Starla's American Journey

Products c/o of Chewy.com in exchange for an honest review. 

About once a month, Starla gets lucky and gets more mail than I do.



This month they have a new line of products that came out called American Journey, exclusive to Chewy.com. So they decided to let us try some of their new line.

 She might have also got a cute new bandanna. I swear this girl looks good in every color. It's not fair!

At first, Starla wanted to try her Beef Tripe chews. She thought they smelt lovely and tasted delicious. She might have also been mad at me about how sunny it was, and that I insisted on taking her photos.

Her favorite trick is give a paw. 

If you have a dog and haven't heard of bully sticks, you are missing out! They are made from 100% all natural USA beef with no fillers or artificial colors, or flavors. They are the best alternative to rawhides, which aren't the healthiest for your dog.

Starla is a crazy chewer and these can entertain her for a nice long time. She'll do all sorts of crazy tricks for a little bully stick. 

We received the American Journey Curly Bully Stick, bully stick, roasted marrow bone, beef tripe chews, and just turkey jerky. Her favorites are the bully stick (of course) and the turkey jerky. She thinks they smell and taste delicious. 

What type of treats to you give your furry friend? Have you tried out Chewy.com?

Say hello to this month's sponsor:

Tips for Running with your Dog

One of my biggest dilemmas of working out is that I can't just go to the gym right after work because I have a furry little companion waiting for me at home. So I have to go home, take her out, and then motivate myself to get to the gym. Can I tell you the amount of times that I get done walking her and think, "Ehhh....I can workout tomorrow," or "I don't want to have to drive to the gym now..." or "There's just now way I'm changing into a sports bra now," occurs? Nope, because it's happens all the time and I can't keep track anymore. Whoops. Now that it's Spring, I'm glad that I can get out, walk with her and actually enjoy the time outside. And what's a better way than to get your workout and your dog walk in all at once? Nothing. It's the best. 

1. Warm up. Seriously, this is necessary for both you and your dog. Walk at a brisk pace for a bit and then slowly speed up before launching into a full-out run. This leads into the next one...

2. Let your dog relieve him/herself before you really get into the run. They should know that they are running with you and shouldn't wander off or go sniff around. BUT if they have to go, they have to go. So I usually take Starla around for about five minutes (which can be part of your "warm-up" time) to let her do her business and so then there will be no distractions during our run. 

3. Make sure you have the right equipment. I keep her on a short 4' leash because she should always be beside me while I'm running. She's pretty good about staying on one side, but she doesn't have a chance to try and cross over to the other side of the trail with her shorter leash. Some people also only run their dogs on harnesses or with hands-free belts. I'm not that fancy yet, but maybe some day. If you're going for a long run, get a portable bowl or those attachments for your water bottle. 

4. I use cue words. I say "Let's go!" if we really need to move it, for example, we need to speed up to make sure we cross the street in time. and I use "Whoa" to slow her down, that way I don't just stop running and then she gets yanked back from her neck. 

5. Keep in mind the temperature. Remember dogs don't sweat! Usually I'll only go running in the summer and luckily there are lots of streams around where I run. She often jumps right into the steams and plops down in them to cool down. Also, if the pavement is hot to the touch, it's too hot for their paws! Plan on running on the grass or running by yourself if the pavement is too hot.  

Then reward her for doing so well with some healthy treats provided by Chewy!

This dog definitely eats healthier than I do.

A photo posted by Alanna (@alannaandco) on Mar 13, 2015 at 12:51pm PDT

I can't wait to go running with her more. It'll do wonders for both of our waist-lines! Maybe one day we can even do some 5k runs together!

Do you go running with your dog? Do you have any tips to help running with your dog easier?

Please consult a veterinarian before engaging your dog in any type of activity. Not all dogs are suited for every activity. All opinions shared here are our own and may differ from yours. Treats were provided for free by Chewy.com.

