Crystal Valley Blog

It’s a new year for everybody, including pets, and if you’re like most dog and cat owners, it’s common to spoil your fur babies more than you spoil yourselves! We rounded up a sample of the latest, greatest, newest and best pet accessories, grooming products, toys and paraphernalia for 2018. And if you’re out and about, check with Chuck & Don’s Pet Food and Supplies on Front Street for popular gear and chow – or have it delivered right to your door!

Dog Bless You

Let’s make mealtime fun! And while we’re at it, slow things down a bit. For dogs who tend to scarf their food and then either bloat or, pardon the expression, barf — there are a few versions of the slow-feed bowl that will help. SNL actor Aidy Bryant swears by bowls – says they turn meals into a treasure hunt for gulpers who have to eat pieces at a time, instead of swallow great big gobs all at once. Outward Hound makes a variety of fun feeder slow bowls in different patterns, sizes and colors.

Traditional plastic or metal pet tags have a pet’s name and owner’s phone number, but Pawscout’s new smart tag connects to a smartphone app to let you track your pet within a 300-foot radius on a digital map. If a dog moves beyond that range, the app notifies you that he or she has ventured too far away. And there’s this: if a lost dog happens to walk near people who have the Pawscout app installed on their smartphones, the owner of the lost dog will get a location alert.

For hiking dogs, go-biking dogs, and run-alongside-you dogs, Ruffwear makes an assortment of backpacks and saddle bags for dogs with on-board collapsible water bottles so dogs can stay hydrated for the long haul. Ruffwear products are “rigorously field-tested” and receive RAVE reviews from users. 

If your dog hates getting a bath, the new Bissell Bark Bath portable bath system is a good cleaning alternative. It works like those wet vacs that clean stains from your carpet, but more gently. To shampoo your dog, you drag the nozzle across his fur, the vacuum sucks up the water. If you dog shies away from loud noises, this might not work for you but it could make bath time a lot quicker!

Cat Bliss  

Featured in New York Magazine, is what some are calling the world’s best (looking) litter box. Made by Modkat it’s a stylish, round-edged cube and looks more like a small, modern table than a cat-waste container. The litter tracks onto the lid, not onto the floor, because it doubles as a walk-off mat. The swivel lid and slatted scoop makes the Modkat is easy to clean, and the litter box comes with a reusable liner. 

Or if you’d like to spend less time scooping and more time, oh, maybe playing laser tag with your kitty, take a look at the Litter Robot III Self-Cleaning Litter Box. This fully automatic cat-waste machine is cat-activated so, once your cat exits the box, a timer starts to count down enough time for clumps to form. Then the globe turns, sifting the through the litter and dropping clumps into a carbon-filtered drawer. There are no special accessories; all you need is regular cat litter and kitchen garbage bags for disposal. 

PePetcube Play is the next generation of an award-winning pet camera which lets you play with your pet using a built-in laser toy, right from your smartphone. The camera lets you check on your pet throughout the day, uses sound alerts to notify you of any “big events” happening to your four-legged friend, and with the push-to-talk feature, offers two-way audio so you can hear and talk to your pet when you’re jonesing for a little face-time. 
And just a few weeks ago, Petcube announced a new feature that uses artificial intelligence to recognize pets and then initiate selfie videos of the pet or even to allow the pet to initiate a two-way video call. “Hang on, guys, Gabe’s calling!”

Best Products has 51 purrfect products for your kitty, and The Spruce, more great accessories for your favorite hound.

It’s a Dog’s Life in the Valley 

We love pets in Crystal Valley, the master-planned community that sits in a real valley surrounded by nature, wildlife, and plenty of walking paths and trails for healthy, active lives. Explore the new homes by D.R. Horton,  Kauffman Homes and Richmond American Homes, both ranch and two-story designs priced from the $300s, and revel in the natural setting that is Crystal Valley.