DogBlog | Dog Charmed

Dog Walking Accessories to Make Your Walks Even Better

You can never have enough dog walking accessories. From ball flingers to treat pouches, owners are spoiled for choice.

But there’s a lot that you don’t need and you could end up spending money unnecessarily.

So in this guide, we discuss what every dog walker needs. We go over examples of some essential dog walking accessories, and take a look at ladies’ accessories in particular.

And lastly, we’ll show you some of the cool accessories for your dog that you can find here on Dog Charmed.

What Does Every Dog Walker Need?

If you’re new to owning a dog, you might not realise the range of things you need when it comes to taking them for a walk.

A good lead and collar are a must. Make sure they’re both made of strong material, such as the nylon webbing we use here at Dog Charmed, otherwise you’ll only have to buy replacements.

Also essential are dog waste bags. Near enough everywhere in the UK nowadays impose hefty fines on people who fail to pick up their dog’s waste—as much as £75 in some cases. So to avoid that outcome, always carry at least a couple of dog waste bags on you.

It’s possible to get plastic carriers for your roll of bags that you can attach to your lead. This way, you can never forget!

If you’re going on a long walk or if you expect the weather to be warm, always bring some water along for your dog. You can get special bottles that double up as a water bowl, as well as collapsable bowls for easy packing.

Last of all, don’t forget dog treats. All dogs love a treat and it’s a great way to reward them if they behave well on their walk. It’s also a great way to reinforce that positive behaviour. Even if your dog is on a diet you can get low-fat treats. And there are also hypoallergenic treats for those who may have allergies.

Examples Of Dog Walking Accessories

We’ve covered a few essential dog walking accessories above, but here we wanted to share with you some of the quirkier and unexpected ones:

- Dog Poop Pickup Tool – if you’re a complete germaphobe, you may recoil at the prospect of picking up your dog’s waste. If so, you may be glad to hear that there’s such a thing as a dog poop pickup tool. It works like a clamp with a set of rounded teeth that enables you to pick up all types of poop, from hard to runny. The only downside is you have to clean it!

Pet First Aid Kit – if you’re someone who likes to take your dog on adventures, a pet first aid kit could come in handy. If your dog gets a thorn stuck in their paw on top of a hill, having a small first aid pouch with a set of tweezers and disinfectant can save the day.

- Dog Jackets – depending on your dog’s breed, a jacket may be an essential item. Whippets, for example, don’t have long coats to keep them warm so feel cold enough to shiver when they’re out walking in autumn and winter.

Dog Backpack – this style of harness, made by K9, doubles up as a doggy backpack. If your dog can’t walk alongside you, you can lift them up and attach them, allowing you to carry them along.

There are so many more dog walking accessories out there and a quick search on the web will leave you with more options than you can make sense of.

Don’t forget, we have a broad selection of accessories for dogs here at Dog Charmed. Below, you can find some of our most popular ones!

And for more, just click here to visit Luna’s Pack to learn all about the best brands of dog food, like Tails, including reviews of a variety of treats, and tips on feeding different breeds.

Ladies Dog Walking Accessories

There’s a wide selection of cool dog walking accessories for ladies, mainly with a shift in focus on design.

Some designs of accessories offer female-based slogans such as “Fairy Dogmother” or “Dog Mama”. Others focus more on colours and branding.

You can learn more about dog walking accessories over at Luna’s Pack.

Where To Buy Dog Walking Accessories

If you’re looking for some quirky and funny dog walking accessories, then you’ve come to the right place.

Here at Dog Charmed, we have a wide range of handcrafted bandanas, leads and collars, and designs themed around Christmas and Halloween. We can also make personalised items to order for that special pooch of yours.

Below you can find some of our most popular products:

22 Ways Dogs Make Humans Healthier

Dogs are adorable and they are loyal buddies. You will love them even more once you learned their positive effects in your health. These health benefits are backed by science so you can be sure that they are proven. Plus, if you’re single, your pet can also help lead you in finding your true love!

