Gifts for Pets / Pet Clothing: What Do You Think?

Dear users, dear authors,
What do you think about clothes and gifts for pets ? Do you like them?

@Authors,
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In my opinion, dressing up a dog or cat in clothes is animal cruelty, because animals have their natural “coat” that protects them from all kinds of weather.

Best regards, Inge

Oh, I know dogs that get absolutely freezing because of their short fur. In that case, it definitely makes sense to crochet or sew something warm that you can put on them when you take them for a walk.

Gifts—I can only shake my head when I see Advent calendars for dogs and cats. No, I’m not a fan of those. 

What about toys for dogs and cats? Do those count as gifts too? Maybe a new blanket or a new cozy bed?

Toys are okay, but not too many—otherwise the pet will just get overwhelmed. A blanket in the bed is also fine; after all, Fido or Kitty should be comfortable.

Best regards, Inge

My cats also get a wrapped gift for Christmas so they don’t feel left out 😅 but those are usually just treats or something like that… they can’t really do anything with it anyway… I mean, with the fact that it’s Christmas.

As for the clothes… Yeah… most animals really don’t need them. When I was about 14, I bought our Yorkshire mix a “cool” hooded jacket—it just looked super cute. But the poor guy only wore it once because he didn’t really like it.

Sure, there are breeds that get cold… many were bred that way, so there isn’t much of their “natural fur” left… but even then, I think you should be careful. Especially materials that get wet might not be the best choice for a dog running through the snow or rain. It’s obviously uncomfortable when the clothes are wet and the dog is standing there wet in the cold.

I also think we shouldn’t “anthropomorphize” animals. However, there are many people—often older ones—for whom a pet serves as a kind of “partner or surrogate child.” In those cases, the pet might get a special treat at Christmas or a gift—which admittedly makes the owner happier than the pet, but as long as the items are suitable for the animal and don’t harm it, I guess that’s okay.

Recently, I “gave” our cat Lino a blanket—it even has his name on it. That was really more of a gift to myself, though :-) He loves to lie on soft things—especially freshly washed clothes (waiting to be folded)—and then leaves a terrible amount of fur all over them. Now I’m hoping he’ll shed on his blanket more often instead of our stuff ;-) You can find the pattern for the squares—which you can use to knit a blanket like this—here.




But we don’t give the cats any birthday or Christmas presents. Every evening, my husband gives them a “goodnight treat” (= cat treat)—that has to be enough :-)

Best regards, Sonja

Yes, many dogs don’t have a proper undercoat anymore, so they get pretty cold during our winters. But a lot of what’s on the market is just silly knick-knacks.
Our last dog was a German Shepherd—they have plenty of wool; they could spare some. I’d bought some nice blankets and pillows for the apartment for the poor animal to lie on, but she didn’t use them—she had such a natural warmth about her that she preferred to lie on the bathroom tiles or the hallway floor.
When it comes to blankets, pillows, and beds, I can understand wanting to pick out something nice—after all, they’re sitting and lying around right in the middle of the apartment. But those are really just gifts you give yourself.
Our dogs always had a few “toys”—more like sports gear, if it was for fetching or something like that—but nothing else.
Our German Shepherd would sometimes drag a branch home from the woods; she never fetched it, but carrying it around and wanting to keep it—that worked. She had a yellow squeaky hedgehog that helped her relieve stress. Funny, isn’t it? But it’s the truth. We had a hedgehog in our garden that couldn’t be released back into the wild after being hit by a car. Our garden used to be surrounded by tall, old walls, so they brought him to us—he was safe there and we fed him.
Our dog hated it, but she knew what a hedgehog was, so she’d slow down in time—though she’d bark at it and get really worked up. So we got the squeaky hedgehog, and she quickly learned the connection. Whenever she came across the real hedgehog in the garden, she’d immediately grab her squeaky hedgehog and bite down hard a few times—then she’d calm right down.

Cats that don’t go outside need lots of activity. Suitable toys definitely make sense then. For example, I crocheted little mice and filled them with catnip. Our cat had a lot of fun with them. :
Colorful Mice

Gifts for pets.... Actually, they don’t really understand the concept of a “gift.” .... Clothing... My son’s dog (a 13-year-old Beagle) has kidney problems, so it’s important to keep her warm. However, shopping for her has been difficult—many materials are designed just to look good. But Bailey needs something warm and breathable; she shouldn’t get sweaty or damp under her “sweater.”
Every now and then, my dog and two cats also get a new toy—rarely, but every once in a while. I don’t really consider that a gift, though.
My cat sometimes brings home a “mouse gift,” and then we “trade”: she gets a treat, and I can dispose of the mouse 🙈

I had a customer who crocheted my crocheted balloon cover for her dog and wrote that he absolutely loves playing with it. That made me very happy.

