Pet Day at Westlake Center

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The weather gods are teasing us with forecasts of snow, however, should you decide to brave the weather tomorrow, head on down to Seattle's Westlake Center with your four-legged pal for an afternoon of fun and photos with Santa! The Qwest Carousel will be open for rides, with a suggested donation of $2 per ride to benefit Northwest Center. Folks will also be on hand to collect canned and dry pet food, as well as cash donations, for a local pet food bank to benefit pets of low income seniors.

When: Saturday, December 1st, 10am to 3pm
Where: Westlake Park, downtown Seattle at 4th and Pine

Pick up a FREE copy of CityDog Magazine's special holiday issue!

Monday's Mutt Must Have!

Elaine Seamans of At-Choo has created a ring that sums it up for the dog lover in all of us: "When I am with my dog, I am complete." This ring as well as several other beautiful pieces including custom photo rings and pendants are available at http://www.at-choo.com/. If you're looking for the perfect gift this season for your dog loving partner, be sure to start here.

Seattle Humane Society’s Holiday Pet Food Drive Begins November 23

Continue the spirit of holiday giving this year by donating any kind of pet food (no restrictions) to the Seattle Humane Society’s Holiday Pet Food Drive.

On November 23, the Seattle Humane Society will begin its annual Holiday Pet Food Drive, with Safeway stores across King County accepting donations.

The greatest need is for dry cat food, but all kinds and types of pet food are appreciated. Look for drop-off barrels at your local Safeway, or stop by the Seattle Humane Society, located in Bellevue.

Last year, the Holiday Pet Food Drive raised over 16 tons of food, giving families across King County the ability to keep their pet through a difficult time. Over 1000 pets received food every single month, thanks to the generosity of the community.

For more information on the Seattle Humane Society’s Holiday Pet Food Drive, call (425) 649-7567 or visit http://www.seattlehumane.org/.

The Holiday Pet Food Drive will last through December 30.

Monday's Mutt Must Have!

It's not Cranium, but it will make you use your brain...your dog's too! Funagle is a new board game people and their dogs play together. Players have one minute to "funagle" their dog into performing activities called out on removable tags that make up the game board. With each task completed such as "Moonwalk," "Do the Wave" and other tricks, you win a tag. The team with the most tags wins! No skill is needed to play...just plenty of treats, a sense of humor and your best friend.

$35.50 at darfinc.com.

CityDog Quoted in the Seattle PI

Click here to read an interesting article in last Sunday's Seattle PI regarding dog whisperer Cesar Millan and his recent visit to Seattle to help Buddy, a two-year-old pit bull with serious aggression issues. The article's author Sarah McCormick also takes a close look at modern dog culture and our attitudes toward our four-legged friends, quoting the editor of Seattle's own CityDog Magazine, Brandie Ahlgren.

"Seattle resident Brandie Ahlgren noticed this trend a few years ago, and in 2005 began publishing CityDog, a magazine aimed at Northwest dog owners. 'As people are having children later, dogs are more part of our family," she says. "They've moved from the backyard into our beds.'"

This article by Eric Sorensen in the Seattle Times' Pacific Northwest Magazine is a little older, but just as interesting, with another quote from CityDog's editor Brandie Ahlgren:

"A few years ago Brandie Ahlgren got a boxer. She dropped $25 on her first trip to the pet store, then saw she was spending $50 every couple weeks on toys and food. She noticed the Next to Nature pet store in West Seattle was knocking out a wall and expanding. She started talking with people at the Westcrest off-leash area and noticed a certain expression in their faces. 'I just got that sense of the joy the dog brings to their lives,' she says. It all added up to market research for the launch of CityDog, a quarterly magazine built around Northwest dogs and published in Seattle. 'It wasn't about just the numbers of dogs in the area,' Ahlgren says. 'It was about the attitudes to dogs in the area.'"

To read the full article in Pacific Northwest Magazine, click here.

And, here are two more articles in the Seattle PI you might find interesting:

Seattle magazine puts on the dog

CityDog's Muttmazing Race benefits Seattle Animal Shelter

Oregon Humane Society Cattery is Full

Don't let the name fool you...CityDog may be a dog magazine, but when it comes to helping animals we don't discriminate. In fact, we just received word that the Oregon Humane Society's cattery is full and they are asking the public to adopt 100 cats by Thanksgiving.

“We’ve run out of room at the inn when it comes to cats,” said OHS Executive Director Sharon Harmon. “We’re asking the public to adopt 100 cats by Thanksgiving so we can open our cattery doors to other homeless animals who are waiting in the wings,” she said.

Because of the unexpectedly large number of cats brought to the shelter in recent weeks, OHS was forced to take the extraordinary step of suspending all cat admissions until further notice, including those cats who were scheduled to come to the shelter over the next two weeks. With cat admissions on stand-by, people who bring homeless cats to OHS are being directed to other animal shelters and being asked to care for the animal until space is available at OHS.

“Because we never euthanize animals for space reasons, we are asking for the public’s understanding and patience in this difficult time,” said Harmon. OHS operates much like a hotel, scheduling appointments for the public to bring in cats as space becomes available. “If we are successful in adopting out 100 cats by Thanksgiving,” said Harmon, “we should be able to resume bringing in the cats whose arrival we’ve been forced to delay.”

For more information, please visit www.oregonhumane.org.

'Tis the Season to "Paw-tay!"

CityDog Magazine's Third Annual Yappy Howlidays "Paw-tay!"

This is a CityDog Social Club event open to two- and four-legged alike. Enjoy cocktails, holiday treats, holiday portraits by J. Nichole Smith of Dane & Dane Photography, free goodies and more.

When & Where: December 5th, 6 to 8 p.m. at the swanky W Hotel Seattle, 1112 4th Avenue. No charge; just be there or be square.

For more information, visit http://www.yappyhowlidays.com/.

For a good cause: If you bring food, toys, litter, leashes, collars, treats, beds*…essentially, anything a pet might need...we will donate it to Pasado's Safe Haven. Gift cards are also welcome. Then on Christmas Day, volunteers will deliver everything to those most in need. To learn more, visit http://www.pasadosafehaven.org/ or pick up a copy of CityDog's holiday issue to read more about this wonderful event.

*Please donate new items only.

Monday's Must Have

Stocking stuffer? Hostess gift? Treats for your next party? How about all of the above?! We discovered these delectable doggie truffles and petit fours from Seattle company Petit Four Legs when researching for our holiday entertaining piece featured in the current issue of CityDog (see below). The truffles are made with dog safe carob melted over a crunchy peanut butter cookie and topped with an intricate doggie-design. For more information, visit http://www.petitfourlegs.com/.

Special Holiday Issue Hot-Off-The-Press!

'Tis the season for good friends, good food and of course, good Fidos! CityDog's extra special, bonus holiday issue arrives tomorrow from the printer and it's loaded with gift and fashion ideas for you and your dog loving friends and family members!

We've included everything from how to throw a dog friendly holiday party to what to wear (literally, from head to toe) for a day at the dog park, out on the town, in the great outdoors or at your next yappy hour! We've also included some great gift and stocking stuffer ideas plus CityDog's Top 10 places to walk your dog in the city and the Top 5 places for your holiday photo with Fido.

So, if you're not already a subscriber, what are you waiting for...? Treat yourself or give the gift that will have tails wagging! A subscription is just $15.00 and includes five issues. Visit www.citydogmagazine.com to subscribe today!

Woof!
CityDog Magazine