End of Summer Harvests + Limited Ingredient Diets for Dogs

Posted on August 27, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: this post is brought to you by the honest kitchen. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your dogs will love.

While Trooper and I may look hot in this picture, the truth is the warm summer weather will be leaving us soon. With it we’ll have to say goodbye to our lush veggie gardens and the summertime harvests that have been so abundant this year.

Eating healthy, fresh ingredients isn’t just important for the humans, it’s important for us dogs too. While mom can’t grow everything Trooper and I need to maintain a healthy diet, I want to share with you the newest addition to my healthy diet that’s available all year round!

My friends at the Honest Kitchen are makers of all natural, human grade dehydrated dog and cat food. Their foods are produced in the USA from non-GMO produce and hormone-free meats.

One of the newest addition to their healthy food line is called BRAVE. This limited ingredient diet contains only six ingredients: MSC certified pollock, organic coconut, chickpea, celery, pumpkin, spinach, plus vitamins and minerals – which is perfect for dogs that may have allergies, or prefer a more simplified food.

Brave had a great fishy smell, which I picked up even before mom opened the shipping box it came in! And all you have to do is add water to this food to get it to puff up to a full (and filling) meal. I look forward to scarfing it down at mealtime.

While neither Trooper nor I have any food related allergies, we can certainly appreciate a simplified diet with only the healthiest of ingredients.

Just like all the yummy home grown veggies in mom’s garden!

There’s lots I want to share with you about how I’ve added dehydrated food from the Honest Kitchen into my rotational diet – so to find out even more you’ll just have to stop by my blog on Tuesday next week – as a bonus I’ve got some great products from the Honest Kitchen to giveaway too!

You can fetch BRAVE and other limited ingredient foods from the Honest Kitchen. And as a BONUS, if you’d like to try some Honest Kitchen with your pets you can use my special promo code for a FREE SAMPLE BUNDLE + Honest Kitchen Coupon ($10 Total Value) for just $1 in shipping. (discount will be automatically applied at checkout)

And that’s not all, The Honest Kitchen is also having a fun Calendar Contest you can enter to win a Free trip to San Diego for you and your pet + Honest Kitchen Goodies! If you’d like you can check out my entry, and see the “honest confession” that I’m telling the world. I’d love it if you could give me a vote too! 😉

Grab a FREE SAMPLE BUNDLE + Coupon (A $10 Value) for $1 shipping with code AMBBGKD6100 from the Honest Kitchen!

Don’t forget to check back next week for a fun giveaway with the Honest Kitchen!

Never want to miss any of the adventures (or giveaways) on my blog? Make sure you sign-up for e-mail updates!

GPS Pet Tracker To Keep Your Dog Safe + A Giveaway

Posted on August 25, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Trax and does contain some affiliate links. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your pets will love.

You might remember that at the beginning of this year I started testing out a new GPS Pet Tracker on the market to keep pets (and anything else you want) safe called Trax.

This tiny little device that gets attached to my collar has changed the way I get to enjoy time on the farm. Not to mention it keeps my mom from worrying ALL THE TIME (She’s a bit dramatic if you ask me) about what I’m doing.

Now for those of you that are dachshund owners – this is a common scene I’m sure you know all too well. You trust “dachshund” to stay close, you unhook leash, dachshund takes off and pretends they can’t hear your frantic yelling, you chase dachshund down, you tie dachshund up again, no one is happy.

Now while a good recall is always a good idea, I (nor any dog) wants to listen all of the time (life is just too short for that), and being tied up 24/7 is just oh so sad. So enter the Trax GPS Tracker.

With this around my neck my mom feels better about letting me roam the farm (which is not fenced) because she can check in on me any time she wants. I’m happy because I don’t have to be tied up as much, and I still get to go on my coveted hunting excursions!

Mom sets up a “geo-fence” around the areas she would like me to stay and anytime I cross the invisible boundary she gets a text to notify her and can check in to see where I’m at using the free Trax mobile app.

And guess what, it even works underground! Thanks to Trax I’m able to enjoy my time outdoors without the restrictions of a leash. If you haven’t tried it, it’s heaven!

Mom even leaves my Trax on me when I’m home alone, and it’s kinda fun to check it later to see where exactly I traveled inside the house. Now while the farmhouse is still too new to show up on the aerial view of the map, you can sort of still decipher that I only traveled to check the side doors and to my dog bed while mom was gone.

A fun little tip for all you Trax wearers out there is that since Trax is only water resistant (not waterproof), mom slips mine into one of these tiny little bags before putting it on my collar to make sure it doesn’t ever get too wet on dewy mornings or rainy days.

Thanks Trax for helping set me free, and making sure I get to check EVERY SINGLE ONE of my ground hog holes!

