BlogPaws, the big deal annual pet blogger’s conference, starts this afternoon. I’m not going this year, though I wish I could for many reasons:
- The camaraderie
- The professional development
- The networking
- The cute pets
- The swag
That’s right. I’ll admit it. I love the swag.
Toys, T-shirts, pet food samples, cleaning products… if it’s fun and/or functional and pet related, you’ll find it there.
Even when the goodies I got at the last two conferences weren’t Frankie appropriate, I could give them to my local shelter and know that I was providing quality products.
Hollywoof to the Rescue!
So for all of you who can’t make it to BlogPaws this year — and to all who never heard of the conference but now feel bad since I told you just how cool it is — I have a giveaway that I saved up just for this occasion.
And it’s a good one.
The nice folks over at Distinctive Assets put together and delivered HollyWOOF: the A-List Doggie Gift Bag, described as “an eclectic and fabulous gift assortment for those stars who love to shop with, tweet about, Facebook and fawn all over their pups.” These stars include Tori Spelling, Alicia Silverstone, Miley Cyrus, Kristen Bell, Betty White, Charlize Theron, Paris Hilton, Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale, Rachael Ray, Oprah Winfrey, Kathy Griffin, Katherine Heigl, Blake Lively, Denise Richards, Mario Lopez, Fergie, Kelly Osbourne, Olivia Wilde, Justin Timberlake and Chelsea Handler.
But, you may be saying to yourself, these people can afford to buy their own dog goodies, can’t they?
Exactly! So if you’re not movie star rich, I imagine you’ll appreciate them even more.
The Goodies
Here’s what I’ve got for you:
- The Cocojor carrier pictured above. It’s pink and it’s in a small size — I’d wager for less than 10 pounds, and probably best for a toy breed.
Two Squeeki Tikis, one large blue one and one small pink one, and a red Dogbon, all among the new Petprojekt dog toys that will be featured in Dimension’s upcoming Piranha 3DD movie in November. I have to admit I wanted the small Squeeki Tiki for Frankie but he was totally uninterested in it (which means he didn’t slobber on it, though I would wager a toy kissed by Frankie would be worth a lot).
- An assortment of Pet Head products: The Oatmeal & Honey Conditioning CrΓ¨me Rinse, Furball Strawberry Yoghurt Detangling Spray, and Pretty Kitty Orange Burst Shed Control Cat Wipes (hooray for HollyMEOW!). Gratuitous aside: Oddly, the dog product instructions and ingredients are all listed in French as well as English, while the cat product is English. I would have thought that cats would be more pretentious than dogs, wouldn’t you?.
I kept the oatmeal shampoo, even though it was “deodorisant” and Frankie doesn’t smell.
The Rules
Just tell me in the comments section, below, why your pet is a star and deserves to get all this pet swag. That’s it. I’ll choose the winner by Random.org.
I’m paying to mail the prizes and those Pet Head products are heavy so, sorry my Canadian friends, I can only afford to send them to U.S. residents.
But if it makes you feel better, this year’s BlogPaws attendees are not eligible to enter either. They’ve got plenty of swag already. Sure they can try and I may not find out, but it’s bad pet karma.
This contest will run from midnight August 25th to midnight August 28th EST — by coincidence, the days of a certain conference.
May the pet star of your heart win!
UPDATE: And the winner, chosen by Random.org, is…. #3, Kim McMunn, whose mom has a double-skunked rescued Yorkie!Β Congrats, Kim!
I am so glad that Random.org chose for me… there were so many worthy entries! And if I were awarding on literary references, I’d have to go for Denise Herman’s dog Pi, who “is like Ms Havisham and wants to sit at home, slightly bitter thinking about when she was younger and free wheeling.” I don’t know what Charles Dickens would think, but I love me a literary chihuahua.