One of the health benefits of having a dog is lower blood pressure. According to a study made, those who mingled with dogs had lower blood pressure compared to those who didn’t have interaction, even on stressful situations. Another one is a healthier heart. Statistics say that there are fewer pet owners who die from heart attack and those who suffer from cardiac arrest usually recover faster.

It’s a misconception that dogs can cause allergies to kids because based on studies, many kids who grew up around dogs didn’t develop allergies. These cute pets are also stress relievers. They can help enhance the mood, lowering the chemicals that cause bad mood and releasing those that create good mood.

How can it benefit your love life? There are dating sites that cater to singles who are looking to date other pet owners too. Plus, it will be easier to socialize, especially with those who share the common love for dogs.

To help you understand better the health benefits of having a dog, see the infographics below that will tell you more about this topic. See our informative and fantastic looking illustration that every pet owner will find interesting:

13 Fantastic Facts About Crufts

Crufts 2017 is fast approaching, so we at Dog Charmed HQ thought we would snuffle out some facts about the event; some you may know and some you won’t!

1. Crufts was the brainchild of Mr Charles Cruft, a travelling dog biscuit salesman. He had the idea of staging a dog show so he could promote his wares. Cruft’s was born in 1891. The Apostrophe was dropped in 1974 and became plain old Crufts.

2. The Best in Show award was first introduced in 1928 and was won by a Greyhound called Primley Spectre.

3. The first female owner of a Best in Show winner was in 1932 when Labrador, Bradshaw Bob, owned by Countess Howe, took the top award.

4. The event has been cancelled only a handful of times, for the duration of both World Wars and also in 1954 due to an electricians strike.

Crufts was forced to be held 2 months later than normal in 2001 due to the Foot And Mouth outbreak.

5. The most successful breed is the Cocker Spaniel who has won Best in Show an impressive 7 times!

6. The prize for winning Best In Show is £100 and a replica trophy! This may not sound very enticing but it can go up by thousands if you include possible sponsorship deals and stud fees.

7. Over 22,000 dogs are expected to compete this year. More than 3,000 of them are from overseas, travelling to Birmingham from 47 different countries!

8. More than 900 Veterinary Students from all of the UK Veterinary Universities will be attending Crufts as this is the best place to see numerous different dog breeds under the one roof!

9. ‘Junior Crufts’ is also held during the event. It’s official title is the International Junior Handling Competition. The competitors need to demonstrate how well they bond with and handle unfamiliar dogs. The finalists can select a first and second choice breed but they will never have met the individual dog until half an hour before the competition starts.

10. The Discover Dogs area will host over 200 different breeds of dog this year. This is a great opportunity for people to see different breeds and meet their owners.

11. Crufts have introduced new health standards. This has stemmed after last year’s controversy of awarding Best In Breed to a German Shepherd Dog, whose sloping back and unusual gait caused so much upset amongst viewers.

12. The practise of ‘double handling’ has been banned from Crufts as of this year. Double Handling is where there is an additional handler sat in the audience to attract the attention of the dog to keep it looking alert.

13. 2016 saw a Nepotism row hit Crufts amid claims that the Best Gundog catagory prize was awarded to the judge’s sister’s dog! The Kennel Club, however, said that no rules had been broken.

Maybe I Am A Crazy Dog Lady After All!! (written by Allison)

I have been pondering for a few days now on how to write this particular blog post as I was originally going to write about ‘how to tell if you are a crazy dog person’, and so, for my research, had a look on the internet and asked friends and family for their opinion. What became apparent fairly quickly though is that I could actually be a Crazy Dog Lady!!!

Looking at a number of different internet posts from this country and abroad, and going back quite a few years, they all tended to bring up the same things so I devised my own list of things I may have been accused of in the past:

1-Some people have names picked out for their children. You have names picked out for your future dogs.

