Havanese Rescue: Meet Sweet Tula

Sweet Tula

Last weekend at the Havanese National Specialty, among the talented performance dogs and conformation champions were a special group of dogs perhaps the most beloved of all. Once a year at the National Specialty, Havanese Rescue, Inc. (HRI) holds a silent auction and raffle and this year, there were some special guests in attendance who are looking for their forever homes.

Meet Tula, a precious 13-year-old Havanese who is in foster care in Missouri. Tula is sweet and cuddly, loves her toys and looks and acts fabulously young for her age.

Tula's wish list is short and simple:

• Toys to play with
• A soft bed
• A kind lap and loving hands to pet her soft hair and give her belly rubs
• A fenced in yard or time to take walks

At the Nationals, I had the chance to meet Tula and other Havs available for adoption as well lots of wonderful folks from Havanese Rescue. To learn more about Tula and other Havanese looking for forever homes visit HavaneseRescue.com.

For more photos from the Havanese Nationals check out our Facebook page.

Now, it's time once again to head on over to the Saturday Pet Blogger's Hop!

Giveaway Winner: Custom Art Clock From The Clock Lady

It's time to announce the winner of our first birthday giveaway. We got lots of nice entries for the custom art clock from The Clock Lady, and we wish everyone could win. So in addition to announcing our grand prize winner today, The Clock Lady is offering 20 percent off all clock orders for To Dog With Love readers through August 31.

To take advantage of the special discount, just enter To Dog With Love in the box that says "How did you hear about The Clock Lady?" on the order page.

And now, for the real reason you are here!! Drum roll please >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>!!!

The winner of the 16-inch clock from The Clock Lady, featuring your very own favorite photo, is Junk Loving Girl! Congratulations on a most fabulous prize!

Wordless Wednesday: Belly rub, puleeze!

Please give Cosmo a pat and then head on over to the BlogPaws Blog Hop for more Wordless Wednesday photo fun!

Vote for a Hero Dog and CESAR will donate to American Humane Association to support more therapy dogs

Julianne Hough smooches on a therapy dog at the
Hero Dog Award kick off

The Hero Dog Awards celebrate the thousands of dogs making a difference to people in need every day by providing compassion, comfort and transforming lives with their tenderness and intuition. Hero dogs come in all sizes and breeds. They are therapy dogs, hearing dogs, military dogs, service dogs, guide dogs, search and rescue dogs, law enforcement dogs and ordinary dogs doing extraordinary things. 

Now, dog lovers can log on to www.HeroDogAwards.org and vote for a hero dog whose story touches them. For every vote, CESAR Canine Cuisine will make a donation to American Humane Association to help provide more specially trained animal assistance therapy dogs to people who need them most.

Once finalists are determined, they will fly to Hollywood to walk the red carpet and be recognized at the celebrity-studded awards show on October 1, 2011 when the winning Hero Dog will be announced. The awards show will be televised on Hallmark Channel on Veterans Day, November 11, 2011.

Actress and Dancing with the Stars Champ Julianne Hough teamed up with CESAR to kick off the voting portion of the campaign, which continues through July 31 for category winners and through September 30 for the Grand Prize winner.

So get your vote in today at www.HeroDogAwards.com By voting for nominated dogs in the Hero Dog Awards, you can participate in an opportunity to truly make a difference in thousands of lives. 

A Week of Pawsome Birthday Giveaways!

Last week, To Dog With Love turned one, and we've been celebrating by giving away some of Cosmo's favorite things! In case you missed one, all our giveaways are still open so here's your chance to win some truly fabulous and unique items.

Custom art clock from The Clock Lady

Win a one-of-a-kind clock from The Clock Lady, featuring your own favorite photo. Details on how to enter are here.

$50 coupon for a pet bed from P.L.A.Y.

Get a huge savings on a comfy and stylish pet bed from P.LA.Y. Click here for all the details.

SturdiBag pet carrier

Win Cosmo's travel bag of choice by posting your comment at the blog post link here.

So try your hand or paw at winning some fabulous prizes at the links above and then head on over to the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop!

Giveaway: SturdiBag Pet Carrier

Cosmo waits for the rest of his bags at baggage claim

We're particularly excited about this giveaway since it's Cosmo's favorite way to travel.  Cosmo's traveled across the country and to Italy in his large SturdiBag, so we are thrilled to announce that SturdiProducts has provided us with one large SturdiBag to give away during our Birthday Week celebration.

We love the SturdiBag because it's lightweight and flexible enough to easily slide under an airplane seat. Measuring 12x12x18, it also provides Cosmo with the maximum amount of room allowed by Delta, the airline we travel most often.

