What’s a party without dogs? That’s the motto of The Furry Tales and friends, who threw a Hawaiian-themed ‘Aloha’ party at the beach (a non-scary Halloween dress up!). Our dogs rocked their leis, sunnies and floral trends, while the humans enjoyed a relaxing afternoon sipping on coconut juice and cocktails on the beach. (This was part of our Pets Magazine photoshoot.)
Can you spot our 10 dogs and 1 Hahn’s macaw perched??
Here are our top three tips on a fuss-free doggie get-together:
1) Share the cost and effort!
Potlucks always work to split the cost of the food (and effort). Most of the props are also hand-made or recycled. We had pigs in a blanket, bite-sized sandwiches, fruit sticks, mini cakes and fresh coconuts – most of our foods were also dog-friendly so we could give into their begging faces.
Spot Pretty the Hahn’s macaw, fitting right in with the themed food and drinks.
Pigs in a blanket on sticks
Delicious bite sized sandwiches
Lucy in her hand-made skirt and flower lei.
2) Ensure sufficient space for the dogs.
While we had our party at the beach, which meant loads of space for our dogs to run around in, we also have many house parties for our dogs. Think about the space you have. If you do not have a large home, it can still work if you are willing to move around your furniture a little or set up play gates to separate troublemakers. Limit the number of dogs to what is manageable.
Vicky playing pat-a-cake with Olive.
Junior and Hyper waiting for their turn to jump through the hoop.
3) Make sure your dogs have basic training in manners and obedience.
Well-mannered dogs, or those that have been taught basic obedience commands, are obviously easier to manage for a party. For example:
• Sit-Stay for photo-ops
• No jumping up or snatching food from the table
• Good recall ensured they could be let off leash
Table manners: Olive’s waiting patiently for a sip of coconut water.
Lulu and Olive are used to wearing things on their faces 🙂 Sit-stay training.
There you have it, three planning tips that made our Aloha party a breeze!
As a bonus, we also had some fun entertainment and games.
Maggie serenaded us, and Cotton.
Kafka manages to squeeze through the hoop.
Friendship.
Lucy wants a bite of that sausage roll!
Ahhh, this is life.. hanging out by the bar..
We were blessed with great weather and always have a great time when we have themed parties. Last Halloween, we had a zoo party!!
This year’s party ended with some of the dogs jumping into the water to cool off and swim.
Kafka, Lulu and Lucy all after the ball.
We had no witches, pumpkins, bats or candy but we still had a perfect Halloween! We hope you did too! Tag us on Instagram @thefurrytales to share your Halloween snippets too and we might compile and feature them in our next post! Aloha!
Vivien with her gentle giants, Kafka and Lulu
Charissa with Lady-Mae and her then foster dog Roody.
Lucy is always adoringly in love with owner Sisi.
The Furry Tales 