A few years ago, my Aunt and I bought yards of sports themed and other printed fleece to make blankets for Christmas presents. She sewed hems on the fabric and these blankets have become popular items. My husband has several from his favorite sports teams. We drape the couches with them to reduce the amount of Sheltie hair that becomes a permanent fixture on the furniture. When guests are coming it is easy to take the blankets off for an extra cleaning and give our guests a few less Sheltie hairs on their clothes.
The shelties have become very attached to the fleece blankets. Bailey was the first to discover the comfort of these blankets and realize with a little encouragement and nudging he could have them perfectly aligned for his comfort. Neither Katy nor Bailey seems to realize that the blankets are not theirs, but designed for human comfort and warmth. Bailey was thrilled when he got his own Patriots blanket, made from a remnant for his birthday. This only confirmed his suspicions that he was entitled to all the fleece, not just what my Aunt made for him. My Mom aided his belief by bringing him another fleece blanket that we keep on the bed for him.
The fleece blankets have proven a better alternative to his original attachment to our afghans. I had to have a crochet afghan repaired before I realized he was even near it. He had taken to cuddling with it and catching his claws in it when my husband used the afghan on the couch. With the abundance of fleece, his attraction for yarn products has been reduced. He would much rather a fleece blanket to a knitted or crocheted afghan. Since his claws do much less damage to the fleece, I am glad he made this choice on his own.
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Our animals are the same way. Since it keeps the furniture cleaner, we give in...except for the afghans. :)
ReplyDeleteLet me ask you- because this is the ongoing debate around here: do you like the dog smell?
ReplyDeleteI say, it is comforting and I love it. My husband is totally squicked by it. XP
Which ones? Seriously there is the warm natural smell of a dog which I love. Then there are smelly wet dog smells and others which are not so nice. I use baking soda on the rugs to eliminate the ever present dog smell because not everyone loves the smell of dog and it can become overwhelming. I do keep blankets on the couches because it does keep their smell from becoming a permanent part of the furniture.
ReplyDeleteWe also make sure that when they start to "smell like dogs" it is time for bathing and grooming if we have fallen off a schedule.
I do believe there is a difference between the natural smell of a dog and what offends most people when they say the dog smells like a dog.
My dogs love the furniture, I have used blankets but never fleece. I need to keep something to keep on the furniture that does not collect hair. My dogs have that bristly bulldog hair. I tends to be scratchy if you happen to sit on it.
ReplyDeleteRegarding smells...I'm an animal lover from way back. Little, big, wings, legs, hooves...I dig 'em all. There's ways to combat smells, and you have to be diligent if your pets live inside. ;-) All worth it, I say!
ReplyDeleteThe blankets...you know you've got your million dollar idea here. Snuggies for doggies...have you priced dog beds? I bought a large for my Labrador/Blue Lacy mix...over $120. I'd look into the market on this one, Bailey. ;-)
Fleece is comfortable for everybody including pooches!
ReplyDeleteMy dogs love it too. Its soft. My cat rolls around on it. He tries to claim it for his own but the dogs are not having that.
ReplyDelete