If you want to know more about preparing for a long plane flight, we wrote about it here and we've also offered these tips for getting your pet comfortable with your travel bag before you embark on any trip.

Look closely to see Cosmo smiling in his SturdiBag!

Cosmo's bag slides easily under an airplane seat.

How to win your very own SturdiBag

To enter our SturdiBag giveaway, just leave a comment on this blog post stating why you'd like to win a SturdiBag. If you're planning a trip somewhere, let us know... we'd love to hear about your adventures!

If your comment doesn't link to something with your email address, please be sure to leave that too, so we can contact you if you win.

Contest is open to enter until midnight ET on Monday, August 1. The winner will be picked at random and announced on this blog on Thursday, August 4.

If you'd like to travel in the style Cosmo is accustomed to, then hurry up and enter to win your own SturdiBag pet carrier!

Happy travels!

Giveaway: $50 off on pet beds from P.L.A.Y.

Cosmo poses on his pet bed from P.L.A.Y.

It's still birthday week at To Dog With Love, so we are celebrating with another great giveaway!

Earlier this year we reviewed a new pet bed from P.L.A.Y. (Pet Lifestyle and You), and today we are giving away two $50 coupons to be used towards the purchase of any Artist or Original Collection pet bed!

Cosmo adores his bed, so we can both say this is truly a great opportunity to pick up the bed of your pet's dreams!

And what's more, Cosmo has found so many great uses for his bed! In addition to sleeping and posing, Cosmo uses his bed to enhance his restorative yoga practice...

And as a collection pad for toys...

It's also a great place to enjoy a good chew!

P.L.A.Y. beds also come in plenty of great styles to match any decor.

The Rules

It's simple to enter. Just leave a comment on this blog post and tell me what your pet likes to do in bed! (Maybe Cosmo is unusual, I don't know!)

Only one $50 coupon can be won per household. We have two to give away.

Entries must be posted by Friday July 29 at midnight EDT. Winners will be picked at random and posted on this blog on Monday, August 1.

Go on and enter! What are you waiting for!

P.L.A.Y. Auctions Celebrity Signature Pet Beds to Help Animals in Need

Malin Akerman

Does your pet dream of sleeping among the stars AND helping the animals who need it most? From now until July 23, you can bid on a P.L.A.Y. (Pet Lifestyle and You) pet bed, signed by Hollywood celebs, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to the San Francisco SPCA.

At the recent MTV Movie awards Style Lounge, P.L.A.Y. presented celebrities with their award-winning line of pet beds and in return asked for help raising money for animals in need.

More than 100 stars from today's biggest TV shows autographed one of two beds from P.L.A.Y.'s Artist Collection. The sassy Heels and Boots bed features signatures from 27 Dresses star Malin Akerman and Whitney Port from The City, while the classic Footprints bed boasts autographs from America's Best Dance Crew and Extra host Mario Lopez and many others!

Mario Lopez

Founded and based in San Francisco, P.L.A.Y. is proud their hometown is considered one of the safest in the nation for homeless cats and dogs and they want to keep it that way. That's why they are auctioning off both beds and donating 100 percent of the proceeds to the SF SPCA.

To view both auctions, bidders can visit www.sfspca.org/auction through July 23 at 9 p.m PDT. For a link to each bed auction, and to see a complete list of signatures, you can find the Heels and Boots bed here and the Footprints bed here.

Sneak peak at our next giveaway

Earlier this year, Cosmo had the opportunity to review his very own P.L.A.Y. bed, and he loves it! Come back tomorrow for a special giveaway from P.L.A.Y. to help us celebrate To Dog With Love's first birthday!

Birthday Giveaway: Custom Art Clock From The Clock Lady!

Happy birthday to us!

Today is To Dog With Love's first birthday, and to celebrate we are giving our readers a chance to win some amazing gifts, starting with the first big giveaway today!

Every hour is Cosmo hour! What could be better!

A few years ago we met The Clock Lady, a.k.a. JoAnn Shorter, at a local dog event and we were immediately smitten with her wonderful art clocks. Afterall, what could be better than one photo of your precious pet? Why, 12 of them of course... for every hour in the day times two! 

So to celebrate our birthday, we are offering the chance to win your very own customized clock from The Clock Lady. We're giving away one 16-inch clock valued at $155! It's a true keepsake and a beautiful and functional way to honor your favorite pet (or person)!

You submit your photo, like this..