My pal Minnow is thrilled that I can keep those pesky critters at bay so he has no scary holes to fall into when he’s playing in the pasture.

You can fetch your own Trax GPS Pet Tracker for $249 + 2 years of free service ($5/month for each additional year). Which is much cheaper than many of the comparable trackers we have researched.

Make sure you check out my full review from back in January with even more nifty features that are available when you purchase the Trax GPS Tracker.

And now for the best part….

ONE GRAND PRIZE WINNER WILL WIN A TRAX GPS TRACKER! ($249 value!)
TWO RUNNERS-UP WILL WIN A DISCOUNT CODE FOR TRAX + A TRAX SLEEP MASK!

Here’s HOW TO WIN:

No purchase necessary. 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 WORLDWIDE residents. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. By entering you are agreeing to the terms & conditions set forth in the Rafflecopter widget (see below).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Read our full Terms & Conditions for this giveaway.

Never want to miss any of the adventures (or giveaways) on my blog? Make sure you sign-up for e-mail updates!

Cat Scratch Fever

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: this post is brought to you by Chewy. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your pets will love.

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

Recently this interesting looking thing showed up at my door from my friends at Chewy.com.

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

Initially I thought maybe it was a new pedestal for when I perform all my amazing tricks, but then mom informed me that this little goodie wasn’t for me at all, but for my farm cat friends instead.

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

I’m not so sure they were convinced it was for them either, that is until mom sprinkled a little of the catnip that came with it on the cardboard bench.

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

See the Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy.com just instantly draws a crowd! My gal pals Cricket & Spider couldn’t keep their paws off it!

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

My outdoor cat friends have been using their new scratching bench everyday on the farm. Cricket has pretty much claimed this one, while Spider is still totally in love with the cat play mat they got last month from Chewy.

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

Mom said who knew all it took to keep them from scratching up the walls of the barn was a cat scratching bench!

Catit Bench Scratcher with Catnip from Chewy

And the really good news is that it even kept my pal Trooper occupied enough that I got to sneak into the barn and steal all the cat food!

You can fetch your cat pals a Catit Bench Scratcher from Chewy, ON SALE for $8!

Do your cat friends like to scratch walls like mine do?

When Dogs & Cats Play

Posted on July 24, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: This post is brought to you by Chewy. All opinions are my own, and I only share products that I think you will love!

My pals over at Chewy.com recently sent me some fun new products to test out. The KONG Active Cat Play Mat and these Free Ranger no stink Bully Stix!

The Bully Stixs were AWESOME, but honestly, I couldn’t see what the big fuss was about the Play Mat was.

But then mom pulled out a bottle of this Kitty Kush Catnip* that we picked up at BlogPaws and sprinkled a little bit on the activity mat.

*affiliate link

Out of nowhere my pal Spider the Kitty showed up and was all about the Kong Play Mat!

It didn’t take Spider long to kick me off the mat as she rolled, crinkled (it has this fun crinkle sound just like a plastic water bottle), and scratched around on it.

Spider was looking like she was having so much fun with the play mat that Trooper and I were a bit concerned we were missing out on something really fun.

That’s ok though, because Spider may have had her play mat, but Trooper and I had Bully Stixs! And with these awesome benefits:

Grain-free chews
Low odor for indoor chewing
Health and safe alternative to rawhide
Naturally supports dental health
Free range, grass fed beef
Gental on the tummy
No artificial preservatives, flavors or colors
No corn, wheat, soy or rice

…mom felt good about letting us snack on them whenever we wanted!

And snack we did!

Sorry Spider, you won’t share your play mat, and we won’t share our Bully Stix! Agree to disagree…..or whatever the saying should be here!

If you want to snatch up some of these goodies and more fun stuff for your favorite pet, be sure to check out Chewy.com. They’re one of our favorite retailers for all things pets! And plus you can get FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $49! (make sure you tell them Ammo sent you!)

Dog Agility on the Farm

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Ammo

It’s been a while since I shared much about my ongoing agility training. The fact is, I actually haven’t been to any training classes since last year, mostly I blame it on my mom because her schedule got too hectic to take me.

Ammo the Dachshund // Agility // Teeter Totter

But even though I may not be taking regular classes, that doesn’t mean that I’m not doing a little training on the side, because….

Real Dogs Have Muscles! via Ammo the Dachshund

Agility is a great way to keep me muscled and fit, plus it’s fun too! Early this Spring my mom decided to move all my agility equipment out to the farm so that we’d have more room to practice. And you know what, I completely forgot to share with you this fun little video of me running the agility course in the ~~horse arena~~ giant sandbox.