Erin, I don’t think “bladder stoner” is a medical term, but I love it — I have an image of your dog with a bladder-shaped water pipe, getting high… I’ll be blogging about Frankie’s new insulin regimen soon but basically he’s doing fine.
And Chris, I love the description of your doxies’ “little fat frito feet.”Β Your blog is a hoot.
It was a joy to read all the comments. Thank you all for participating — your dogs ARE superstars!
I think my pup Jasmine is a superstar. (But then again- everybody thinks their dog is wonderful- that’s why we all have dogs!!) (and the truth of the matter is- they are all wonderful. π
Jasmine and I volunteer at a local children’s hospital on Fridays. She is definitely a star there. I push her down the halls on a cart, and people do a double-take. She’s part of the pet-therapy program. Jasmine knows a ton of tricks… so we go room to room, and put on a little trick show for the kids. When we enter the room, it’s obvious Jasmine is a star. They usually want to pet her, and even the ones that don’t want to will usually want to see the trick show. By the time we leave the room, smiles and laughter have replaced the gloom. And usually the kids are more alert and talking about our visit. So that’s why Jaz is a superstar to me. π She helps make the world a better place.
Here’s some of the many tricks she can do: http://youtu.be/bev2NrZsi6U
Tashi is a reluctant star, but he is the star of my heart=) A little camera shy, he finally decided since I wasn’t going away with that clicking flashing thing that he would just sit there and take it like a man! But smiling was out of the question…we are working on that!
I’d like to win these to give to my mom, who has recently adopted a yorkie that was in need of a home. The dog’s name is Lucy, and she’s a star (at least in my parents eyes!).
She’s been skunked twice since she was adopted, and has had 3 baths in just over a week, so her poor fur could probably use some of those Pet Head products!
My two maltese girls deserve to win simply because they are the cutest, sweetest, most adorable girls ever. And Missy thinks it’s cool to get free stuf!!!
Jett Greyhound is a star because he’s a Jett-setter.
He has met two famous people and in his case, his star power didn’t try to out-shine their stars.
Jett has met Miss Pima County – Dorea Kyra Battle and famous mystery writer David Rosenfelt. He even blogged about that.
Jett also knows how to work a room better than Dale Carnegie.
My dog Pi is a rescue dog. She’s a rather leggy chihuahua who is known as “the Chihuahua-chihuahua-haters love”. She does a bunch of silly tricks including catching a frisbee in the air. She’s a rescue dog from the San Francisco SPCA and since being sprung from the ‘Clink’ has appeared in DogFancy magazine, rescue dog photo books, and online as well as an upcoming Vook. Of course she has NO idea that her reputation proceeds her. She is like Ms Havisham and wants to sit at home, slightly bitter thinking about when she was younger and free wheeling. One of her favorite activities is “going”. She doesn’t know where she’s going, but she likes the process of GOING.
She prefers to be called “her Highness-The Pi-ness” should you run into her on a voyage.
My dog Tiny is a total superstar! We adopted him last year. Within about three months time, he has racked up over 1,000 Twitter followers! He likes to live a posh lifestyle. I would love to win this and give it to him for his birthday this October!
My dog, Penny, really should be a doggie actress. I should find her a talent rep, but I just can’t afford it (poor Penny, her mommy is unemployed). She loves doing obedience and enjoys a challenge. Her face makes some of the best expressions ever known to man. When I take her places people stop and stare at her. She has this incredible furry mustache. It doesn’t stop there… Her personality is even better! She gives never-ending kisses, rivals Tigger in her bouncing, and is the quickest little poodle mix this side of the states. When Penny is in the room, it lights up with smiles. To think that she was almost taken to the pound at 6 weeks of age blows my mind. Then, I see dogs that look just like her in shelters, about to be euthanized, and it breaks my heart. I thought I was saving her, but when I really think about it, she has brought me infinite joy and she has given me so much more!
OMG I’m so excited about this!!
