Black and White Sunday

Nikon D3300
35mm lens
1/1,250
f/1.8
ISO 200 

                                            Join me and my co-host Sugar for the Black and White Sunday Blog Hop! Grab the badge and link up!

Sorta Sepia Saturday

Fit Dog Friday

I've been doing a lot of core and balance work with the little taquito, and she's now all about finding things to perch on, like this 5 gallon bucket. The thing's pretty wobbly, so I was impressed! 

And of course, climbing! 

Paws up!

And off!

Sit pretty

And paws up on the other side!

Tickled Pink

Don't forget to enter our Solvit Travel Bag giveaway!

Wordless Wednesday: The Patented Ultra Pathetic Look

Trick Training!

Hey, guys!


I'm in a Facebook trick training group, and last week's challenge was to introduce a novel object, and hopefully teach two behaviors revolving around that object. I picked a kid's piano toy, and decided to try to get Nola climbing over it for the first behavior, and playing it for the second. Here is her very first session!

You can watch the video on YouTube here if it's not working on Blogger.

I need to take an updated video, but I'm hoping to get a trick training video out each week, revolving around whatever the Facebook group is teaching. Yay for training!

- Dachshund Mommy

The Perfect Travel Bag + Giveaway!

Hey, guys!


I love taking Nola places. Whether it's a weekend getaway, a day at the beach, or staying at the night somewhere, I like to have her with me. I've never had a good travel bag just for her; her bag has always been a reusable grocery bag (which, in case you're wondering, spills. Everything.), or her stuff went into my suitcase. I love you, Bug, but I'm really not fan of a dog bed nestled in with my bra and panties, or a stinky bag of treats shoved in the camera bag. Sorry, B.

Enter Solvit Products Travel Organizer .

Oh my gosh, this thing is fantastic! Every issue I've had with packing Nola's bag has been solved with this tote. This review will be pretty quick, but I do have a giveaway for you all at the end. ;)

Okay, so the Solvit Travel Organizer is travel bag that comes with the bag itself, along with two collapsible bowls, a water bottle, and a food bag for kibble. The bag even has a built in poop bag dispenser! #YesImADogGearNerd 

The bag is full of storage space: a zippered pouch on the front flap, two smaller zippered pouches, two spots for water bottles, and a meshed elastic pouch spanning the length of the back of the bag, in addition to the main compartment. There's plenty of space for food, water, gear, a blanket, toys, whatever you fancy. If you're in a pinch, you can even use it to carry your pup in. ;)

Nola is 10lbs, and about...20" long, or less? I'm horrible with measurements. 

It's very well constructed and very sturdy. It's easy to wipe down, and easy to shake sand out of. You can carry it by the handle, or use the detachable shoulder strap. Personally, I really like that option! 

I love having the bowls; they're easy to fold down and dry quickly. The water bottle is fantastic to have as well, but my favorite has to be the food bag. Solvit says it can hold up to a week's worth of food for a medium sized dog (of course it depends on the food brand, and how much your dog eats). For Nola, who eats between 1/4-1/2 cup of food a day, this is a great little bag to hold a serious amount of food. It took a bit of time for me to figure out how to close the bag up (shh...I'm special), but once that was out of the way, it's easy to close and has a nice tight seal.

These dividers can be adjusted. 

I love how these edges come right down over the side. It gives it such a nice finish!

Food bag

My only qualm with the bag is it only comes in one color. Damn.

I'm very happy with this tote bag! Solvit has generously offered one of my viewers their own bag. Sorry, U.S. only! Fill out the Rafflcopter below, and good luck! Winner will be picked on Friday.

- Dachshund Mommy

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Black and White Sunday

Nikon D3300
35mm lens
1/640
f/3.2
ISO 200 

Join me and my co-host Sugar for the Black and White Sunday Blog Hop! Grab the badge and link up!

Sepia Saturday

Sort of sepia, actually. I am not a fan of legit sepia. :p

Fit Dog Friday

We're joining SlimDoggy, To Dog With Love and My GBGV Life in the FitDog Friday Blog Hop. Thank you!

Challenge Your Dog With Outward Hound Kibble Drop Food Puzzles

Hey, everyone!

I'm part of Chewy.com's blogger review program, and was sent a free product in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Everyone knows dogs need physical exercise, but mental stimulation is just as important! Play, training, and food puzzles all help your dog focus their energy in a positive way, making him or her use their brain, and results in a calmer, happier dog. A dog's mental stimulation needs vary, but they all benefit from it.

If you're short on time, or would like to see your dog work something out completely on her own, food puzzles are a great option. Put your dog's kibble in one, and let em at it! Food puzzles engage the sense of smell, the foraging instinct, and challenge your dog to work out problems. Sometimes it's fun to see the more...creative ways they get to the food. ;)

The The Outward Hound Kibble Drop Puzzle Toy is especially good for kibble, as the name says. This BPA, PVC and phthalate free toy has four treat chambers, each with a scent guide to entice your pup to search. Each leg has a gripper on the bottom to help prevent sliding on the floor, and it's easy to pop in the dishwasher.

Nola loves food puzzles, and was very quick to figure this one out (if anyone has a really difficult puzzle toy, please share!). After doing it "the right" way a few times, she decided it worked much better if she lifted a leg of the toy with her mouth, slammed it down onto the floor, and then eat all the kibble that bounced out. Well, it's one way to do it....

And lift...and slam....

And lift...and slam.

Here she is using it the right way:

Food puzzle time! Keep an eye out for our upcoming review of this fun Outward Hound toy for Chewy.com! #chewycom #chewy #outwardhound #puzzletoy #foodpuzzle #smartdogs #lifewithdogs #lifewithactivedogs #lifewithasmartdog #mentalstimulation #playwithyourdog #nola #dachshunds #dachshunds #dachshundsofinstagram #pacocollars #dogs #dailydog #dogstagram #dogsofinstagram #florida #blogdog #dogblogging #productreview #video #dogvideo #comingupsoon #miniaturedachshund @chewy

A video posted by @dachshund_nola on Jan 11, 2016 at 8:57am PST

This is definitely a toy to used supervised, and it's not very challenging for Nola. Still, it's a well made toy, and I love that it's easy to clean! It's a great starter puzzle, for sure.


- Dachshund Mommy

Wordless Wednesday: Tug With Me!

Strike a Pose for Wellness Petite Treats!

Hey, everyone!

We're part of Chewy.com's blogger review program, and are sent free products in exchange for our honest thoughts. All opinions are my own. 

Today I have a quick review for Chewy.com on Wellness Petite Treats. These tiny treats grain free, low calorie (about 3 kcal per treat), and come in both chewy and crunchy in a variety of flavors. These 6oz bags are resealable, and are the perfect size for training or a modeling gig, like Nola displays here:

These crunchy treats have a pleasant, faintly coconut smell (this flavor is duck, mango, and coconut) that leaves zero residue on your hands, pockets, or treat bags. They're not easy to break without completely crumbling, but their small size makes that a non-issue. It's easy to stuff a few of these in your pocket without your smell screaming "I train dogs!", haha.

Drool specks, seriously! 

All the pups love these treats, and they've quickly become a stable in the treat pantry. I recommend!


- Dachshund Mommy