Groundhog Day has come and gone, unlike the movie where it keeps happening over and over again. This North American holiday is perhaps one of the most unusual. It is tempting to jokingly mock Americans for this illogical yet adorable and somewhat controversial holiday. But it turns out that they are not the only ones!…
Category: Animals and Pets
Insect Decorations for Your Home: Creepy Crawly Bug Art
While butterflies, dragon flies and lady bugs aren’t uncommon to see in people’s homes, insect decorations are unusual. But why? How come some insects are considered appropriate decor while other bugs are simply not art? The following artists hope to take the creepy out of the crawlies. They see the beauty of all insects and…
Insect Mother: Unique Jewelry Collaborated with Nature
Marinea Heindel is not your typical woman. Known as Insect Mother, Marinea plays with bugs and makes art out of dead things. Intrigued? So was I. Which is why I contacted her and asked if I could share his unique work on The Travel Bug Bite! Check out her Etsy store ASAP, but keep reading…
Whale & Dolphin Watching in Cape May, New Jersey
Isaac and I went whale & dolphin watching in Cape May, New Jersey around two years ago. When it showed up in my memories, I was shocked that I haven’t already written about it. Better late than never, right? Cape May is known for its whale and dolphin spotting! The Cape May Whale Watch &…
10 Facts About Chickens That Will Blow Your Mind
This past weekend I got to learn some facts about chickens while visiting a new friend who loves birds. You should follow her on Instagram. Along with her son, she taught us so much about chickens! It was a wonderful experience and now we’re considering getting chickens ourselves. They are cute, smart and so much…
15 Octopus Facts: 8 Tentacles, 3 Hearts, 9 Brains
These octopus facts show just how fascinating these creatures are. Despite my love for all things cuddly, especially dogs, the octopus is my favorite animal. Although surprisingly, they have a lot in common with each other, but I’ll get into that in just a bit. Octopuses (not octopi!) are interesting animals and there is so…
World Honey Bee Day: Raising Awareness
World Honey Bee Day is celebrated globally on the third Saturday of August. On the surface, bees seem like one of your typical insects, however, bees have been declared the most important living beings on this planet. That’s right, not just the most important insect, THE most important LIVING BEING. And their rapidly declining population…
National All American Pet Photo Day: July 11th
July 11th is National All American Pet Photo Day! Who knew that I was incorrectly celebrating this day every day of the year? My bad. Today actually had five things to celebrate. This includes National 7-Eleven Day, National Blueberry Muffin Day, National Cheer Up the Lonely Day and National Rainer Cherry Day. I am finding…
Ellis Artistic Wonders: $3 ‘Bad’ Pet Portraits
Ellis Artistic Wonders popped up on my Facebook newsfeed while I scrolled through adorable photos of dogs. It is not uncommon for artists to show off their work and accept commissions. This particular artist, however, stood out because she was creating simple sketches that she dubbed ‘bad pet portraits.’ I have been thinking of commissioning…
Grounds & Hounds: Good Cause Coffee Subscription
Grounds & Hounds is an amazing coffee subscription that donates a percentage of their profits to help dogs. The subscription starts at $13.99 + $2 shipping and can be fully customized to suit your needs. The company also sells coffee normally with no subscription needed. They have a wide selection of delicious products. “20% of…
DoodyCalls: Pet Waste Removal Service
DoodyCalls is a service that looks amazing but one that I haven’t been able to try out for myself. I was really impressed with their ads, Facebook comment responses and customer service. This is why I want to share it with you without trying it out first hand. DoodyCalls is basically the Waggle of dog…
Petco’s Dog Training: Review
A year ago, we brought our rescue dog Smiley to Petco for their Adult Dog Training program. Dog training is great for all dogs, even semi-perfectly behaved boys like Smiley. He was our first rescue and I was surprised at how easy he was to integrate into our lives. He was already potty trained, knew…
Paint Your Pet with Create Color Art Studio: Narragansett, RI
I am that basic dog mom that is all about her pup, or in my case, pups. Smiley and Pablo are both rescues from the Brooklyn ACC. They weren’t always living the best lives, but now they are because my husband and I are obsessed. Although we are both artsy, we cannot draw or paint…
BarkBox Subscription: Dog Toy Review
The BarkBox is the first dog toy subscription that I have ever tried. I recently wrote about Bullymake, which is very similar. I’m not here to compare the two since I love them both. However, I will say that BarkBox is more versatile and offers toys for calm dogs that don’t shred toys. We rescued…
What do Snails, Cupid & V-Day have in common?