Obviously I was a bit rusty, but not too bad! I’ll just have to keep up with even more practicing.

Agility Tunnel with Ammo the Dachshund

If you’d like to find out more about how much fun agility is for you and your dog, you can check out some of my old posts.

What do you do with your dog for exercise?

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Open Farm. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your dog will love!

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

With so many choices in pet food nowadays it can sometimes be overwhelming with choosing the best dog food for your dog. I’m lucky that my mom cares a whole lot about what I eat, and while she doesn’t claim to be any sort of pet nutrition expert, she does try to choose the healthiest options for me to eat. Recently I got the chance to try the brand Open Farm, a healthy pet food that is ethically raised and sourced.

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Now the fact that mom even allowed to me to taste-test review the Open Farm food (which I have been eating as my daily food for the past few weeks now) is saying a lot about what she thinks of the quality. Because if we’re being honest here, I would never be allowed to test it if my mom didn’t think it was a-ok!

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Now before I get into the ingredients part of this review, lets talk about the fact that everything inside this Open Farm bag is ethically sourced. What does that mean exactly? It means that all of the farms that they source their meat and poultry from are audited and certified in humane animal care by leading third party, non-profit organizations in the field, and their fish are exclusively ocean caught using sustainable fishing practices.

Now I can’t control the fact that I’m a dog and I was designed to eat meat, but I can do my part for animal kind by choosing to eat foods that were ethically treated. Which makes me and my mom feel a whole lot better!

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Now sourcing ethically raised meats is great, but what about the quality of the actual food? Here’s whats in the bag I received:

MAIN INGREDIENTS: Humanely farmed turkey, humanely farmed chicken, ocean caught whitefish meal, russet potatoes, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), green lentils, field peas, coconut oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), ocean caught menhaden fish meal, tomato, apples, pumpkin, natural flavor, flaxseed, sun cured alfalfa, carrots, chicory root, salmon oil, salt, potassium chloride, choline chloride rosemary extract

VITAMINS: Vitamin E supplement, calcium pantothenate, niacin supplement, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid

MINERALS: Zinc proteinate, calcium carbonate, iron proteinate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, sodium selenite, calcium iodate

You can read more about what’s inside by checking out the Open Farm Website.

So my mom (who is in charge of quality control for all of my food) admits that she did not look up every single ingredient in this food, and she certainly does not consider herself an expert in pet nutrition. What she does look for in the foods she chooses to feed me is that the main ingredients come from whole meats (instead of byproducts and ground up meal) and she prefers to feed me a grain-free diet (which Open Farm is).

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Jeeze, so much talk about food and now I’m starving! Lets eat this stuff already!!

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

I had no problem munching down a bowl of Open Farm each morning and night – although I am a dog (and I’ll eat pretty much anything…including horse poop!) So it’s a good thing my mom picks out the healthy stuff for me, or who knows where I’d be!

It’s also good to know the poultry and meat are raised without the use of antibiotics and growth hormones, and the fish is always ocean caught, meaning it consumed a natural and antibiotic free diet. The fruits and vegetables are all locally grown and sourced close by to their manufacturing facility too. Open Farm recipes are free from artificial preservatives and flavors, and their recipes are preserved using mixed tocopherols, a natural preservative that also provides anti-oxidants.

And since I’m sure you’ll ask, Open Farm contains no ingredients from China. Almost all of our ingredients are sourced in Canada and the United States with the exception of coconut oil and certain vitamins and minerals that are not available in North America.

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Since I’m pretty sure I could be a poster-dog for Open Farm now (I do spend my spare time on the family horse farm after all), so I’ve been practicing my super model pose for when they decide to make the next bag with my photo on it. *wink*

If you’d like to check out Open Farm for your furry friend you can check out their list of retailers on their website.

And now for the best part….

Open Farm Ethically Raised Dog Food Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

TWO WINNERS WILL WIN A 4.5lb BAG OF OPEN FARM HOMESTEAD CHICKEN & TURKEY RECIPE

Here’s HOW TO WIN:

No purchase necessary. 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 & CANADA residents only. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. By entering you are agreeing to the terms & conditions set forth in the Rafflecopter widget (see below). Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Read our full list of Terms & Conditions for this giveaway.

How to make a Fake Rabbit Hole for your Dog

Posted on April 22, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: this is NOT a sponsored post, but it does contain some affiliate links.

It’s no secret that I am OBSESSED with holes. After all, my breed was originally bred to go down holes and hunt down badgers.

And go down holes I do! My mom has had to pull me out of many ground hog holes around the farm over the years, and because of my affinity to go hunting whenever I feel like it I now wear a GPS tracker whenever I’m on the farm. While my tracker gives mom piece of mind, she’d still prefer my escapades kept me a little closer to the barn, which is why she decided to dupe me!

