Disclaimer: this post if brought to you by Chewy.com, but all opinions are my own and I only share products I think my readers will love!
My friends over at Chewy.com recently sent me a new toy. The KONG Squeezz Ball with Handle Dog Toy not only squeaks, but it’s perfect for tugging too! And even though it was well past my bed time….there was no way I was going to pass up the opportunity to take it for a spin.
Too tired to stand, but NEVER too tired to play with a new toy! How about your dog?
Because sleep is highly underrated, I couldn’t leave you hanging this month without sharing my new collection of places that I like to sleep. Here’s a few of my napping spots from the past month…
Kinda gives you that groggy feeling doesn’t it? Can you spot the item that shows up the most in all of my napping pictures? (hint: it’s black and yellow*) *affiliate link
In case you missed any of my favorite spots from last month, be sure to check out my “Oh the Places You Sleep” Series!
If you’re unfamiliar with BlogPaws, it’s essentially a community of pet enthusiasts who write about and support pets via social media! Their annual conferences bring together hundreds of pet bloggers, pet enthusiasts, shelters, rescues, and brands for social media education, networking, and promoting.
I’m pretty much a newbie when it comes to BlogPaws, and I decided to attend this annual event for the first time after I found out I was a finalist for the Best Dog Blog and Best Pet Photo of 2015 in the Nose-to-Nose Awards.
Honestly I had no idea what to expect at this conference, and pretty much all I knew was that it was a pet friendly event, which meant I would be doing a whole lot of butt sniffing!
At first I was a little nervous when I entered the conference. There was a lot going on, tons of dogs, lots of chatter, and so so much to look at. But after about an hour I quickly realized this was a safe place to be and I was with MY KIND OF DOGS. (friendly, adventurous, and ready to sample lots and lots of treats).
To give you a little better idea of what a BlogPaws conference actually looks like, check out this video:
At 15 seconds in you can actually see me and my mom & dad walking around the BlogPaws vender area (bottom right corner).
The BlogPaws vender area was packed with brands that are interested in working with bloggers, and that’s good news for you, because it means I’ll hopefully be able to bring you even more fun product reviews & giveaways with some great new products in the coming months! Which P.S., if you’re ever interested in hearing my honest review about a product or brand or you’d love me to host a giveaway with them (so you could potentially win!) – just shoot them (or me) an e-mail and let them know about my blog!
I had a blast sampling products, and talking to companies about some of their new product lines.
While I’ve been to expos before, this was the liveliest one, and I couldn’t believe how much there was to see and do! And did I mention the swag? There were so many wonderful sponsors that donated products to the event, and I gotta send my thanks to them (because this was only a small potion of it)! And since I’m just one small dog, I will be donating many items to my local animal rescue!
One of the exciting things was getting the opportunity to attend some of the lectures and talks at BlogPaws. I have to say before this, I had never attended a lecture before, unless you count the times I visited an Elementary School.
While mom and dad were busy learning about SEO, monetization, pinterest marketing, and so much more, I was busy catching some Zzzz’s! Because honestly, all of it was a bit over my head. I’m much more the “talent” behind this blog anyway, and I was more than thrilled that mom and dad were there to take notes for me. Mom found some of the lectures very interesting and picked up some new skills she’ll be helping me apply to not only my blog, but my regular 9-5 business at the frame shop.
While the lectures were quite serious in nature, I made sure to liven them up some with a few of my silly tricks…..like playing dead! (It’s no fun to be serious all the time!)
Guess what, I wasn’t the only Dachshund with the silly’s there either! This is Fiona McSnuggles, a long haired sweetie who was actually blind and is a therapy dog just like me.
I also met Dolly the Doxie, a dachshund mix! Surprisingly (or maybe not so much) those were the only other dachshunds I spotted at BlogPaws.
I did however get to meet the infamous Prissy and Pop! They are celebrities on instagram, and even have jobs working as mascots in a first grade class. And yes, I’m super jealous that they are on summer break right now!
With all the excitement of the BlogPaws conference I made sure to take as many nap breaks as I could squeeze in, especially since my poor mom caught a nasty cold the day we left for our road trip adventure and spent most of the week trying her best to get through all the fun activities we had planned.
Speaking of fun, I became the recipient of my very own Busy Bee while at BlogPaws! If you’ve ever watched the movie Best in Show, then you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about when I say I was FREAKING OUT every time my Busy Bee from PetSafe (one of the sponsors of BlogPaws) got out of my sight! And if you haven’t watch the movie…do it….do it now!
