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Happy Summer!
Don't miss the Secret Sale!
Thanks for
subscribing to this newsletter - we feel like it's an important way for
us to keep in touch with our customers, letting you know about exciting
news (check out the update below about our donation the Pongo Fund, almost certainly the largest pet food
donation in history by an independent pet supply store!), pointing out
what we feel might be critical safety tips (One of the biggest risks for
dogs during hot summers isn't what you might expect, and something in your
purse or your kitchen cupboards can be deadly and we're hearing more and
more reports of close calls for dogs). And of course, we love to tell
you about the niftiest new products we've found and let you know the
scoop on happenings in the neighborhood! Read on!
These hot days, the Rose Festival, the end of school, and the call of yard work and gardens have meant some pretty quiet days in the store recently. We miss seeing you! So, we thought it might be the perfect time to offer you a Secret Sale!
For those of you that are new to our newsletter, sometimes we have sales that we advertise to the public, and sometimes we have Secret Sales that are only offered to our newsletter subscribers. We think of it as a way to say thank you to our regular customers. The trick is, it's a Secret - we won't automatically discount your merchandise at the register - you have to give us a little indication that you're in on the secret! When you do, we'll take 15% off of all regularly priced items that aren't pet food (your pet's regular meal). It's a great time to stock up on things you know you'll go through like treats, chews, toys, and supplements, and also a good opportunity to save on beds, cat furniture, and that pretty leash and collar set you've had your eye on! We also have a large selection of natural calming treats and supplements, so take advantage of the sale to stock up for the upcoming fireworks season! So please join us this Saturday from 10-6 and give us a little wink and a nod at the register. If you know someone who would appreciate this sale, send them on in and tell them that if they sign up for the newsletter at the counter, they are welcome to take part in the sale. We look forward to seeing you!
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Some Safety Tips for Hot Weather
Summer sure hit us
with a bang, didn't it? It sounds like it's going to be another painfully
hot and very dry summer, so we want to briefly mention a few points of
safety:
- Pavement heats up much more than the air - on that recent 100
degree Saturday, we measured the pavement temperature and it was 135
degrees! This temperature can easily cause pain and blistering for dogs
and verges on the temperature that could result in permanent damage to
the pads. Here's a good article that mentions the device we use to measure pavement temps, and discusses this issue in greater depth.
- Heat Stroke is a serious and potentially deadly condition. We still mourn
the loss of Ribeye the English Bulldog, a regular customer and fabulous
friend - what a great dog he was. His owner knew he was getting too hot
and was trying to rush home, but the symptoms developed more rapidly than he expected. Short-faced breeds like Ribeye are of course the most vulnerable, but any dog can overheat - the very young, the seniors, thick-coated and dark-coated breeds, dogs with various medical conditions like thyroid or heart problems, overweight dogs, dogs that have moved from a cooler climate (or in Oregon, when it suddenly goes from 65 or 70 degrees one day to 100 the next like last week),etc. Read more here. One of the greatest tools available is the Swamp Cooler - we urge you to consider purchasing one before our next heat wave to keep your dog safe and comfortable. A Secret Sale is a great time to pick one up! |
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SAFETY ALERT!
We just wanted to remind everyone to be very careful with products with Xylitol around your dogs! It's a sweetener used more and more in things like candies, gum, and in the home for baking. Though safe for humans, even small amounts of xylitol can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), seizures, liver failure or even death in dogs. We recently spoke to a customer whose little dog somehow ate a stick of gum with xylitol (they didn't have any in their house, and they figure the dog hoovered it up on a walk and they didn't see it). The owner saw his dog in the yard a short time after their walk and she was swaying and drooling. She was rushed to the emergency hospital where they were able to remove the gum (less than an hour from ingestion), which was lucky, as if it had been in her stomach longer, it could have been a fatal dose. The hospital has a protocol where a dog has to be then boarded for 3 days so it can have its liver values tested regularly, as it's common for dogs to continue to have a risk of crashing in that time period. (This event also cost him $1600). Shortly after, one of our employees’ dog got into some gum in the house and they were also very lucky to find her quickly and discern the problem, but her little dog’s liver values were very seriously high. Please share this information, reminding your dog owning friends and family to be very vigilant about keeping your dog away from this very dangerous substance for dogs. More info here
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CANNA PET!