So I decided to share how my mom made me a DIY Fake Rabbit Hole so all you other dogs out there won’t get tricked like I did!

Here’s what you’ll need:

Rabbit Scent (or any other scent your dog might prefer)
Spray Bottle
Water
String (I used bailing twine)
Paper Towel
Shovel or Post Hole Digger

Step 1: Choose a spot to dig a hole about 2 feet deep. Make sure you choose a spot where no one could fall in it (placing a marker when it’s done is helpful too). A spot near a bush or tree makes it more believable to your dog as well.

As you can see just the sight of a hole was enough to get me interested!

Step 2: Mix your Rabbit Scent with some water in a spray bottle and mist it into the hole. You can make it stronger by foregoing the water if your dog doesn’t seem interested.

Step 3: Tie a paper towel to a string and mist with the rabbit scent. Drag the towel to and from the hole to leave a scent trail for your dog to follow.

Trooper and I picked up on the rabbit scent trail right away.

But only one of us really cared…..I’m pretty sure you can guess who!

Well I feel pretty silly getting tricked with a fake hole, but I did have a really good time digging to my hearts content. So fake or not, I don’t regret it one bit. Well except for the fact that it landed me in the bath a few hours later!

Do you think your dog would be tricked by a fake scent hole?

*Be advised that fake animal scents can attract other wild animals as well. So be aware of where you are putting it, and make sure to supervise your dog especially if they are out at night.

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway

Posted on April 21, 2015 by Ammo

Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Wares for Bears. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you will love!

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

As a dog who loves fashion I’ve learned that there is one thing that will make or break my look…and that’s accessories! Today you are in luck, because I can’t wait to share with you some of my newest accessories from my friends at Wares for Bears.

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

Trooper and I received some awesome handmade bandanas from Wares for Bears recently, and they totally made us feel the part of farm dogs.

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

I mean just look at all that fabulous fringe!

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

The Wares for Bears bandanas are all made to fit your own dog’s unique neck size with a snap closure. No need to tie them around your dog’s neck like a traditional bandana.

Wares for Bears also donates 10% of their sales to the Seattle Humane Society, a local animal rescue organization that helps to feed, shelter, care, and re-home dogs in need. Now that’s pretty cool!

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

They come in sizes for big and small dogs, and in many various patterns and styles. Trooper and I picked out a few that had that fun farm feel to them.

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

The really cool part is that they are reversible too. So for the price of one bandana, you can get not one, but two looks…

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

…polka dots or checks for this one!

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

And I discovered another fun feature of the Wares for Bears bandanas…..

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

…they’re total chick magnets!

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

My gal pal Cricket couldn’t get over how fabulous Trooper and I looked in our new bananas.

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

You can fetch your own chick magnet bandana from Wares for Bears and as a special bonus you can use code AMMO15 for 15% OFF your next order!

And now for the best part…

Wares for Bears Review & Giveaway // Ammo the Dachshund

TWO WINNERS WILL WIN A CUSTOM DOG BANDANA FROM WARES FOR BEARS!

Here’s HOW TO WIN:

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!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Superhero Adventures on the Farm

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Ammo

Way back in the fall of last year my buddy Trooper and I had some very special visitors to the farm. Special enough that we had to break out our super hero gear!

Adventures with Max and Duke from Sleepypod // Super Heroes // Ammo the Dachshund

Because if you’re going to meet new friends, then you might as well make sure you look too cool for school! (and also a little intimidating).

Adventures with Max and Duke from Sleepypod // Super Heroes // Ammo the Dachshund

When our special farm guests showed up I’m pretty sure they were quite impressed with mine and Trooper’s super-ness. Our new friends, Max & Duke, turned out to be pretty cool too, because they are the the super brave crash test dummies from Sleepypod!

Adventures with Max and Duke from Sleepypod // Super Heroes // Ammo the Dachshund

Trooper and I spent the day showing Max & Duke just what it’s like to be heroes on the farm. You can read all about our adventures with them on the Sleepypod Blog.

Adventures with Max and Duke from Sleepypod // Super Heroes // Ammo the Dachshund

And spoiler alert….there may have been some groundhog holes involved (what’s a trip to the farm without a tour of my holes?)…..

Adventures with Max and Duke from Sleepypod // Super Heroes // Ammo the Dachshund

…and perhaps a little pony drool too. (Sorry Duke!).

But you’ll have to find out exactly what went down by heading over to Sleepypod. And make sure you follow them on Facebook to see where Max & Duke are headed next…..perhaps it will even be a town near you!

Winter on the Farm

Posted on March 4, 2015 by Ammo