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Winter essentials – products to help you and your dog

Are you looking for inspiration for Christmas gifts for your dog or the dog lover in your life?

We’ve rounded up quirky gifts and products we’ve tried out and loved this year.

From affordable stocking fillers and fun gadgets to luxury gifts, it’s a Christmas gift guide with the essentials to help you and your pup get through the cold winter too.

Chase a flashing Christmas ball

Flashing festive ball

If your dog loves balls like Patch then this is a fab festive gift.

It’s a red flashing ball with green snowflakes on and glows in the dark – perfect for the evening walk.

Thank you to Rosewood Pet for gifting this to Patch along with lots of other treats.

At just £3.99 it’s an ideal stocking filler from amazon.co.uk

Christmas gift guide and winter essentials for you and your dog from the Paw Post Pet Blog
Chew on a Reindeer antler

Reindeer antler

I’ve read so much about rawhide and how it can harm our pets this year, so if you’re looking for a healthy alternative try a reindeer antler.

Patch has one and looks like he’s smoking a pipe. They help clean teeth, contain calcium and if he’s giddy, chewing it helps him to settle down.

We like to shop local and we bought ours from Sarah who runs Dog Hoose Tynemouth but they are available at logs of independent pet shops.

Antlers start from £4.95 from www.petstoptynemouth.co.uk

Gok Wan shows off the Pooch Selfie

Pooch selfie ball

Patch is such a dolly daydream so getting a selfie with him is a challenge.

We were sent this pooch selfie ball in a holiday essentials pack from cottages.com along with treats.

And it featured on TV last night (December 4th) with Gok Wan and Phillip Schofield on How To Spend It Well at Christmas.

Gok got one for his Frenchie Dolly. It comes with a squeaky ball and clips on your phone so your dog looks at the ball and you get your shot – result!

Find out more at poochselfie.com and on social media @poochselfie

The best price we found was £14.99 at https://firebox.com/

Christmas gift guide and winter essentials for you and your dog from the Paw Post Pet Blog
Patch’s flashing bottom!

Reindeer Christmas jumper with light up nose

How cute is this? I’d already bought Patch a Christmas jumper when I was sent this amazing jumper with a flashing nose on the bottom.

It is brilliant and just the funniest thing. The girls were in stitches. You press a button on the back and the nose lights up – again it’s ideal for chilly evening walks.

The jumper fits nicely and is of good quality and an absolute bargain too. Patch wears a medium.

Rosewood Christmas Cupid Jumper £16 from Amazon.co.uk 

Christmas gift guide and winter essentials for you and your dog from the Paw Post Pet Blog
Poppy in her scarf

A dog scarf

I have never heard of these before but saw one on the gorgeous Poppy from Dotty4Paws – her human Kate has been a huge support for us.

So I wanted to include this is the round up as it’s a lovely and usual accessory – and I can use a picture of lovely Poppy too.

Each one is handwoven from British wool or cotton on a traditional loom and you can hand wash them.

They come in a range of colours and designs and are a lovely way to stop your pup getting a chill this winter.

Dog scarfs from £18.50 at justwooltextiles.co.uk

Christmas gift guide and winter essentials for you and your dog from the Paw Post Pet Blog
Patch keeps warm in his Equafleece

Equafleece Tankie

This was actually Daisy’s – we bought it from Crufts for this winter and she only ever tried it on but it fits Patch so he has been wearing it.

We went for the ‘Tankie’ style – it’s for dogs who are ‘finicky about their legs and feet’ and the short sleeves go over the front legs – perfect for Patch.

It’s rain proof, cosy for winter and you can fit a harness over it too.

Equafleece do a range of jumpers. Patch wears 18-20” and it was £23 from www.equafleece.co.uk

No more carrying poo with the Dicky Bag

Dicky Bag

Whenever we go on a big walk in a new place, I’m always searching for the poo bag bin – I know I’m not alone in this.

Dog owner Mandy Davies recognised this problem and created The Dicky Bag which comes with a clip that you attach to your bag, belt or jacket.

In the top is pocket for poo bags of any type and a scented disk (it has a hole in that you can pull the bags out of) to keep the pot smelling fresh.