Guest Post: Five Paws Up

Here is my first Saturday takeover guest post! Introducing, the one, the only, Starla!

Hi, I'm Starla! My mom is crazy about me and this whole "blogging thing" so I thought I would help her out by making a quick celebrity appearance. I noticed my mom was conspiring with Chewy.com on her email one day. Apparently they had offered mom an opportunity to join their pet blogger program. Cool, whatever. Then she told me that I could get to try some nice new products. OKAY I'M DOWN, CHOOSE ME, PICK ME! Ahem, I mean, I'm great at trying out products and reviewing them.

Anyways, I don't know about you, but I love LOVE LOVE peanut butter. I really can't trust you if you don't like peanut butter. I totally lucked out when they sent me some peanut butter SmartChips.

I like crunchy bags. 

Curious looking thing...

THAT SMELLS GOOD. GIVE TO ME NOW!

Behaving badly worked. She gave me that yummy thing.

So delicious. I gobbled it right up. Mom laughed when she told me it was half made of vegetables (yuck) and also that it was for dental health. I don't know why she thinks everything needs to be healthy.

Overall, I give it five paws up. I think I like this Chewy.com guy, he also sends me my food each month in a big box that I like to jump in and roll around. 

Anyways, I gotta get back to patrolling the premises. Mom is at some silly wine tasting today and she doesn't realize how many squirrels have tried to attack the place today. What would she do without me?

Disclosure: I received this product from Chewy.com in exchange for my honest and open review. All options are my own.

My Favorite Dog Products

If you don't know, I have a 3 and a half year old Cattle Dog named Starla. She is the apple of my eye, she can do no wrong is a little devil, she is extremely smart (just like her momma), she's beautiful, and she's totally spoiled!

I got Barkbox immediately after adopting her in May 2014. That way I stockpiled tons of toys, figured out which treats she likes (all of them) and doesn't like (ha...yeah right), and it was always fun each month for her to open up her Barkbox. Of course, I went to Petco and went almost broke because of all the other things I needed wanted to buy for her.

So here are my absolute favorite dog products so far!

1. Tretball Football from Barkbox! This is one of her favorite toys. You can pull it apart and stuff treats into it. It really makes Starla work hard for her treat, and keeps her going because it has holes so she can smell the treat. Here's her trying to pull it apart to get one little treat! It takes her at least 10-15 minutes to get the treats out depending on how big the treat is.

2. Nature's Miracle Deodorizing Bath Wipes. These are great for days that she needs a bit of freshening up but not a full bath, or for days that I should probably wait to bathe her for a few days because it'll be rainy for days. They smell good without being overpowering, they are alcohol-free, and have conditioners to keep her skin and coat looking healthy and shiny.

3. Whimzees Dental Chews. These are great for heavy chewers. They are a lot harder to chew on than Dentastix or Greenies which is good for Starla because she'll chew through those in a minute. They come in toothbrush shapes and hedgehog, and alligator shapes and are sized for your dogs weight. She goes crazy for these.

4. Loving Pets Gobble Stopper Slow Feeder. So Starla will inhale her food if she has the chance. Probably something about being a rescue and living with many other dogs. She definitely needs any type of slow feeder because she gets indigestion and it's not safe when she eats that fast. I started by putting a tennis ball into the bowl, but she would just pick it up and throw it out. This is good because it suction-cups into her bowl and is immovable! There are always slow-feeder bowls, but they're just not as cute as my ceramic bowls.

5. If It Barks Customizable Martingale Collar. If you don't know what a martingale collar is you can read about it here. I'm slighty overprotective and worry a lot so it makes me feel safer that it is a collar that's very hard to slip out of. If It Barks also offers tons of super cute pre-made designs but are also 100% customizable. In addition, their customer service is amazing!

Do you have any favorite dog products? I will also give a coupon code to one person for 20% off your first order on If It Barks if you enter the giveaway below! ;)

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