Biodegradable Dog Poop Bags

If you don’t scoop your dog’s poop in the city, you’ll be slapped with a $250 fine. You’ll also have a whole bunch of pissed off people coming after you on the street. So, you’re going to want to keep your butt covered by carrying little bags around. Sure, there are dozens of dog doodie bags, but one company, Flush Puppies, has created water-soluble, 100 percent biodegradable ones. (The average plastic bag can take up to 1000 years to decompose in a landfill.) If you choose, you can even flush these down your own toilet. (Meh. That would be difficult for me from a psychological standpoint, although admittedly very environmentally responsible.)

Sign by PetPro

According to the Flush Puppies website, in a city of 100,000 people, dogs can generate about two and a half tons of feces per day. That's almost two million pounds a year. Since I have zero math skills, I had someone help me confirm the following numbers: In New York City, where there are approximately 10 million people, that means dogs generate about 250 tons of waste per day, and almost 200 pounds per year. That’s a lot of shit.

Flush Puppies were created by three University of Florida grad students, and their site is pretty damn funny. If you want to try out the product, it’s $3.99 for 15 bags, and you can get them on their website here. 

Take a Day Trip With Your Dog

Living in a city, it’s hard not to feel like your dog is getting shortchanged some days. He’s got to pee on pavement, and the sad, mangled trees that line many New York City sidewalks are few and far between. So if you’re interested in getting your pet out of the city (and you don’t have a house in the Hamptons, Connecticut, or wherever), one really cool company, Blue Sky Dogs, plans day trips for you and your pooch.

Honestly, I was looking at the photos from one of their “canine country days” on their website, and it looked like these dogs were having the most fun ever. Blue Sky Dogs can also help you plan weekend trips or counsel you on dog-friendly travel planning.

For more information, contact:

Blue Sky Dogs
Phone: 212-531-3647
info@blueskydogsny.com
http://www.blueskydogsny.com/

The Power of Flowers

I was having a conversation with a woman in Central Park this morning, and she swore by Rescue Remedy as a legit chill-out product for dogs. It’s a flower essence that is supposed to relax your pet when he or she is in stressful situations—whether it’s a trip to the vet, to quell separation anxiety, whatever. (Touted as “yoga in a bottle,” it’s also available for humans and has been written about in basically every major magazine.)

Rescue Remedy Pet comes in a dropper bottle, and you’re supposed to put 4 drops in your dog’s mouth, on a treat/food, or directly to his or her nose, ears, or paw.

Has anyone tried this—for yourself or your pet?

Get Yourself a Pee-Finder

Suspect your dog is freely emptying his bladder in the house when you’re not home? (Sneaky little punk.) Well, now you can get all David Caruso/CSI with a Urine-Off LED Urine Finder. Yes, this actually exists. When you flash the UV blacklight over carpets, it illuminates urine spots so you don’t have to wonder where that skanky smell is coming from. (Of course, you could also just bust out the blacklight you used for your Grateful Dead and Bob Marley posters in college.)The Urine-Off Urine Finder

My favorite part of the product website reads: “Focused beam reaches 5ft-6ft, so no more getting on your knees to search for urine.” Ah yes, I set aside at least 10 minutes a day to get on my knees to search for urine, obvi.

If you’re interested in getting yourself a Urine-Off LED light, the product is $12.95, and you can find it here.

Do Dog Pheromones Really Work?

“Have you ever tried dog pheromones for her?” my vet, Dr. Johnson, asked when I mentioned that Riley tends to be a nervous, clingy dog. “No,” I said, awkwardly pausing to make sure he wasn’t joking. “Seriously?”

Shortly thereafter, he prescribed my dog with The D.A.P.™ (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) Diffuser. It basically functions like a Glade Plug-In and emits pheromones into your apartment or house for up to four weeks. It’s supposed to reduce or prevent stress-related behavior (eg, separation anxiety, destruction of your stuff, freaking when new visitors come over, etc.).

After Dr. Johnson handed it to me, I half-whispered, “It’s not going to make me act weird, is it?” (I had visions of myself getting inexplicable cases of the munchies or nodding off during Real Housewives, which would clearly never happen under normal circumstances.) Um, no, he assured me, they would not have any affect on me whatsoever. (I know, in retrospect I was embarrassed I asked.)

So, I took home the D.A.P. and plugged it in, and…nothing. Riley acted exactly the same as she had every single other day. Then, about a week in to my experiment, I realized the diffuser was leaking a hideous oil stain down my wall. So, I unplugged it, and that was that. The whole episode was along the lines of what I call “the Pedi-Paws incident.” Totally anticlimactic. 

I’m curious, has anyone else ever tried dog pheromones for their pet?