Pet Sitting, Dog Walking, Scottsdale, AZ

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Many of you may not know – but I love cutting coupons. Hardly ever do I end up at the grocery store without saving at least $15 in coupons.

While cutting my coupons this Sunday, it occurred to me there are many savings that can be passed along to you pet parents. In an effort to bring it to your attention and welcome you to the coupon cutting world, I though I would pass along the information so you can go grab a paper and get the coupons for yourself!

I will try this for the next four Sundays and see the response. The following are coupons you can find in the Sunday Paper Aug 29, 2010.

PET SMART
$3 OFF (1) 4lb bag of Nutro Natural Choice Small Breed Dog food @ Pet Smart.

DOG FOOD & TREATS
$1 OFF (1) Snausage of Snaw Somesl dog snack.
$1 OFF any Pup-Peroni dog snack product 4.8oz or larger
$3 OFF when you buy two any size Bandit Bits
$1 OFF any one Iams ProActive Health dry dog or cat food.

Buy One, Get One FREE – Buy any Meaty Bone dog treat, get a free Canine Carry Outs Dog Snack
Buy One, Get One FREE – buy any one Iams ProActive Health dry dog food, get any one Iams dog can FREE
Buy and FOUR Iams dog cans, get ONE FREE.

CAT FOOD & TREATS
$1 OFF Any (1) bag of 9Lives dry cat food
$1 OFF on 9 LIves wet cat food: ONE 12 can variety pack, 12 individual cans of THREE 4-packs.

PET CLEANING PRODUCTS
$5 OFF any Pawsitively Clean Chemical Product
$10 OFF Any Pawsitively Clean Yikes Machine
$2 OFF Any size Bissell full Size Machine 2X Deep Cleaning Formula
$1 OFF Woolite Oxy Deep or Woolite Pet Trigger
$1 OFF On any Woolite Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

*I might state that I am not endorsing this as food that you should (or I would) feed your pets. I know that sometimes money is an issue, and no matter how much education is passed along some people will never change their treats or food.  In any case, this is an attempt to help you save some money. If you want to find out what is in their food or what the ingredients mean, go to: www.dogfoodproject.com*

While puppy sitting, we have seen lots of creative toys. Some clients have used. Some we have come up with ourselves. Most can be made for very little money with things laying around in your house. Here are a few suggestions you may want to try before you go buy another squeaky toy that will be destroyed. = )

1 – Water bottle + Sock = toy. This toy originated when I had a puppy in his crate when we was first separated from his pack. I put warm water in a water bottle and then slipped it in a sock so it was be like a heating pad. Simulating laying on his mama or siblings. When the water become room temperature, I emptied it out but still put it back in the sock (like  a sleeve). This worked great bc my puppy would start chewing it. He loved it bc it made a lot of noise. I loved it bc I didn’t have to worry about him puncturing the plastic and eating it.

2 – A sock tied in a knot = lots o fun! Puppies love to try and tear and throw and chew these. Rocco just loves dragging it around and shaking it from side to side. It is pretty funny!

3 – Ice cube tray filled with chicken broth then frozen. Plain water ice cubes and chicken broth ice cubes provide tons of fun! Puppies will bat them across the tile floor and it gets their mind going because they are running around and flinging it (tossing it) in their mouth.

4 – Ice cubes + inside a sock. Try sticking the ice cubes in the sock and then your puppy has another mind bending puzzle to go through. It still crunches, it is still cold, so great on their teething gums, and still safe.

There are so many things you can do with a puppy who is full of energy. Don’t forget about having Bella’s come and help with day visits so you can stay on routine! We have also written some great information for all your puppy parents that you may want to check out:

We just had puppies, now what?
Why you need a puppy sitter
Trainng a dog with a Kennel at home.

What are some of your favorite things to do with your puppy or when your dog was young?