After all the excitement of the week there was one last thing to do….attend the 2015 Nose-to-Nose awards! Of course I dressed to the nines since I was a finalist for Best Dog Blog and Best Pet Photo awards!
This was my first time walking a red carpet, and hopefully I worked it!
Here’s a group shot of most of the 2015 Nose-to-Nose Finalists. In case you didn’t get a chance to catch the live streaming event, you can watch the video here:
Sadly I did not take home any awards this year, but hey, I’m just honored to have been a finalist – my very first year too!
You know who did win though? My fellow dachshund adventurer blog, You Did What With Your Wiener? Congrats to Jessica, and I’m thrilled that dachshund adventure seekers are taking over the World! (well at least BlogPaws).
After 3 days of BlogPaws I was royally beat! I had so much fun, and hopefully I’ll get to attend again sometime soon (I’m thinking it may be an every few years event for me).
For now though it was time to make my trek back home to Pennsylvania where my ponies were anxiously awaiting my return!
And don’t worry, incase you were thinking this was the end of my adventures, I still have one more fun stop I made on the way home in Knoxville, Tennessee! Check back next week for the full details on my visit to the Sunsphere.
P.S. Don’t forget, for you local Pennsylvanians, I’ll be at the Ryerss Family Fun Day this Saturday from 12 – 4pm with my friend Minnow the famous Painting Pony. Hope you’ll stop by and meet me! I’ll be performing some of my favorite tricks too!
My mom and dad had found a cute little cabin tucked into the mountains in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for me to spend two nights in during my road trip.
Gatlinburg is nestled at the entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and has great access to many of the hiking trails in the Smokies, but also has a bustling downtown area. The Downtown Parkway is essentially a boardwalk of sorts without the beach!
After a day of hiking in the Smokies I decided to check out the activity down town and headed out on an evening walk.
Many of the shops had open-air type attractions, and I started to gather just as much attention as the fast and furious cars and the cotton candy and the haunted attractions (if you catch my drift).
While I didn’t meander into any shops (and I’m not quite sure if there were any that were pet friendly or not), I had some fun checking out some of the more wild attractions – like this Ripley’s Believe It or Not.
Heck, I even got to meet some of the Avengers! I’m pretty sure they were wondering where my super hero costume was, but I assured them that it was safely packed in my travel bag should any funny business arrive.
After exploring the town for a bit I stumbled across a pet friendly patio for dinner at the Back Alley Grill.
At this point after a day full of hiking, and exploring the town, I was pretty beat. So while mom and dad ate I snuck in a quick nap.
On the way back to my cabin I got to meet my SECOND BEAR of the trip! Only this one must have been pretty tried like me, because he was in a deep deep sleep and couldn’t even be bothered to say hello to me. (I left him my business card for when he wakes up)
After so much excitement for one day I spent as much time as I could relaxing at my cabin while mom and dad packed up for my next adventure. My next stop would be the BlogPaws Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, and I was going to need all the rest I could get!
And after a few more hours of driving, and a couple rest stops (where I left a few of my signature calling cards), I was almost in Nashville!
Make sure you stop by my blog tomorrow to hear all about the adventures I had the BlogPaws Conference, where I even got to meet Elvis!
P.S. Don’t forget, for you local Pennsylvanians, I’ll be at the Ryerss Family Fun Day this Saturday from 12 – 4pm with my friend Minnow the famous Painting Pony. Hope you’ll stop by and meet me! I’ll be performing some of my favorite tricks too!
If you’ve been following along with me on Facebook then you know I went on a super fun road trip last week to some amazing pet friendly locations. Yesterday I shared my first stop along the way, the National Mall, and today I’m going to share my next pit stop, the Shenandoah National Park!
The Shenandoah National Park is over 200,000 acres of protected lands that is home to deer, birds, black bears and more!
Within minutes of pulling into the park I had already seen a newborn deer cross the road in front of us with it’s mom, and if that weren’t exciting enough, you’ll never guess what I spotted next!
Oh yes, that’s right, I spotted a Black Bear! And not just one black bear, but I saw two….one of which had bear cubs with it (unfortunately my camera crew missed that shot!).
And in case you were wondering what I did when I spotted the bear….I just took it all in. No barking, not one peep, because I may have been safely in my car, but there was no way I was going to give that bear any excuse to eat me! I’m no dummy!
After all that black bear excitement I took a breather to eat my dinner overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains on Skyline drive. Best dinner ever!
After I finished up dinner I checked into my pet friendly accommodations at the Skyland Resort for the night.
