Grooming Tools at Bigwag (plus tips on clipping nails!)

Hey Everyone!

I know that we're all trying to save money where we can and one place to save a few dollars is to trim your dog's toenails yourself.  The last time I went to the vet, it cost me $7 to have Hannah's nails trimmed.  With a little knowledge, you can safely do this at home and save that money!  Bigwag recently started carrying some basic grooming tools, such as brushes, nail clippers and even Fur Busters, which can help reduce the amount of hair around your house!

Our new grooming tools!  There's even a kit with seven pieces to get you started.

So come by, check out the new tools and here are some tips on trimming your dog's nails, contributed by Linda Kosecki of Camp Bow Wow!

Nail Clipping Steps

contributed by Linda Kosecki, Camp Bow Wow

Now that the weather will be turning colder, dogs may not be outside as often to wear down their nails naturally. If you hear their nails click when they walk on a hard surface, it is time for a nail trim.

Below you will find basic nail clipping steps for dogs. Pet owners should check their dog's nail every 3 to 4 weeks.

1. Place your left arm around the dog's middle body and hold it against your chest. Talk softly and kindly to ease the dog's anxiety about the clipping procedure.

2. In your left hand hold the dog's foot with your thumb on top of the toe, and two or more fingers below along the pad of the foot.

3. Insert the nail into the clipper, and clip below the quick (the pink in white nails) at a 45 degree angle. Be sure to also clip dew claws. On dog's with black nails, make several small clips instead of clipping "a chunk off." You will usually be able to see dark spot in the center of the nail when looking at it head on. This is the quick which you want to avoid cutting.

4. If you cut the quick you must stop the bleeding. In most cases, a coagulant product (nail styptic powder) is sufficient. Apply the powder to the tip of the quick where it was cut, and hold with moderate pressure. The bleeding often stops very quickly. Wipe away excess powder and re-check the "seal" often. Remember, it is possible that the powder seal may be washed or scratched off until the "seal" has had adequate time to dry. If you leave too much excess powder it hardens into a "cap" on the nail tip that can be broken off and entirely remove the seal. Therefore, be sure to remove excess powder only.

5. If desired, file each nail so that the tip is soft and without rough broken edges. Filing nails that bled may remove the coagulant styptic powder "seal" and resume bleeding. Do not file the seal away. Brittle nails will require more filing to remove burrs.

6. If a dew claw has grown into a circular loop, you can cut into the mid-section of the nail with scissor-type cutter before the quick. Afterwards, use the regular nail clippers to finish cutting but again avoiding the quick.

For a demo, check out this You Tube video

For more information on Camp Bow Wow, visit their website!

Preparing Your Home for the "Howlidays"

Hey Everyone!

The Christmas shopping ads are airing on television, Santa Paws is coming to Bigwag this Saturday and you can't miss the Christmas decorations on the shelves at stores across NWA.  It definitely seems that the holidays are upon us.  And while that's stressful to us, it can also be stressful to our pets (although not because they're looking for that perfect gift...) Linda Kosecki of our local Bentonville Camp Bow Wow was generous enough to allow me to post their tips for prepping for the Howliday here.

Prepping for the Howlidays

Contributed by Linda Kosecki, owner, Camp Bow Wow 

As most of us decorate and prepare for holiday guests, friends and family, making sure the house is safe and pet-friendly should still be top of mind. Here are some suggestions below on how you can puppy proof your home and also fun ways to entertain your pet indoors so everyone can enjoy the festive holiday season together!

When puppy proofing your home for the holidays, remember to:

• Tidy-up electrical cords/wires: Dogs love chew toys so don’t entice them with a ball of wires from the holiday lights or extra extension cords lying around. Choose to zip-tie the cords together so they are kept neat and tucked behind furniture. Also, cord covers are a great idea for those extension cords running along the floor.

• See what your dog can get into by getting down on the floor. Be careful with floor plants as some can be harmful to your pets if eaten and keep low cabinet doors closed at all times.

• Have a variety of chew toys and stuffed animals for your pet to play with that are NOT the same colors as your holiday decorations. Think bright, neon colors so not only your four-legged friend know the difference, but you can easily spot when they aren't playing with the right toy.

• If you rearrange your home during the holidays, be careful what furniture is included in the play area. As dogs get excited they get clumsier and a new arrangement of furniture will create a different traffic pattern for them to get used to!

For more information on Camp Bow Wow, visit their website!

Camp Bow Wow Grand Opening

On Saturday, Camp Bow Wow held it's public grand opening. They had a great turnout!

It really floored me, how our customers react when they see us out other places like this. Of course, we got to meet lots of people that hadn't met us before, but our customers are awesome. They all almost want to come up and give us big hugs, or at least it feels like it.

It almost feels like a big extended family of ours. They come up, and tell us how their dogs are doing, how they like the new food they are on, how they love our chews more than anyone else's. We measure how big their kids are getting, how fast they are growing.

And I love it.

This made me proud to be a business owner, and proud this is the business I own. I've done other types of companies, but I have never had a customer base like this that makes me feel I am part of their family, like they did on Saturday. It helped bring some clarity to what it is exactly we do. We've got almost 4 years invested in this bakery, even though we've only been open for 2 of those. We don't carry every product there is under the sun, but everything we do have, we have researched very carefully, trying to buy as much American as we can, to carry the best products that we can find, to find stuff that is guaranteed, find companies that have the same work ethic and principles we do, and choose those as our partners.

It's like recommending pet products to family, and we have a big, extended family out there, and this is the best stuff we can bake, find, and carry at the moment. I sell this stuff to my mom, because I believe in it. I think our customers get that too, and they were really showing their appreciation on Saturday. We don't feel like this is a business as much as it feels like a pet club, where we get to talk about cool pet products every day.

Thank you to our supporters who find us at all of these events, who know our story, who know why their dogs love our treats best, who are part of our family! If there were ever a time where I felt like a rock star, it was Saturday.

You guys are the ones that rock! Thank you, for validating that what we are doing is important.