After much searching and scrutiny, we are pleased to finally bring you a CBD product for pets! We’ve been wanting to find a product like this for some time, but we wanted to find a company who developed their CBD products with sound scientific methods and who offers veterinarian recommended, safe, effective products. What are CBDs? Well, they are nothing short of fascinating, and they have absolutely nothing to do with getting high. All mammals have something called cannibinoid receptors in our body that are designed to interact with naturally occurring compounds (cannibioids) present in a variety of plants, most notably (though not exclusively) in cannabis. Non-psychoactive cannabinoids (meaning the part of the plant that is not involved with getting you high) are naturally also present in plants like black pepper, basil, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, echinacea, flax, green tea, oregano, pepper, rosemary, industrial hemp, and many others. This interaction in our bodies between these receptors and the substances in these plants effects appetite, pain-sensation, nausea, mood, memory, and inflammation. These medicinal effects have been especially useful for people with Crohne’s disease, Multiple Schlerosis, epilepsy, PTSD and cancer pain. A survey by Stanford researchers of 19 severely epileptic children found that 84% experienced substantial seizure reductions from CBD-enriched cannabis. CBD has been shown to suppress colon cancer tumors in mice and to kill breast cancer cells in lab studies. CBD also has anti-inflammatory, neuro-protective, and anti-oxidant properties. CBD has also been shown to stimulate bone fracture healing in laboratory animals.
The fact that it can be taken orally, has no THC (the stuff that gets you high) and so many medicinal benefits makes it ideal for use in pets. In a survey of 457 dog owners and 104 cat owners feeding Canna-Pet products, 95% of dog owners and 100% of cat owners felt that it provided pain relief, and 83% of dog owners reported that it helped relieve anxiety (think about this for the 4th of July!). Dog owners also reported moderate to excellent results in relieving seizures, muscle spasms, digestive tract problems. They also reported that it inhibited cell growth in tumors, helped skin conditions, reduced vomiting and nausea, reduced inflammation, and aided sleep. We believe we’ve found one of the best sources available - these products are rigorously tested for their consistency, and guaranteed safe. For our first order, we brought in Canna-Pet biscuits for dogs, but they also make capsules and liquids for cats and dogs, which we are open to ordering as well. Let us know if you're interested. We are excited to hear your stories when you try it! Read more about it here.
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| | WO Design
- Think Global!
Toys by WO Design are durable bones and discs that we sell that have a great purpose. An independent retailer in Montana saw the situation in Ethiopa with more than 4.5 million orphaned children, and wanted to do something about it. So, they created WObones and WO discs (WO = women and orphans) which are manufactured with BPA-free, phthalate-free, non-toxic and FDA compliant, durable materials in Montana. Each product you purchase from WO Designs provides 2 free meals for widows and orphans in Ethiopia. They just hit their 10,000 meal mark!!!! Woo Hoo! An added perk to these durable toys is that they come with a guarantee - if your dog chews pieces off, you can return the toy for a one time replacement and the pieces get recycled into new toys! Does your dog "think global"? Come in and check out WO design toys and help them make a difference for widows and orphans today! Read more here
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| | Value Boxes of Whimzees Chews
Many of you have discovered the Whimzees chews we carry - they’re available in many shapes, and they’re sort of like Greenies, but with better ingredients. They have a simple grain free ingredient list and dogs love them. Here’s the good news: we have value boxes and they are certainly a remarkable value. Each box is 28 assorted pieces of one size (small, medium or large), and if you bought each of these treats individually, it would cost you about $50. These boxes are priced at $33.99! We hesitated purchasing them because we worried that the boxes they come in contribute to the waste stream, but this sort of tub is recyclable in curbside (though the lid is not), and even better, they are a nifty size for legos, craft supply storage, hardware organization, and they might make a great lunch box! |
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Green Juju!
