Dog Birthday Party. Last summer we rescued a scruffy little mutt from the pound.  He was a stray, and despite being kept on a no adoption list for 10 days to give his owners time to find him, he was never claimed.  We found him the day he was eligible for adoption, and I knew immediately he was our dog.  He knew too.  Our boys were in love, my hubby was smitten, and I was already wrapped around his furry little paws.  I grew up in a house full of animals, and they were always given birthday parties, and holiday gifts.  Fur babies are treated like real babies in my family.  So, when Petco reached out to see if we would host a birthday party for our boy, it was a no brainer! 

I have been super busy with the newest issue of Everyday Party Magazine, going to HAVEN Conference, and helping my hubby with his business…oh, and getting my four boys ready to go back to school, so I asked my friend Two Penn Studio if she would create the printables for Ed’s birthday party.  She gets me, and I love her style, the printables were PERFECT!  (This is a generic invitation she created) 

I made a trip to my local PetCo Store and shopped til I dropped for Ed’s birthday party, then I went to the Dollar Tree and the grocery store for the human party guests.  My husband and I picked out a new NHL logo tag, a new collar, chew ropes, chew toys, gourmet bones, and traditional boxed dog treats for Ed and his party friends.  We spent less than $50 on everything!  PetCo offers everything a pet parent could possibly need, from grooming services to fish food and even more!  They also have free shipping options frequently if you don’t have a local store.  (I bought so much I have some of his treats set aside for Christmas) I found some adorable Webkins dogs at the Dollar Tree for the human guests, and then I went to the grocery store to buy cupcakes and doggy cake ingredients.  

 

 

On the day of Ed’s birthday party, I set up a typical party dessert table.  The backdrop is a rugby striped shower curtain I purchased on clearance at Penney’s years ago for my boys’ bathroom, but never used.  (I actually forgot I had it until Charynn sent me the printable files) I used a crisp white cotton tablecloth on the table, and hung the Happy Birthday banner as a double swag across the front of the table.  

I used Ed’s toy basket to hold the Webkins stuffed toys for the human guests and the ropes for Ed’s friends.  In front of that, I had human cupcakes, topped with adorable party rounds.  

Ed’s birthday cake was homemade, and was a special treat for him, his doggy friends, and even the human guests.  It was an adaptation of this recipe.  Ed can’t handle dairy, so I used a little bit of coconut oil and whipped it into the peanut butter.  I used the party rounds to create a cake bunting.  It had a cookie like consistency, and the coconut oil made the frosting drip down onto the cake. But all the dogs (and kids) loved it! 

To balance the table, I added boxed doggie treats to glass jars.  Cupcake liners were filled with gourmet doggie biscuits and blueberry dog bones were tied with striped ribbon.  I purchased all the dog treats at PetCo, but Ed’s favorite are the blueberry dog bones.  Those are sold loose near the front of the store.  You can get as many as you want, and they are sold as a price per pound, like a candy store.  

 

 

 

Ed had an amazing birthday with his doggie and human friends! 

 

He didn’t want to even let us untie the bones, he loved them so much! Silly boy.