Valentine’s Day is based on St. Valentine who secretly married couples to spare the men from going to war. So how did snails or cupid become involved? Turns out that when snails mate, they use love darts that they shoot at their love interest. Some believe that this bizarre mating ritual is where the idea…
Bullymake Box: Dog Toys Review
The Bullymake Box is a dog toy and treat subscription box. Today there are many options when it comes to monthly subscriptions for dogs. This one is different because it specifically targets power chewers. As a proud owner of two 75 pound naughty boy doggies, I had to try it out! Also, all toys are…
Dogs in a Hotel: Our Experience with Smiblo
Last weekend our rescue pit-mixes Smiley and Pablo (Smiblo) had their first experience staying at a hotel. I love our boys but I hate how much they limit us from traveling, so I wanted to give it a go. I am not going to lie, having dogs in a hotel was stressful but worth it…
Smiley the Beach Dog: Rockaway Beach NYC (YouTube)
Rockaway Beach is a great place to take your family, including your fur babies! You can only bring dogs here during the off season but it’s so worth it! Check out this happy boy on the beach for the very first time.
Smiley in Central Park (Video)
Our rescue pit bull Smiley took on the most iconic park in New York City!
Dog Videos Coming to The Travel Bug Bite
Smiley the rescue Avocadog is famous on the Dodo already but he’s hungry for more!
Why You Should Order Pet Supplies from Chewy.com
This past week, I was picking out a new food for Smiley on Chewy.com because I wanted something with fewer ingredients. Amazon had it for $10 cheaper, but here is why I chose to buy it from Chewy…
Christmas Cheer in NYC & Upcoming Break from Blogging
Merry Christmas from my family to yours! ❤
My Labrador Leia, Who Lives with my Parents in Kyiv
Leia is a 13-year-old black lab who still acts like a puppy. She loves to lick rough surfaces and leaves drool stains on the sofa, everyone’s jeans and sometimes pillows too. Does anyone else’s dog do anything like this?
PetBuddy Services in Bushwick, Brooklyn
Starting November 12th, they finally completed their move from Wilson Avenue to 54 Noll Street, Brooklyn. Their new location offers a rooftop playground, pet grooming (through their new partner Pet Wash N’Go and they will be selling organic dog products. Their prices are going up a little with the new facilities, so now cage-less boarding will be $59.99 for 24 hours and $40 for daycare including transportation.
Brooklyn Bow Wow – Doggy Services
– $16 for a 30 minute social walk
– $25 for day care under 6 hours
– $35 for day care over 6 hours
– $45-60 for boarding depending on the length
Bridge and Tunnel Brewery: Dog-Friendly Queens Bar
The Bridge and Tunnel Brewery is an amazing dog-friendly bar right on the border of Ridgewood, Queens and Bushwick, Brooklyn. The delicious draft beers cost $5, dogs are welcome and the staff is incredible!
Nowadays: Pet-Friendly Bar
Their already great beer prices are even more exciting during their 2-for-1 happy hour which runs from 5pm to 8pm on Thursdays and Fridays. It only works for select beers, but where else in NYC can you get a draft beer for $3?
Happy Halloween: Smiley’s Dog Costumes!
Our first event came up unexpectedly, the Bridge and Tunnel Brewery was just a five minute walk from our apartment but we had no costume! I quickly cut out an avocado out of Dollar Tree cardboard paper and it was a success! Smiley won some toys and we got a growler for our fun last-minute costume.
Fostering through Pound Hounds Res-Q: Smiley’s Story
Two days ago we sent a $300 adoption fee to Pound Hounds Res-Q, the place that pulled Smiley from Brooklyn’s high kill shelter, NYACC. We had originally planned on fostering Smiley, the cute 6 year old pit mix who was abandoned because his former owners got pregnant…
We’re Fostering a Dog Saved from the Kill Shelter!
Smiley was pulled from the NYACC by Pound Hounds Res-Q. We are considering adopting him ourselves because he’s such a good boy. The Dodo wrote about him a week ago with the hopes that his story will inspire others to adopt, foster and rescue dogs in need!
Land Snails as Pets: Why GALs & Garden Snails Make Great Pets
Snail owners have a lot of fun picking out names for their snails, and yes, thousands are named after SpongeBob’s Gary. The best part of choosing a name is deciding on the snail’s gender. Although gender assigning is frowned upon in today’s society, snails really don’t mind as they are hermaphrodites and have both male and female reproductive organs…
Ubud Monkey Forest Sanctuary in Bali 2018
The monkey forest sanctuary in Ubud, Bali was an exciting place where monkeys rule and humans are allowed to feed them under supervision. Not sure how good this is for the environment, probably not at all, but the monkeys seemed happy and cared for and several badly behaved humans were told to leave.
The Black Squirrels of Kent State University
Every time I step outside to walk through the Kent State University campus, I am on the lookout with my camera close by. In 1961 ten cages containing black squirrels from Ontario Park in London were brought to KSU. They were released on the campus and it became their home. The most unexpected thing was that the black squirrels could mate with the local gray squirrels and the black gene dominated which helped the population grow. The students and staff at the university took a liking to the cute black fur-balls right away and started the annual Black Squirrel Festival, the Black Squirrel Run, the Black Squirrel Radio and many more Black Squirrel Somethings.
Living with Pets, Nika Kagui
I will never forget the day I came home from school to find a tiny puppy sitting on the stairs. With her big eyes, wet nose and chubby pink tummy, it only took Nika one second to make me fall in love with her. She made my whole family come alive and change.
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