We understand the convenience and pricing benefits of feeding a dry kibble diet to dogs, but to be honest, even the best dry dog foods are still heavily processed, moisture deficient foods. For all of us, an entirely processed food diet lacks phytonutrients and undamaged amino acids, which can make us more vulnerable to chronic illnesses. There is a great deal of value on providing some whole food in the diet, which goes a long way towards protecting our pet’s health (especially nowadays when the rate of cancer in dogs has skyrocketed so severely). In a 2005 study conducted by Purdue University, the results showed that adding fresh vegetables 3X per week to dry commercial kibble actually prevented and/or slowed down the development of transitional cell carcinoma (aka bladder cancer). We have a variety of whole food toppers, but this newest one is so very exciting! Buffalo bone broth (a whole food source of glucosamine and chondroitin which supports the rebuilding of connective tissue) is combined with coconut oil (a great fatty acid), turmeric (a potent anti-inflammatory) and leafy green vegetables (lots of antioxidants that protect against the free radicals that break down collagen. Greens are also a great source of enzymes that help protect the pancreas) that are grown on their own organic farm in WA or sourced from other local organic farms. It’s a gorgeous emerald green nutrition bomb! Check it out here
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Pongo Fund Holiday Food Drive Update!
Green Dog Pet Supply is gearing up to deliver the second half of our annual pet food drive to the Pongo Fund pet food bank. The Pongo Fund has called this donation “The BIGGEST single store, premium quality pet food drive in America”. This delivery brings the total number of pounds of food donated to 15,550 (that's 7 tons of food with a retail value of more than $21,000). Our food drives have always been impressive (last year’s was about 11,000 pounds) but this year, customers donated 183 bags, which we matched, and we talked our distributor (Animal Supply Co.) and Nutrisource pet food company into each donating one bag per 12 bags sold.
We had to break it up into two parts, as this sort of donation isn’t easy. Green Dog is a local independently owned store. We believe in taking good care of our staff - we provide a living wage, and full time staff receive benefits. We have sacrificed most of our advertising budget to help support local pet rescues. The owners make the same salary as our senior employees. We exist to help people keep their precious pets in their lives as long as they can, and we work tirelessly to become the best resource for holistic pet care that we can possibly be. We think this donation is a very exciting event - we are honored to be able to help the Pongo Fund.
Many cities have a food bank for humans, but a pet food bank of this size and scope is a very unique thing in this country. There is quite a bit of conversation these days about the homeless situation in Portland, and the things that are and are not being done to help. This amazing service makes a big impact for families facing food uncertainty, both for themselves and their pets. Sharing your only meal with your pet is a sacrifice many people are willing to make. The stories told by Larry Chusid, the founder of The Pongo Fund are always touching, regularly posting stories of people who have found themselves in terrible situations yet stay hopeful due to the presence of the pets in their lives. His stories do a valuable service, humanizing the people who are homeless and reminding us all that this problem is not faceless. The Pongo Fund is critical to help keep pets with their families and out of the animal shelters when their families are homeless or having a difficult time finding the money to feed their pets. People can visit the pet food bank in Portland, but they also deliver food to distribution points in other parts of Oregon. He often calls us to help a pet owner with a tricky health issue, and we and he both donate products and money to help people get the supplements, etc that they might need. He even sets up small funds to help with surgical procedures when needed. We are proud that our customers helped us to make this delivery of what is likely to be the largest ever pet food donation by an independent pet supply store, and proud to support the Pongo Fund in the endless work they do to support homeless and low income pet owners. |
| | | It's time to start thinking about the 4th of July! Here are some tips
for how to keep your pets happy and safe on this potentially stressful
day. Click here |
| | Neighborhood News!
- The Refinery Gym Expands! This great gym right down the street has doubled it's space. One new feature is the new spinning room (pictured).
- Development News: Here's the latest update on the new building going in on the Red Fig corner
- Eco-school Network: Here's a nifty article about sustainability initiatives in local schools
- Sauvie Island Guide: A local woman made a great water resistant map to make it easier to bird, bike, hike and pick fruit on Sauvie Island. Read about it here! Here's where to buy it
Thanks for your support! See you Saturday! |
| | | | | Located in Beaumont Village 4327 NE Fremont Street, Portland, Oregon 97213
Telephone: 503-528-1800
© 2007 - 2015 Green Dog Pet Supply. Green Dog Pet Supply® is a Registered Trademark. |
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