A headline you are probably unlikely to see in your morning newspaper? Yes, but maybe you should! Combing the internet seeking a canine connected topic for this month I found many companies who exist to supply all those items that the 21st Century dog owner finds essential to his or her dog’s lifestyle. The first thing that struck me was the sheer number of companies competing for the privilege of supplying those needs. Even restricting the search to the UK still left a surprising number and that’s just on-line suppliers. There are all the local pet shops too.
When you visit one or two of those companies’ websites and look at the range of products available the mind begins to boggle. Well mine does anyway! OK most of them don’t just supply stuff for dogs. They cater for all sorts of other pets too. But then I found one that specialises in supplying dog owners alone. They call themselves Dfordog, only they put the initial letter, ”d” back to front and I don’t think my computer can do that.
This one company, catering solely for the canine market, offers an impressive list of sixteen headings down the side. Clicking on any one of them reveals a whole lot more. One heading I found especially intriguing was “Dog Clothing.” Now, call me old- fashioned, (lots of people do, I’m used to it!) but I thought dogs came already equipped with a coat, designed by nature to cope with most situations the animal is likely to find itself in. Not necessarily fashionable I grant you but then, isn’t the dog’s coat part of its breed identity?
One item of dog clothing that does make sense to me is the life jacket especially designed for the intrepid canine mariner. Sure, dogs can swim but falling or jumping overboard from a boat far from the shore presents a different set of problems to those encountered just crossing a pond or stream. A particularly useful feature of these life jackets is a handle on the back. I’ve never had to lift a waterlogged large dog out of the water and up a couple of feet or more onto the deck of a boat but I have done it with a waterlogged 12 year old boy and that was far from easy.
Clothing is just one example from the list. It goes from puppy training aids right through to memorials and urns when the dog’s life comes to an end and everything between. So you see why I say that all you dog owners out there are doing a grand job helping to rebuild Britain’s economy. Keep up the good work!
ARTICLE SUPPLIED BY PETE HOPPER -
FREELANCE COPYWRITER UK
