combo Kit with Impact Driver
While this year hasn’t been quite as big as last in number of items bought, people sure are giving some nice gifts (to themselves or somebody else). Thank you! Both for the purchase and the love. 🙂
Ok, I’ll bite… (pun intended). I looked at the “Kong,” and don’t see any way to put treats into it, much less any way for the dog to get the treats OUT of it. How does that work? The amazon page feedback didn’t really help much. I think Laddie would like this if he can get the treats out eventually, but I wouldn’t want to frustrate him if he can’t.
ML — There’s a hole in the bottom (the fat end) of the Kong. You can get a surprising amount of stuff in there (in fact, so much that you have to be careful your dog doesn’t get chubby). And believe me, whatever you can get into that hole, a persistent dog can get out by squeezing, tonguing, shaking, etc.
Another way you can use them (in the summer) is to stuff them with treats then freeze them to make Kong “treatsicles.”
You’d think it would drive them crazy. But they seem to love having to “work” for their goodies. If you’ve got a dog who eats too fast, you can even stuff his regular kibble in there and make him work to get it out.
Ok, Claire. Laddie doesn’t eat his kibble too fast, but he’s bound and determined to eat “roadkill cookies” exclusively, so this might just be the answer to his constant importunity for “just one more.” I’ll get a “kong” and try it. 🙂
The black Kongs are tougher than the red ones. And lots of people like to smear a little peanut butter inside them. I have also heard of people putting some dog biscuits in them and then filling them with water before freezing them for a summer (or Swinter) treat.
Oh yes, Kongs are a marvelous invention. Will keep a dog quiet for hours. We give them to our foster families for the foster pups. And the lighted collars are just TOO cool, I dont go out walking at night with my dogs, but, i enjoy turning on the collars and watching them run around the property at night (yes, its fenced). Little lights flashing, really neat.