I love the concept of Small Business Saturday. I love supporting locally-owned businesses that support their communities. The beautiful thing about the internet is that you can support these businesses as you do your holiday shopping… without getting out of your PJs! This year, for the first time ever (DUH), it occurred to me that I could feature small businesses as part of the gift guide!
So, I share with you today my top three picks for pet-friendly products that support small businesses. These aren’t huge gifts like yesterday’s; instead, they’re perfect little stocking stuffers for the pet lover in your life. (Or, heck, for yourself!)
{{BTW, If you see a link with a * next to it, that signifies an affiliate link. If you order from that link, you won’t pay a penny more–sometimes even less–than regular price, but this site will make a teeny, tiny commission on the sale.}}
The Luxury Pet Car Seat Cover + Dog Car Harness from Sidekick!
This is my gift to John. His car gets SUPER dirty because it’s bigger than mine so when we need to take people + pets, or pick up big things like firewood or Christmas trees, his car is it. I can’t remember why, but for the longest time the back was filled with rocks. He was clearly in need of a car seat cover, and this is the perfect fit. It can either drape down his back seat or hook the back to the front in a hammock-style. The backing is a non-slip material that keeps it in place. But the very best part? You can toss it in the wash machine! For little clean-ups, it can be vacuumed in place or spot-cleaned with a rag, but when do you ever get a little mess in the back seat? Plus, it comes with a harness that can safely buckle your pup into your existing seatbelt slot. It’s under $100 (only $65 on sale right now!) with free shipping from Amazon*: Sidekick Pet Car Seat Cover with Dog Seatbelt Harness – Deluxe Version Black
Tote Tails
Tote Tails is a California-based, small, women-owned business. They specialize in custom, pet-themed products like tote bags, pillows, and tees. They sent me a bag with the reference picture to show how the designs turn out:
Seriously adorable, right? Or, if you don’t want a custom option, you can pick from their pre-made pieces. It’s not limited to dogs, either. They have cats, and I even spotted a bunny! (The website is a little awkward to navigate, fyi, so when you click on “Cat Totes” for example, it also brings up cat t-shirts.) I’d probably pick the American pit bull terrier throw pillow myself rather than a custom option, but there are dozens and dozens of products to choose from–all of which support animal welfare organizations through the company’s 10% of all sales donations. Can’t beat that! To peruse the options to find the perfect stocking stuffer, check out their website.
TickEase
Me: Emmett, can you please help me take an interesting picture of these tweezers?
Emmett: Zzzzzzz.
Tweezers shown with Emmett to illustrate size. Emmett not included.
You guys, I don’t know what it is. Maybe ticks have a “type” like mosquitoes do, but Emmett and I are tick magnets. As you know, we hike a lot, and whenever we get back and check everyone over for ticks, if I didn’t pick up at least one, Emmett did. Or we both did. On a recent hike, I must’ve stepped in a nest (do ticks nest?) because they were all in my left shoe! Anyway, all this is to say that we need reliable tweezers for tick removal. TickEase is the only product designed solely for tick removal on both people and pets.
One end has a pair of super thin-tipped tweezers for small ticks, and the other end is a slotted scoop for larger ticks. The tweezers comply with the CDC’s tick removal guidelines and are 100% satisfaction guaranteed. We actually haven’t been hiking since my sample tweezers came, so I honestly can’t share personal experience with these, but they seem like they’ll be way more effective than my thick eyebrow tweezers! Once we get a chance to use them, I’ll be back to share. In the meantime, for the outdoors lover, this makes the perfect stocking stuffer that supports a small business! In addition to the giveaway pair, TickEase has so generously offered a coupon code for OMD readers. You can purchase TickEase here and use the code “tickready” for 10% off your purchase!
AND! Thanks to the generosity of each of these three small businesses, you have a chance to win one of these perfect, pet-friendly stocking stuffers!
This is a Rafflecopter giveaway. Sometimes the widget takes a few seconds to load. If you’re reading this via email or in a feed reader, you might have to click the link.
{{Psst… If you haven’t yet entered yesterday’s head on over, and be sure to check back on Monday for Cyber Monday and my list of gift suggestions that are cute, fun, practical, and available online!}}
Erik N. says
11•28•15 at 3:19 pmWell, if Emmett isn’t included I don’t want it!
Erik N. says
11•28•15 at 3:21 pmOh, and then I read the directions! I hope santa leaves enough pet store gift cards to keep my herd fed for the year!
Crystle Minor says
11•28•15 at 4:09 pmGiveaways are so fun:)
Zelda says
11•28•15 at 5:02 pmI’m hoping santa paws leaves new treats for me to try.
Erin says
11•28•15 at 5:32 pmCan Santa bring an Emmett for my stocking?
Melissa says
11•29•15 at 5:44 amI am hoping that Santa brings Baby a warm winter coat that’s strong enough to play in, in her stocking. Baby is hoping that she gets two barkboxes–one full of treats, and one full of toys!
She’s currently in the process of piling all her existing toys in the middle of the living room so that she can go to her toy box, look sadly at it, and go, “Mom, I don’t have any toys anymore. Go to the store…”
Maggie says
11•29•15 at 11:19 amBe sure to check back for the Cyber Monday giveaway… you know… just in case there’s a durable, warm winter coat included! 😉
Cheryl says
11•29•15 at 6:39 amI hope Santa leaves an iPhone 6s Plus in my stocking this year.
Denise Gruzensky says
11•29•15 at 11:46 amI decided to add the tick remover to my amazon wish list and enter to win the seat cover… but all the giveaways look great!!
Linda Szymoniak says
11•29•15 at 1:22 pmI lost one of my dogs in April and really want to rescue another dog for Christmas.
Amanda says
11•30•15 at 9:04 amI have a tick magnet too! And she gets them in the weirdest places, like the top of her head, where she’s the most fluffy. (She may have a bald spot from one we failed to find quickly…) That having been said, “scoop” style tick removers are the BEST. No way of squeezing all that nasty stuff back into the wound, and your dog doesn’t even notice. We have one that looks like a bottle opener, and hangs on a keychain that we can easily take hiking with us!
Ashley says
11•30•15 at 9:37 amDying with that tote! I’d love Santa to leave me one of those 🙂
ellie says
11•30•15 at 9:41 amlots of soft treats!
Rachel says
11•30•15 at 9:45 amnew stuffed animal toys!
Scott says
11•30•15 at 6:03 pmThe bags are totes cool. Heyooooooooo!
Debra says
12•01•15 at 9:32 amI had some shirts made for the Pit Bull Coalition and ended up using Julius’s silhouette and it makes me happy every time I see one. I’ve also recently purchased a throw pillow with an AmStaff silhouette and although that one isn’t Juli, it does look like him and that too makes my heart sing.
dardani says
12•01•15 at 9:38 amlots of treats and toys!
Genevieve says
12•01•15 at 4:49 pmThat tote bag is seriously cute!
Matthew Monn says
12•02•15 at 8:20 pmi’m hoping for a stocking full of reeses trees but my puppy is probably hoping for some new squeaky toys
Sandy Weinstein says
12•03•15 at 2:20 pmi am hoping that Santa will leave me some more doggies however, i cant afford anymore right now..but my biggest wish is that my oldest dog, Evie, who is 14 plus, would go back to being herself and a puppy again….she is deaf, has a little dementia, losing her eyesight and it saddens me so much, that i cry all of the time.
for a more practical gift, i would like a really nice dog stroller that would carry all 3 of my little gals, so i could take my oldest and not leave her at home since she has hard time walking sometimes. thanks santa. please answer my wishes for Evie.