March, 2005

Pets.resident

Pets Have It Good With Food, Toyes and Even Art

Oh, the life of a dog — and a cat, for that matter. These days, there are plenty for pet owners to splurge on for their beloved animals.

In Central Park, Latka’s Treats (212- 873-2383, delicioustreats.com) is betting that puppy owners will be just as willing to shell out for a bone as they would for a cone. The Manhattan company is now selling its dog snacks and seven-inch biscuits at food stands throughout the park.

Ikea (ikea-usa.com) has expanded its product line to include objects designed with animals in mind. Along with storage solutions for pet food and leashes, the company has introduced “pawcloths” to clean up a messy animal and stylish play toys. For New Yorkers, buses leave for the Elizabeth, NJ, Ikea on weekend afternoons from the Port Authority.

To keep the apartment air fresh and keep dog odor down, the all-natural Petrotech Odor Eliminator (seayu.com) promises to “encapsulate” offending smells, whether generated by pets, diapers, or garbage. This totally perfume-free product has all natural, organic ingredients, without a whiff of the questionable “spring meadow” scent found in commercial air fresheners. Summer heat can also mean more frequent washing of cats and dogs, which can lead to dry or irritated skin. Good choices for frequent baths include the plant-based animal shampoos from Origins (origins.com) and SheaPet’s shampoos (sheapet.com), made from fair-trade-grown shea butter.

For a memory that will last, painter Jenny Belin (jennybelin.com) will create a one-of-a-kind portrait of a favorite companion. Belin works off photographs to capture Fido at his very best. Her portrait “Virgil” graces this week’s cover of New York Resident.

KIDS AND DOGS LEARN THEIR ABCs TOGETHER Animals and children’s books go together almost as well as animals and children. The Dog Artlist Collection (thedog-club.com), which began in Japan, believes that “everybody needs someone to share the joy of his or her life. If it happens to be dogs, they will make your life fulfilled.” In The Dog from Arf! Arf! to Zzzzzz (HarperCollins, $14.99), 26 dogs represent the letters of the alphabet, acting out such words as “beg,” “itch, itch, itch,” “kiss, kiss,” and “yawn.” The photographers use special lenses to capture different angles of the canines, resulting in extreme close-ups, dogs appearing to stand on their head, and a sideways glance from a Tibetan spaniel that could not be any cuter. The back of the book includes a list of the breeds in the photographs, from boxer and shiba to Bernese mountain dog and papillon, from pug and poodle to Labrador retriever and Jack Russell terrier.

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