I don’t officially. However, if for some reason we ended up with another dog, it would be Dave for a boy and Gwladys for a girl. But that won’t happen so technically it doesn’t count!

2-You keep buying expensive beds and toys that you know will never get used.

This is slightly true. Although with Mabel, she just doesn’t use them properly. Take this photo for example. Here she is using her new giant dog cushion as a foot rest while she wedges her head down the side of the couch to give the impression to anyone walking into the lounge (me included) that there is a headless dog on the floor!

3-You refer to yourself as your dog’s “Mum” or “Dad” and think it’s totally normal.

Well I am! And it is! Although people in the park tend to call me Mabel’s Carer as she is a very special dog. There is the general dog population and then there is Mabel about 5 seconds behind!

4-You are very proud of the fact your dog has a best friend.

Mabel’s best friend is Nero Basenji. They have known each other since they were 12 weeks old and are seriously like a married couple! If one has a stick or a plastic bottle the other one has to have the other end of it. They even hug each other when they see each other! Laugh if you want but I know for a fact that this one is true and all you dog owners can name your dog’s best friend!

5-You know your dog neighbours better than your human neighbours.

I walk Mabel at a park around the corner from where we live and I could tell you 90% of the dogs that go in there and about 5 of the owners’ names. Although I do refer to the ones I dont know as Dad or Mum to whichever dog they are walking.

6-You have to leave the room when an RSPCA advert comes on.

Not just me but Mabel as well! I don’t want her to get upset.

7-You sometimes watch a programme because the dog has taken an interest in it.

Mabel loves watching Crufts. She will sit for hours watching it. I’m sure she is looking out for anyone she knows!

She is also partial to a bit of the Dog Whisperer and sometimes watches Jezza as long as they aren’t shouting too loudly as she loves a good lie detector test result.

8-The “no dogs on the furniture” rule didn’t last very long.

How else would I get comedy photos like this then? As well as not knowing how to use her bed, she is rubbish in armchairs too!

9-You stress at the thought of having to be out all day and your dog being on their own.

Now this is definitely not me!!!! The reason being that when I am out all day working, Mabel either goes to Doggy Nursery or she goes to Nanny Joan’s next door!!

10-You have more photos of your dog on your phone than your family members.

This is true. However, in my defence I have to take lots of photos of Mabel as she is my model. Although she is now getting ideas above her station and will not pose unless I have a treat waiting for her. If it’s a good treat she may even smile for me.

Well maybe I am a (slightly) Crazy Dog Lady but Miss Mabel Doodle is part of our family and so will always be treated like the daughter I never had!

Introducing Mabel!

It’s a well known fact that there’s no point in having your own dog accessories business without having a dog to model them for you!

This is the point that we at Dog Charmed DQ (Dogquarters) would like you to meet Miss Mabel Doodle. mabel2

Mabel is Allison’s gorgeous Miniature Labradoodle, and yes, we are using the term ‘miniature’ VERY loosely!

She is always wearing Dog Charmed, whether it’s a sun cap…

…or a cheeky attach to collar bandana!

We decided the best way to get to know her would be with a little questionnaire, Miss World Style….

NAME: Mabel Doodle.

AGE: 21 months old.

NICKNAMES: Mabes, Mabeline. I will also answer to Alfie who is my 6 year old human brother, as well as Alfiemabel and also Mabelalfiemabel. Mum is easily confused!

LIKES: Mud, water, muddy water, snow, snow with mud underneath.

DISLIKES: Dogs that won’t play with me in the park, smelling like a Princess.

FAVOURITE FOOD: Socks, tennis balls and I can smell a bagel from a mile away.

BEST FRIEND: Nero the Basenji.

IF YOU COULD BE ANY OTHER ANIMAL WHAT WOULD YOU BE?: A hippo.

FAVOURITE PLACE: The park or under my mum’s feet.

BEST TRICK: I can ignore you without flinching. I can also strip and eat a tennis ball in 7 seconds.

AMBITION: To lie down in every puddle in the park in a single walk.