My room for the night was pretty basic, but the views were so breathtaking.
Within walking distance of my accommodations was a nice little restaurant that had a pet friendly patio for “to-go” orders. I was lucky enough to eat dinner and breakfast overlooking the blue ridge mountains.
As a bonus there was a nice little bluff that was perfect for watching the sunset from.
After a restful nights sleep it was time to pack up and head out on my next adventure. But before I could hit the road, there was one last thing to do.
It had a few nice overlooks of the mountains, and was a relatively shady trail, which was nice on such a hot day.
As I headed out from Shenandoah I enjoyed taking in the scenery along Skyline Drive which runs 105 miles along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Shenandoah National Park. It’s the only public road through the park, and honestly makes a road trip that much better with it’s views!
And of course I had to stop to take a few selfies along the way!
The journey ahead to my next destination was long…
…but thankfully my meals came to me!
Make sure you check in on Monday where I’ll share my next big adventure in the Smoky Mountains and visiting the town of Gatlinberg!
What do you think your dog would have done had it spotted a black bear like I did?
Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by the Natural Dog Company. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you will love!
This Snout Soother aims to save many doggie noses from the uncomfortableness of dry, chapped and cracked skin.
Made with unrefined Shea Nut Butter, Organic Hempseed Oil, Kukui Nut Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Jojoba Oil, Candelilla Wax, Rosemary Extract, Natural Vitamin E – this all natural product is safe for your dog (even if ingested) and is basically like the equivalent of chapstick, but for your dog’s nose!
The Natural Dog Company recommends using a cookie to distract your dog while applying, and it can be applied up to 2-3 times per day.
Snout Soother nose balm for dogs can be used for the following:
Dry, Chapped Nose
Crusty & Cracked Nose
Hyperkeratosis
Nose Rolls & Folds
Windburn Prevention
Natural Sunscreen
Shiny Show Dog Noses
Extreme Weather Conditions
Rashes and Skin irritations
Puppy Acne
Fading scars
Canine Dry Eye
Discoid Lupus
Brachycephalic Breeds
And humans can even use it too on dry skin!
While my nose wasn’t currently dry when I tested this product, I can certainly see the benefits for dogs with chronic dry noses, and especially in the winter months! Plus my mom loves that it’s all natural and she can steal some too for the dry cracks on her skin from all the farm work!
To enter use the Rafflecopter widget below. You will be contacted via e-mail to claim your prize. All the winners will also be announced on this blog post once the giveaway ends. Open to USA residents only. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. Good luck!
These nutrient-dense protein nuggets are packed with quality animal protein, without fillers or grains, and with wholesome superfoods. Their chewy size is easy to break apart into smaller doses to take my medication each night.
Mom cuts one of my Zyrtec pills in half – I weigh 20lbs and she’s been giving me a 5mg dose once a night – although my vet said I could take 10mg.
She then hides my pill inside my Wellness Protein Bars. I’m none the wiser (although don’t tell mom I’d probably eat anything she handed me) and mom feels better knowing I’m not only eating a 100% natural (made in the USA) treat that I go crazy for, but that I won’t be up all night sneezing either.
You know, sometimes it’s the simple things in life that can bring you the greatest joy.
For example, a few weeks ago I happened across a field of buttercups while on a walk with my mom and dad. And what I did next instantly put a smile on my face…
And to get the full effect you have to run like no one’s watching.
Happiness is a field of buttercups to run through! What brings your dog happiness?
You may have caught my struggles over the last few months on the saga that is the Dachshund Life Struggle. And if you follow along with me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, then likely you may have already seen many of the Dachshund Life Struggles.
Who would have thought that this adventure of being a dachshund would be so struggle riddled! So here’s what I’ve been struggling with this past month…
In case you missed any struggles, be sure to check them all out on my blog. You can keep following along with me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to see more #dachshundlifestruggle and if you’ve got a struggle to add be sure to let me know!
P.S. Don’t forget to share my struggles with all your friends…..we have to spread the word about how hard it is to be a dachshund these days!
Last month I posted a collection of some of my favorite places to sleep. You guys seemed to love it so much that I couldn’t leave it at that. So incase you thought I already had a huge compilation of napping positions and spots…..you haven’t seen anything yet! Boring is not in my vocabulary, so without further ado, here’s my napping spots this past month…
And if you’re wondering where my all-time favorite spot to nap is just check out this post from last year about where I love to lay my head.
Just when you thought my week long road trip might be coming to an end, I’ve got even more to share! I’ve already visited some amazing places like; 