The main part of the bag is sealed to keep it odour free. It’s the perfect solution for walkers who don’t want to be swinging a pooey bag for miles.

Dicky Bags start from £28 in a range of colours and designs from www.dickybag.com

Dry off in the Dogrobe

Dog robes drying coat set

Winter walks mean mud, rain, and in some cases (Daisy) rolling in horrid things like fox poo so more baths!

I’d been considering a drying coat – there’s so many on the market – and read a post by Hattie at The Cornish Dog about them who kindly gifted us one of hers.

It is brilliant. It works just like a human dressing gown, so you slip it over their head and wrap the belt around the middle to keep in place.

And they come with a snood to keep the neck warm – perfect for after a winter bath and great for the beach.

A Dogrobes robe, snood and carry bag set starts at £29.90 from www.dogrobes.co.uk

Patch in his Eco Dog Design set

Collar, lead, bandana, bow tie and poo bag carrier

I like to support local brands and we met Paula from The Eco Dog Design Company who is based in Gateshead close to where we live at a dog event last year.

Her designs are gorgeous. She made Daisy a bespoke heart patterned collar, lead and bandana for a Valentine’s Day post (you can read it here)

Patch is usually tumbling around in his Reg and Bob set – this is super durable for winter – but on Christmas Day he’ll be wearing his best grey star patterned collar and bow tie.

For festive patterns like snowmen, Santa, reindeers, snowflakes and gingerbread men, check out the Christmas range at www.smartdogsboutique.co.uk

Eco Dog Design gift sets come in loads of different styles and start at £34 for an extra small (Patch is a small) from www.ecodogdesigns.com

Our fave dog walking bag

Cosy Canine Company Dog walking bag

I know I’ve written about this before but I love my Cosy Canine bag so much and it’s great for the winter.

As we’re training Patch I need to carry treats, balls and other toys so I like having a bag I can leave by the door.

When I pick it up, he jumps up and down and if we’re walking and I reach in it, I actually get him to focus on me – it’s made such a difference to his training.

It’s so practical with a phone pocket at the bag, a dispenser at the front for poo bags, plenty of room and it’s made of oilcloth, so wipe clean.

Cosy Canine dog walking bags range from £44.95 at thecosycaninecompany.co.uk

A Pit Pat report

Pit Pat activity tracker

When it’s cold and wet some dogs don’t like getting out but a lack of exercise and boredom can lead to a range of health and behavioural problems.

Pit Pat is an activity tracker which monitors how much your pet walks, runs, plays and rests and it’s a brand we’ve supported since their launch three years ago.

It gives you a guide on the amount of exercise they need each day. Playing can be indoors too and the recommendations aim to keep your pet healthy and happy.

Pit Pat £39 (look out for sales – we got ours half price on Black Friday) www.amazon.co.uk

How cosy is the snuggle sack?

Slumbering Hound snuggle sack

Patch loves this snuggle sack and so do I! It’s hand made with velour fleece on the outside and teddy bear fleece inside.

It is so cosy – if he’s not in it I sometimes wrap it around me if I’m curled up watching TV. You can put them in the wash and they’re great for travelling.

Patch has a small one with grey stars on but they come in lots of other colours too.

Snuggle Sacks start from £45 from www.slumberinghound.com

Patch’s new bed

Teddy Maximus Bed

Teddy Maximus is a gorgeous luxury brand for dogs and this is the second year I’ve got myself a bargain in the Black Friday sale.

Last year we bought a pet carrier for Daisy and this year Patch (shhh it’s a surprise) has a bed in the same print.

Again, it’s lovely to support brands run by people we know and I met Holly and Teddy, the adorable Daschund who inspired his human to create the brand, this summer. Her creations are just stunning.

Teddy Maximus luxury dog beds start from £85 at www.teddymaximus.com

I hope there’s plenty of ins-paw-ation here for Christmas gifts

If you have any questions or have tried the products and want to share your views, pop a comment below.

And if you like hearing about products, you might enjoy Tried and Tested – Dog Friendly products we tried in August or Tried and Tested – Dog Friendly products we tried in May with our guest blogger Layla the White Boxer Dog.

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