I always find it funny when animals play—I love watching them. They always look so puzzled when the thing in front of them does something different than expected. 

Well, our dog loves gifts!!! He’s learned that when someone gets a gift, it’s something special. At Christmas, for example, I put everything under the tree. The second year, I didn’t include his gift because I thought he’d just go right for it—just something special to eat. He sniffed everything and then looked at us very sadly. So I wrapped his gift in newspaper and put it in with the rest. He lay down in front of it, wagging his tail. But he didn’t touch it. When a dog is part of the family, he already knows that gifts are great. Of course, he doesn’t know why they’re there—they’re just great. He loves unwrapping them. A dog who isn’t as close to the family certainly won’t learn that, though. For us, gifts are for eating or playing with. He couldn’t care less about a new collar. We’ll buy one when we need it. And with his thick coat, he doesn’t need any clothes. He, too, loves lying on the cool tile floor best. But if he ever developed bald spots in his coat or had such a bad back that he absolutely had to be protected, I’d buy a dog coat without hesitation—but it would have to be waterproof. 
I think it’s terrible when dogs are shaved and then you put sweaters on them. That’s really silly. They get wet, and the animal gets sick much faster. My daughter has a mixed-breed dog that doesn’t have an undercoat. He needs a coat in the winter.
You can’t generalize about this.
Best regards, Marita

So, my two dogs—a Labrador and a German Shepherd mix (now just one dog)—always get Christmas presents.
They’re filled with treats, and there’s always a big unwrapping, with lots of joy for everyone. 
I always have to make the packages secretly and put them out. 
My husband always asks me beforehand to make sure I haven’t forgotten to make the dog packages.
Leashes, collars, etc. are more like gifts for me. Toys like squeaky toys are always happily received, too.
We also celebrate the dogs’ birthdays with something special.
My / our dogs live like family members, and you can/could see how happy they are, wagging their tails.

Since this winter, we’ve also had a waterproof dog coat; the second dog is getting old too, and you can tell he’s cold when it’s very chilly on walks, though he’s not exactly thrilled when we put it on him.

To each their own, I think

Best regards
Angi

Don’t animals know when Christmas is? Well, our Border Collie-Golden Retriever mix was worse than any toddler last year right before Christmas. We’d put her gifts (a new puzzle toy, a crocheted dog pillow, and a few treats) in a big cardboard box and, a few days before Christmas, placed it in the living room—along with other gift bags—in a corner behind the two-seater couch. She loved trying to open her package and get to her presents, and she’d even peek into the other bags every now and then—just to make sure they weren’t getting anything nicer. 

Purely decorative clothing (things like little skirts or lederhosen) for animals is, in my opinion, indeed nonsense.

But with functional clothing, I see it very differently. For very young, old, or sick dogs, and those with little fur or no undercoat, clothing can definitely make sense and may help prevent illnesses (e.g. colds, bladder infections).

My dogs (Boxer-Lab mixes without undercoats) got cold or still get cold in freezing temperatures and then wear a winter coat, e.g. Pelerin with the belly protection from the Add-on Set
A raincoat can also definitely make sense, depending on the dog.




A shirt or bodysuit as wound protection or to prevent licking (after an injury or surgery) is more comfortable for many dogs to wear than a huge cone around their neck.

A bathrobe after a downpour or swimming makes drying off easier and can help protect against getting chilled, e.g. the sewing pattern Tirim.


A heat or incontinence panty (such as the sewing pattern Colleen) of course mainly protects the furnishings, but for many dogs it is also more comfortable than, for example, lying in their waste at night.


Paw shoes can protect against burns from hot asphalt or injuries, for example on longer hikes.

And bandanas, etc. are often used for identification (e.g. therapy dogs, assistance dogs, “yellow dogs,” search dogs), or can be used in training to help the dog switch from leisure mode to work mode. Sewing pattern Dandy.



My personal conclusion is: clothing YES, when it makes sense and doesn’t unnecessarily restrict the dog 🐾