It all started with a folding table that I found for a $14.99. For a price like that, you can’t expect perfection but it is very lightweight, has adjustable heights, is very portable when it’s folded up and did I mention it’s lightweight? When you are lugging all of your gear from the parking lot up to the dog show ring, keeping the weight down is must. And for that price, you need to know that the weight limit for the table s only 25 pounds – So for us it is perfect for our Pug AND our Chihuahuas. Keep that weight limit in mind – This project may not work for you and your dog.

Since the top of the table is hard plastic, it can be a bit slippery for dogs so I had to venture into two more aisles to make it perfect. We needed to reduce that slip – Off to the home organization and cleaning detainment I went first, on the hunt for Grip Shelf Liner or Con-Tact paper. I wanted the grip kind, all of which are not self adhesive so that gave me two options. I could go practical or pretty and I went the pretty route. There weren’t many print options at my Target but I will say I really like the one that I found and for $4.99, I was very pleased!

Since there was no adhesive to keep in on the table, my final stop with the Office Supply Department, were I got myself a can of spray adhesive. Thank you Elmer’s! You never seem to let me down! And at $6.99, the grand total for my project was $26.97 plus tax. WOOO HOOO!!!  The only other item you will need to complete the table is an X-Acto knife, which I happen to have on hand. If you need one, they can be picked up rather inexpensively – still keeping the total cost under $30.00.

After spraying a thin layer of the adhesive onto the top of the table, I laid a pre-measured piece of the liner onto of the adhesive and then used the X-Acto knife to trim around the edges. Voila! Portable as well as pretty grooming table that my dogs will not slip off of. LOVE IT!!!

Chihuahuas make perfect travel companions – A reason many people make them pat of their families. But when we travel with our dogs, we often times do not think about their safety like we do of our own. Seat belts and restraints for dogs are the last thing on one’s mind. When you see one of those videos of a dog flying about in an accident simulation, you realize immediately that roaming the car while on the road is nothing but deadly for our canine companions.

Now in addition to how the dogs travel, the topic from today was what happens if the “worst case scenario” happens and you are involved in a car accident with your dogs in your vehicle?

Having our dogs restrained will help keep them safe both during the incident and after. One too many times, dogs have been seen running from the accident scene, often times, never to be seen again. Other times, the humans are incapacitated or unable to give instructions on handle their dogs. This is when local Animal Control in contacted to remove the animals from the scene. This exact scenario was discussed and a solution was explained with great appreciation.

It is suggested that you have the following information in the glove compartment of your car s well as attached to each crate.

• A paper copy of your dog’s vaccination records as well as any special medical needs
• Color photo of your dog and their microchip number & information.
• Your veterinarian’s phone number and at a minimum, two emergency contacts.

Most importantly, you must state you do NOT wish for them to be taken to a shelter, ideally having them stay with you until your emergency contact can come and retrieve them.

At a minimum, the following example is used – AS A MINIMUM – by those in the dog fancy and who have with multiple dogs. Feel free to use it to print a document or you can even have it engraved onto a crate tag.  In the meantime, I will be working on creating an ICE (In Case of Emergency) kit for my vehicle and dogs and once I  have it all figured out yo have to know I will share!

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You see, before, they could see through the bars of the baby gate and what for her return. There is no such ability with the new, solid gates, so they are left to use different senses. Smell and hearing are the next go-to’s  for Marg but Boomer prefers to simply wait JUST this side of the gate so that he can get smacked in the head with it she she, or anyone else, walks into the room. He is actually trying to peek though the tiny gap between the gate and wall but it is not a very successful plan. Needless to say, we now have to add “give Boomer a warning” to the steps needed to use our new, awesome gates.

My entire camper renovation was inspired by Pinterest! So when I saw this fabulous baby gate idea in a pin I begged my husband to pull out the tools. As only he could, he made some slight improvements while honing in on the fine details they included int he original. Like the trim on the top – PERFECT!!!!! We went for a non-wallpaper design but I am opt to add it later.

Since we need three doors to help keep the herd controlled, we purchased enough supplies to complete all three, He opted to use sheets of Underlayment which is not only babybutt smooth on both sides but also a very nice, light weight. One sheet was large enough to create two doors and painting it is a breeze. Then we needed six 1 x 6 pieces of #2 pine so that the mitered frame pieces sound be added – Two for each door.  We found some cabinet trim to use for the top moulding piece which fit across the top perfectly! The final item needed in the cart at HomeDepot was the gate hardware. We went the white route, making for more of a subtle look. Of course, there was also the wood glue, air nail gun and the finish nails but all in all, it was a quick and fun weekend project with one down and two more to go!

A liver and cottage cheese bait biscuit recipe was discovered and a trip to Publix was planned for this morning. With no real bakers in the family, it was quite entertaining to see our instinctual chef try to follow a baking recipe. Alexis was actually quiet the natural and took to the process rather quickly.

The results? Some absolutely amazing biscuits that the dogs drooled over while they were baking. Once they were out of the over and cooled, she was like the pied piper with a handful of bait. The Chihuahuas have spoken – Liver Biscuits RULE!