... and The Clock Lady transforms it into a beautiful wall clock, using a unique process to create a kaleidescope or mandala type design. Each clock is printed on canvas and gallery wrapped by hand. The Clock Lady also offers art in equally stunning pendant, keychain or tabletop designs.

To enter the giveaway, head on over to TheClockLady.net, check out the wonderful designs in the pet, people and pooch galleries and then leave a comment on this blog post, stating your favorite.  You can also find more designs on The Clock Lady Facebook page.

Here are a few more of our favorites!

Entries must be posted by midnight ET on Wednesday, July 27 and the winner will be chosen at random and announced on this blog on Friday, July 29.

To keep up on the latest from The Clock Lady, sign up for The Clock Lady's newsletter via the pinkish box at the bottom of TheClockLady.net home page.

Remember, it's Cosmo o'clock somewhere, so enter to win and give yourself the gift of time! What are you waiting for! tic toc tic toc...

Pets Add Life: The joys of pet ownership and Cosmo Havanese!

If you're reading this blog, then I probably don't need to convince you of the joys of pet ownership. But the way I figure it, with pets living in 62 percent of U.S. households*  there's still plenty of room for more folks to experience the fluffier side of life. 

The folks behind the Pets Add Life (PAL) campaign seem to think so too. That's why they are all about sharing the joys of pet ownership ... especially responsible ownership and increasing the adoption of pets.

So with that, I bring you the five most joyful things about living with Cosmo Havanese.

1. Cosmo almost always has a smile on his face
2. His happy tail wags like a propeller
3. Cosmo always looks comfortable, even when he's in yoga pose
4. Cosmo's always up for an adventure or trying a new sport or cheering on his favorite team
5. Cosmo's fluffy, not stuffy, and he does something to make me smile every day!

In addition to adding joy, there are some very real health benefits to pet ownership including:

• Reducing stress
• Preventing heart disease and lowering blood pressure
• Promoting a sense of emotional well-being and helping fight depression

How you can spread the joy

You can join the fun by posting a photo of your pet at the Pets Add Life Facebook page. You can post a video and share your favorite pet story too! And, let us know how your pet adds joy to your life!

* 2011-2012 APPA National Pet Owners Survey

***

This post is sponsored by the Pets Add Life campaign and the American Pet Products Association. The Pets Add Life (PAL) campaign is designed to demonstrate the benefits of pet ownership, thus driving increased adoption of pets and responsible ownership of pets. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about the benefits and joys of pet ownership. 

Wordless Wednesday: Arm chair doggie

Cosmo Havanese has no trouble getting comfortable, anywhere!

Wordless Wednesday: Cosmo's new pal!

Decked out in Red, White and Blue finery, Cosmo met a new pal on the 4th of July!

Happy 4th! Wag & Walk 4 Life and Independence with Greenies!

Happy July 4th from Cosmo!

First, Happy 4th of July from me and Cosmo! Today we're sharing this nice program from The Greenies Brand that encourages you to be active with your dog AND benefits Freedom Service Dogs, an organization that trains and places service dogs with disabled veterans.

The program launched last November, and since then, The Greenies Brand has donated the funds to support the training of 18 service dogs. Now, in celebration of our nation’s birth and the men and women who help protect it, The Greenies Brand will donate $5 to Freedom Service Dogs for every person who signs up for the WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge between now and July 11, up to $5,000.

You can take the WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge and pledge to be more active with your pet at www.facebook.com/Greenies. Through the challenge, you can set goals for daily and weekly activity, log those activities, earn badges for your progress, and share your special times with your pet and your friends.

What’s more is that by pledging to take the WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge, you can help to make a difference in a veteran’s life. The donations The Greenies Brand was able to provide to Freedom Service Dogs through the WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge have helped to ensure service dogs are available to our war veterans in need.

Visit www.facebook.com/greenies and take the WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge to get active with your pet while benefiting the Freedom Service Dogs organization. For more information about Freedom Service Dogs, visit www.freedomservicedogs.org.

Check out this video to see some of these amazing service dogs in training and in action... and how you can help through the GREENIES WAG & WALK 4 LIFE challenge.

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

Pet Art: Barking Cat Jewelry

In another installment of local pet artists, we saw this whimsical line of pet-themed jewelry at an Atlanta art fair.

The artist, Ann Finley, was inspired to create Barking Cat Jewelry by her rescue pup Bruno and two cats, Jack and Squeaker.

The line includes fashions for dog, cat and horse lovers in pendant, earring and keychain designs.

More about Ann and her jewelry here.

Now let's go to the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop.