Our furry four-legged family members can enjoy the excitement of the season with toys aimed to stir their senses (with a few ridiculous bits and bobs thrown in of course). Cats don’t covet pyjamas, and dogs are upholstered with coats largely for our twee amusements. Put their actual primal needs in focus.
Wall clocks are having a moment, and the more ridiculous and entertaining the design the better. There's been an explosion in character varieties devoted to breeds of dogs and cats, ideal for someone paws-over-ears in love with their type. Look for articulated models with pendulum tails that tick out the minutes.
The Silhouette is amusing without being aesthetically just too much. This sweet horology is from Sol Pixie Dust on Etsy, but there are hundreds of suppliers out there. It's acrylic and comes in a huge choice of breeds and base colours, €36.55, etsy.com/ie.
If friends or family members love garden birds, they'll be committed to feeding “their flock” through the winter. One of my family gifts me a generous order of quality feeds every year, as by February or March it can be a struggle to keep up.
Send heavy bags directly to their home and vouch for foodstuffs they can mix with everyday bird seeds. This will both enrich and stretch that nutritious supply. I’m hoping for some energy-rich, Suet Pellets with Insects (for the birds smart-Alec!), from €17.99 for 3kg, vivara.ie.
Losing a pet is one of the most distressing life experiences many of us will ever suffer. GPS is a fantastic new tool, allowing us to follow a dog or cat’s movements in real-time with a smartphone app delivering live tracking and location. You can even include a virtual “fence” to alert them when (God forbid) they leave the property.
Gift a model with or without an annual subscription (as much as €100 per year). My choice is Tractive, still the number one cat-tracker on TrustPilot, which includes a history, wellness alerts, together with a record of a cat’s activity level. It's €49.99, with subscriptions from €5 for 5 years, tractive.com.
Swimming dogs are a visceral joy to watch in action, but they wreck cars with equally cheerful abandon. Dedicated dog towels can cut back on the muck, getting them warm and comfortable on freezing, rainy days.
DogDry, created by Frances O’Reilly for her spaniel, and social media star Luna, has the drying power of five towels, wicks moisture and odours, and is waterproof, breathable and comfortable to wear in and out of the back seat. €85 alone or €95 with gift-pack of robe, drying mitt and laundry bag, dogdry.com. For a cheaper, stocking suffer, Petmania carry the full line of microfibre, Henry Wag Drying Coats from €21.99, petmania.ie.
If you have a dog in your social gang, who owns a vegetarian or even vegan human, they will lick their lips at the thought of Irish-made, plant-based dog treats Vpro created by pioneering animal food specialists Omega Pet Food, Cork.
A supplement in a delicious snack, it includes highly nutritious milled flaxseed, nutritional yeast, chicory inulin and turmeric to support cellular health and repair and dedicated functional Ingredients to support healthy skin and coat, bones, joints, immunity and digestion. I tested the range with my dogs all this year, and they adored them. There was a new sparkle to their eyes and coat; it is priced at €40, omegapetfood.com, for an eight-pack in three supplement choices (60 per pack).
We need to tread carefully when buying presents that might signal any critique of someone’s pet-keeping routine, however, pet cameras are a clear winner for most owners. It’s distressing to leave our fur baby for short or even longer periods, and a camera allows us to see the dog or cat and even offers some comforting words that Mummy is on the way home. Prices are excellent, and once you know your target human has a smartphone and reasonable IT competence (or someone who can set up the accompanying app’ connectivity) — it’s a go.
At the higher end, Catit PIXI Smart Mouse Camera offers full HD video, two-way audio, night vision and more. It’s compact and cute, sitting up on a magnetic base. Automatic recordings (continuous, timed or by motion detection) available with MicroSD card inserted only (not included), €88.50, petstop.ie. I fell for the KamiBaby monitoring camera which allowed me to record soothing messages and music for my pack and notifies me when they cry or bark. Don’t judge! €79, harveynorman.ie.
Having held regular, raucous JRT races in my fields with a speeding runner whirling a lunging-whip lure, I can vouch for the madness and delight of completely pointless activity training.
Even with stubborn, lazy dogs, family, friends and confused guests will be laughing unto crying. There are plenty of individual pieces and sets to choose from that can be set up and broken down to suit even a small garden. Match the height and challenge of the piece to the dog, its age and leg length.
The Trixie Agility Set contains two posts, an agility ring, two crossbars and four supports. They can set hurdles for the dog and adjust them to exactly the comfortable height for the pet to either go over or under them. Then give a dog more of a jumping challenge with the fully height-adjustable agility hoop, starting low and going up as the dog becomes fitter and more focused on passing through the ring to get a treat; €26.99, micksgarage.com.
Dogs who love fetching will thrill at an automatic ball thrower. They are great for dogs in need of brain food, but who get too excited and nippy — scaring everyone away (we'll say no names — Teddy!). Nomad Tales Bloom Automatic launcher (up to 9m fling), offers some Christmas chaos that’s definitely for outside only, €61.49, or go for a manual from €3.69, zooplus.ie.
Simple pussycat stocking fillers should include toys, but keep in mind, your devoted cat friend will have been hypnotised by the cat into collecting others. Keep it simple. Kong has an excellent range of small cat teasers that fix to various surfaces. The Kong Teaser Loopz has an extra-long wand and soft woollen rings that satisfy hunt-and-capture instincts and stalking needs. A shiny ball and fluttery feathers give kitties an exciting visual target for pouncing while the ball’s crackling sound keeps cats interested.
Premium Kong Catnip in the ball boosts mood, to keep kitties playing longer, and it’s such fun to see them lose their usual feline aplomb and act completely daft; €7.95 from various suppliers. Interactive play deepens bonds with our pets and provides an ASMR-style calming moment for owners. Life is short. Let’s treasure every moment.
