The Ultimutt Guide to Birthday parties for Dogs

When any of my hoomans have a birthday, they get all excited and buy presents, sing songs, eat yummy cakes and have friends over for pawties.

They seem celebrate every year of their life. Considering our dog years to human years ratio, shouldn't us doggos be celebrated at least 7 times a year?

Dog parties have been a ‘thing’ for quite a while now. There are lots of ways to celebrate your favourite four legged humans, but not all parties are created equal.

So, to help my pawrents out, I decided to put together my very own list of what makes the ultimutt barkday pawty.

1. EXTRA SPECIAL DAY = EXTRA SPECIAL FOOD:

When it’s your birthday you have cakes, ice cream, lollies, sausage rolls and all kinds of yummy things.

Well, guess what? We like all those things too. And now, thanks to Barney’s Barkery, we can have our own dog friendly versions of them to make our day special.

I’m talking doggie donuts and cookies, ice creams, lollipops, cupcakes, sausage rolls, meat pies, eclairs, hotdogs and all the rest. But instead of being made with hooman ingredients, they are made with yummy stuff that’s not bad for us. Beef liver chips, kangaroo chipolota, carob, yoghurt and eggs.

While we’re on the subject, Barney’s also do a nice range of dog birthday cakes and pupcakes. Just sayin'!

With all that food and running around going on, it’s probably a good idea to have lots of full water bowls at the ready. Excited dogs get dehydrated quickly, pawticularly on hot days.

Oh, and you’d better lay on some food for your hooman guests as well. Barneys baked dog treats are pawsome for us pooches, but not sure your two-legged guests are going to want to chow on it.

2. PAWSOME VENUE:

You can throw our pawty at home or at a dog park. Home is often easier cause there are no restrictions, and no one to tell us off when we get a bit rowdy.

Or maybe you want to take a small pack of pooches to a select location like a dog-friendly beach or woodland for a pawty picnic. But remember to check with local councils first to see what is and isn’t allowed.

3. GUESTS - WHO LET THE DOGS OUT IN

The more the merrier, says I. Let’s invite all my mates from the park. Shadow, Max, Flint, Luna, Milo, Scally, Gomez. Oh, and their hoomans, of course!

But you don’t have to have a big do. Maybe your dog is a bit shy and would just prefur to have a small pawty with his favourite hoomans.

Or maybe you want to spend the day pampering your pooch by taking them to all their favourite spots like the park, river, doggy beach or the bush.

Making sure that you give him lots of Barney’s treats along the way, of course. 

4. THEME - UNLEASH YOUR CREATIVITY

You hoomans love a good dress up party. And turns out, us doggos are quite pawtial to them too. You can theme the pawty around your favourite dog movies, their favourite toys, superheroes or anything you think we will like. Just get creative.

 At the very least, make sure every dog has his own silly birthday hat. 

6. PAWTY GAMES: JUST FUR FUN

It wouldn’t be a birthday pawty without games. So, here are a few suggestions to keep your furry guests entertained.

• Doggie obstacle course – Fun for dogs and owners alike.
• Photoshoot - Stage a photoshoot with toys, costumes, backdrops and accessories for fun shots of the special day.
• Kiddy pool – Great for splashing around and playing or cooling off on a hot day.
• Treat-based treasure hunt – Just hide a few delectable Barney’s Barkery treats around the garden and watch as we put our sniffers to work.
• Tug toys – We love to pit our strength against you hoomans in a tug of war. So, make sure there are plenty of rope toys lying around.
• Balls/frisbees – These are doggie staples. You can’t go wrong with throwing a tennis ball or frisbee.  

7. MUSIC - LET’S TALK SUB-WOOFERS

There’s nothing like a bit of music to truly make a pawty pop off.

Now, obviously. music tastes vary, but I thought I’d share my latest pawlaylist with you.

• How Much Is That Doggy in the Window – Patti Page
• Who Let The Dogs Out – Baha Men
• Hound Dog – Elvis Presley
• I Want a Dog – Pet Shop Boys
• I Love My Dog – Sublime
• Atomic Dog – George Clinton
• Brother Wolf/Sister Moon – The Cult
• Howliday – Madonna
• Who Am I (What’s My Name?) Snoop Dogg
• Any rap song with the word DAWG in it

8. INVITES: BOW WOW YOUR GUESTS

You’ve got to let the pack know that the ultimutt party is dropping in their hood. And the best way to do that is with cute customisable invites.

You can buy these online, or get creative and make your own.

9. DOGGY BAGS/GOODY BAGS - AFTER PAWTY

Whatever you call ‘em, one thing is for sure. Goody bags are a staple of every successful party. Something for your doggy guests to take away with them and remember you by.

Usually, they are stuffed with yummy treats, fun toys and cute stuff. But feel free to use your imagination.

Having a dud goody bag (or none at all) can seriously damage your dog’s cred.

So, to be on the safe side, we recommend you fill ‘em with a selection of yummy Barney’s Barkery treats and some cool toys and balls from Kazoo.

So, there you have it, peeps. Your mutt-have guide to the ultimutt pawty.

Of course, you don’t just have to limit your pawties to birthdays. There are lots of things you can celebrate in a dog’s life. Good behaviour, successful toilet training, fun times, bravery, or just the face you love ‘em to bits.

But whatever the reason and whatever the party, make sure you treat ‘em right with treats from Barney’s Barkery.  

Make sure you get snap happy, and tag us in all your adorable photos! We love to share, so tag @kazoopet in your Instagram stories and posts so we can celebrate with you.