Now for the story of the Poor Pug Princesses…
Chloe is 10 and Sophie is 6 and these girls are troublemakers with a capital T…according to my husband…
They shed too much, they lick too much, Chloe scoots on her butt too much, Sophie rubs her face on the couch too much, Chloe coughs too much, Sophie can’t jump, Sophie constantly gets ear infections, Chloe has a weird growth on her tail…..I think you get the idea!
I’m constantly in defending mode….”dogs shed Babe”, “dogs like to give kisses Dear”, “if you had an itch on your face or butt, you’d scratch it too!!!”……and on and on!
So please consider the poor tormented puglets for the prize. They need all the love and star treatment they can get! And hopefully the prize will include a couple of squeaky toys to annoy their nemesis even more!!!!! Bwaaahaaahaaa!
Love….Chloe & Sophie (pick us, pick us!!!!!)
I wish I could upload a pic of them….they would win for sure!
Shawna M
Hamlet (my Boston Terrier) is certainly a star in my eyes as well as those of many of my family members. My boyfriend absolutely adores him and has been known to carry him around like a baby. Anytime I talk to my mom on the phone she asks how Ham is doing and what he’s been up to. My stepdad plays ball with him more than anyone else and carries on conversations with him and calls him “Hammy doggie.” But by far my 2 year old niece loves him the most (except for me, of course) – she often asks, “what is Hammy doggie doing?” and is disappointed anytime I show up without him in tow. Plus, she insists on giving him a hug anytime she has to leave him. Too cute.
Thanks for a great giveaway!
My dog Cali is a the star of my heart because she has been the best dog a girl could ask for. She has lived with 4 cats and a neverending stream of foster kittens and foster dogs (not to mention the dogs I boarded in our home when I had my dogwalking business!) .
She traveled by car with 4 cats from Oregon to South Carolina and then back 3 years later and was the perfect traveling companion! She peed when we stopped for her, relaxed in the hotels, and even put up with hours of crying and howling (silly kitties!).
She is a super sweet girl that everyone loves and would love to share all of this swag with her favorite four legged friends!
My Bilbo is amazing and you don’t have to take my word for it! He’s the logo for the rescue group that saved him, featured in a 2011 calendar shoot, he appeared in a “live” graphic novel project by Fifth House Ensemble and he was just in the Chicago Redeye posing for an article about healthy dog food. However, we’re keeping our paws crossed to win the prizes to share with his foster-siblings and all the other rescue pups I volunteer with and so I can use them to meet some of the goals on my “threes” challenge (check out our latest blog post).
Pearl isn’t famous and she hasn’t met any famous people. She and her mother Peggy are the best lap warmers in the world! Even in summer! And they protect me against all imaginary pierls! Pearl’s birthday is August 31, wouldn’t it make a great BD present? And she promises to share!
My dog is a Super Star in her mind because in my apartment building, she has an entourage. Her new outfits and haircuts are discussed by her admirers. Mostly they tell her she is pretty…(this is not really true, she has an underbite and a twisted little nose).
She is polite about autographs for everyone, but has her special favorites. They are thrilled with that designation.
So: entourage, celebrity gossip, fans, and an overblown sense of her power and importance: she is a STAR!!
Leroy thinks that he is the superstar of superstars! He struts his stuff like no other, and absolutely loves to pose for the camera. Seriously he does!
He drives me crazy and is always up in my stuff but I love him death because he always puts a smile on my face!
What a great opportunity for those of us that didn’t make it to BlogPaws this year. I have to admit – I’m going through a little swag withdrawal myself. Buster and Ty are are the stars of the GoPetFriendly.com team – always out there willing to check out one more beach, try one more restaurants, and take one more pet friendly like. These boys are working their paws off! π
Sampson is a star because of his stellar personality. All who meet him fall in love with him. He is a people dog, while he is friendly and likes to play with other dogs his preferred spot at the dog park is up against the legs of anyone who will pet him.
Never had a person meet him who didn’t fall in love with him.