Ok, so this was actually just a MORNING during Spring Break (March 10, 2010) week when we were REALLY busy. I had tweeted most of the morning and shared pictures.  Here is what transpired:

Today, (esp this morning) I will have one of the most busiest days of pet sitting> Follow my adventures on Twitter…

Sidney and Shasta CHECK! Picked up the newspapers, potty and fed.

Now walking Bailey. Does ur dog pull? Try a gentle leader and leash it is like night and day.

Its cold! Like 45? Can wait for the 80s next wk!

Kitty and the birds are talking a lot. Had to pick up #1 again this morning for marco n polo

Feeding the birds!

Kitty was really talkative so I meowed back….

Letting little Ms Sophie the Maltese walk ME. This is nothing like two visits ago power walking w bailey the boarder collie!

Starbucks line took ten min in the grocery store! ugh…. Next up the handsome golden…jack for a walk! En rt now!

I think this is the busiest day of my pet sitting career!!!

SO JACK WAS TOO FULL OF ENERGY FOR A WALK SO I THOUGHT THROWING THE BALL AND PLAYING SOCCER WITH HIM WOULD KEEP HIM BUSY. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

I hope I just tired jack out w the ball and soccer bc he tired me out! Starbucks coffee in the car!

Walking two McDowell Motn collies sadie and murf. They have been clients for yrs. We love them!!!

50′ now…. Keep warming up please! I want my top down in the mini!

Thank god for the ranger rover in front setting the pace. Cop w radar detector didn’t get me

With jack the cat now…time to feed and scoop litter and sweep up around the area!

Walking max n rosie now. Max just lunged at another dog and almost ripped my arm out! I held on.

3 cats two dogs… Furballs everywhere. Went potty ot lots of love and treas! Got out the vacuum to clean! next stop potty break!

Potty break for sammi went well and jake and maggie the goldens had fun too!

Sidney and shasta are great! They went potty and got their treats. Off to see rosie and max to walk and feed them THEN I can eat and go hm!

BOY am I tried just re–living all that! Please know that the times are close but not accurate. I had some issues at some points when “upload failed” when i was trying to tweet from my Blackberry to Twitter. My Twitter handle is @Bellas_Pets

Did you enjoy this blog entry? I tried hard to make it fun and let you see into what it is like being a professional pet sitter during one of our most busiest days. What do you think?

Walking dogs in Scottsdale day in and day out has got to be one of the best jobs on the earth. Not all dog owners want dog walking, but we do have our steady group of daily walking clients. Not only does this allow a great chance for the dogs to receive the much needed exercise that they require, but it also allows us to do what we love. Exercise and be with pets.

SUN IS ALWAYS SHINNING! We get to have the sun shinning all day, so there is our daily dose of vitamin D!  In fact, if it does rain, many pets freak out because they forget what it is. No joke! Some dogs show us the way and tell us which path we are taking – others we show them where we are going and at what pace. Dog walking in Scottsdale has to be with one of the best places in the country to do this job! Never do we have to be subjected to a cubicle, horrible office coffee, or punching in and out. The wags of the tail tell us that we are going a great job and the refreshing water (for both the pets and us) are what we are presented with everyday.

SOMETIMES WE CAN NOT WALK. The only down side to walking dogs in Scottsdale are the summer months. No longer are mid day walks safe. The pads of dogs feet can burn, heat over exhaustion occurs, and all the while they want to impress you. They want to please YOU so they are not just going to say, “Let’s stop walking” It is up to the walker to know when enough is enough of simply not to do it. Do not ever jog, walk, or play with your dog on the pavement in the summer between the hours of 10am and sundown. It is just too hot. The best time to walk is in the MORNING when the pavement isn’t hot.

WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL DOG WALKER? Being a professional dog walker also means that your head isn’t buried in a cell phone either reading, texting, or calling someone. A professional pet sitter is always looking around and ahead for any dangers, threats, or people coming up near you. Being alert and knowing if there is a dog off leash, or wildlife, or something that might startle the dog that is being walked is a skill that our clients pay for to know that their dog will be properly cared for and walked. It is a skill that makes us a professional.