My dogs are both stars and deserve free swag because they come from horrible backgrounds yet are thriving today. But mostly, because their mom (me) and dad are both graduate students and living on grad student stipends w/two medically disabled dogs (diabetic and bladder stoner – is that even a medical term?) is probably the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. But we love them both to death and want/need them to be healthy! Speaking of healthy, how is the new insulin regimen coming along?
Kenny and Gigi are my little DachStars (dachshund supa – stars) They make me laugh every single day and show me unconditional love regardless of my coffee breath and bad hair days. I adore the ground their little fat frito feet walk on and I would be lost with them in my life. They work hard, play hard and in my eyes deserve to be spoiled rotten. They spread the word about dachshund rescue and try to educate doxie parents about IVDD which is a horrible disease that can cause paralysis and affects approx. 1 out 4 dachshunds. This is a great prize and I really hope they win. π
We couldn’t go to BlogPaws this year:-( but would love a chance at some swag not for us cuz were cats, but for our shelter doggie pals.
Thanks to you (and Frankie) for offering this contest!
My dog Daisy is a star and deserves this swag because she is my heart dog . She is my go-with-the flow girl, always game for anything. Flexible and undemanding, she reads me like a book. We adopted her 15 years ago. She shares me with two other adopted dogs (btw, they are super stars too)!
Ellie, 12, K.C. 8, and Teddy 5, are all stars, but Ellie says, Hey! I’M the Leader of the Pack. this is too true. K.C. and Teddy follow her around all day. Ellie also is the main protector of the yard, and knows who is worth getting up to bark at and who isn’t. So, Ellie, you are the winner!
View my most recent article (not about dogs, but I’m sure they benefit from stronger hate crime laws too – π at http://www.examiner.com/judaism-in-albuquerque/swastika-branding-hate-crime-guilty-plea
Because
1. Miss Crazy (not her real name though you wouldn’t know it, and no, it is not my name) thinks most of the stuff can be sent to a local shelter but maaaaaybe something might be kept for her.
2. MrHelpsALot was found watering my newly planted herb. Very helpful, and the herb was for him anyway.
Two very good reasons.
Kirby is a legend in his own mind! He has a blog. a Facebook fan Page. and the boy twitters! He loves getting swag in the mail!
Harmony Greyhound is a star because she is a great comedian. She picks up her flews, snorts, and chops her teeth when she smiles. She can make anyone laugh and has the personal style sense of Phyllis Diller. She is also a star hostess and has gracefully ceded the position of alpha dog to Mimzy, a 20-lb terrier X, who rules with an iron paw in a velvet bootie.
Cynthia
Speaking of not going to Blog paws, how is Mr. Frankie doing on the new insulin?
Still playing with doses and food portions and he had one hypoglycemic incident but in general he seems to be doing just fine, thanks. I’ll blog about it soon!
Our dog Casey is a star. We didn’t rescue her, she rescued us. She is the love of our lives.
Ha! Very clever Edie! And, I’ll make it just under the deadline too!
Here goes…
Jasper is a star because he already knows he is one. He is a hot shot at leaping into the air and flipping around as he catches is ball. He is Mr. McFlirty at the dog park too. He makes all the girl doggies swoon (no kidding!). All he needs is the cool shades and his Star look is complete. He deserves to get this swag because as a star it is what he is due. I keep telling him a limo is out of the question. π
Daisy is a Star because after all she has been through she still manages to charm the pants off of everyone she meets. She’s even had groupies ask to meet her! She deserves the swag because Jasper keeps stealing all of hers!
Fun contest! Eat your heart out BlogPaws attendees! π
My little Pom, Sophia, is my little star. Everywhere we go, people want to take her picture because she is so pretty. She acts coy, but looks at them with her little model pose as they take her picture. She loves to dress up and she LOVES toys she can squeak and of course likes to be weel groomed and ‘star’ perfect all the time. I hope she wins.