Residents shopping for unique gifts for fuzzy family members
By: Sue Kramer
With only three days left before Christmas, some area pet owners still are searching for the perfect gift to give their fuzzy family members.
Our pets are as individual as we are, and finding the right gift can be as challenging as finding the perfect gift for our human companions.
Velvet Louise, a red Dachshund belonging to Pat Hartpence of West Amwell, nearly got her own antique upholstered foot bench this year so she could sleep in luxury at the foot of her owner’s bed. Ms. Hartpence and her husband, Marvin, spotted the foot bench in an antiques store in Lambertville, but decided against the purchase because Velvet sleeps in bed with them and wouldn’t consider sleeping alone, much less at the foot of the bed. Instead, Velvet will be getting, "a pair of antlers," Ms. Hartpence said.
"She has a stocking and her red sweater that she wears and a Santa hat. We dress her up all the time," she said.
Velvet has outfits suitable for all occasions, including a cowboy outfit with a cowboy hat, a sun visor with smiley faces and a special red bow for the holidays.
"She’ll have a red sweater to go out," Ms. Hartpence continued.
And Velvet will find a special treat in her stocking – "some gourmet cheese because it’s Christmas. She’s really spoiled."
Bambi Kuhl has two dogs and two cats to shop for. The Lambertville resident said her orange-and-white tabby shelter cats, Cora and La Toya, will be getting Catnip Soap Bubbles, feline blowing bubbles laced with organic catnip.
Millie, a mixed breed dog, got a new collar last year so her companion Randy, Ms. Kuhl’s Cockapoo, will be getting "a new red Coach collar" this year. And Randy will be wearing his reindeer antlers on the big day.
All four pets in the Kuhl household will be putting their Christmas stockings out Christmas Eve.
Ms. Kuhl said, "They usually get various chew toys. No bonds – we don’t save money for them," although she added, "one of them may get his teeth cleaned."
Maureen Horton-Gross of West Amwell still is searching for the perfect gift for Jasmine, her three-pound Maltese-Yorkshire Terrier cross.
"She has more toys than she knows what to do with," Ms. Horton-Gross said. "She really loves super balls. We used to get her sweaters and T-shirts, but she hates them."
Ms. Horton-Gross’ other dog, Heidi, was easier to shop for. Heidi, a beagle, already is sporting a collar that features a big green bow and a special feature any dog would envy – it plays music.
"Jingle Bells," Ms. Horton-Gross said of Heidi’s collar. "It’s one that I picked up that has a big green bow. It has a little music box in it. When you push the button it plays Christmas carols. She doesn’t mind it too much."
When it comes to unique pet gifts, Ms. Horton-Gross said, "If it’s out there, I’ll find it."
"Babe is wearing a black-and-white pearl collar with a gold bell," West Amwell’s Bonnie Eick said of her male Chocolate-point Siamese cat. "Sophie will be wearing a pink-and-white pearl collar with a gold bell."
Sophie, a 4-month-old Chocolate-point kitten just moved to the Eick household, an early Christmas present for Babe, who lost his longtime companion, Cleo, earlier this year. The two cats hit it off immediately.
"They’ll have their ‘nut run’ together about 11 p.m.," Ms. Eick laughed.
‘Nut runs’ or ‘cat fits’ are familiar to cat owners; it’s that special time of day when, for some unknown reason, cats, usually in a full body fluff, take off at a flat run, flying up and down stairs, over furniture and countertops and through plants -moving at breakneck speed with the sounds of toppling furniture and overturned plants following them from attic to cellar – before they stop suddenly to clean between their toes.
Nut runs aside, Babe and Sophie, who Babe thinks of as "mini me," according to Ms. Eick, will be getting a visit from Santa.
"They’ll get their little stockings, and there’ll be plenty of catnip in them," Ms. Eick said. "Sophie could use a pair of pink-and-white booties because her little feet are always cold from walking on the tile floor. She’ll be getting a travel box of her own, too."
"I have Tweety, Ricky has Taz, and Thumper has a Bugs Bunny stocking," Lambertville’s Lorraine Carmosino said of the Christmas stockings she, her husband, Rick, and their pet, Thumper, a mini lop-eared rabbit, put out each year for Santa to fill.
"Thumper’s getting a baby blanket," Ms. Carmosino said. "I like Martha Stewart. They have the pretty pastel colors."
Thumper, who wears a Santa hat for Christmas, also will find a stocking filled with hay cubes and fruit-and-nut-filled Berry Blast, two treats she gets each day. She’ll also find a supply of Ultra Snack Puffs in orange, yellow and green so she can have one of each color at snack time.
"I wrap all her presents in Bugs Bunny or rabbit paper each year," Ms. Carmosino said. "One year, she got a little bed. We might get her a new one this year – if I can find it at Pet Smart."
She’s already bought Thumper’s new rabbit ornament for the family tree. She gets a different one each year.
"Now that Elsie’s 11, her little paws get cold," Lambertville’s Michele Kohut said of her beagle. "We plan on getting her booties because she’s never had any kind of clothes before. We also plan on a waterproof raincoat and a jacket."
Elsie, who wears reindeer ears for the holidays, will be finding one more surprise in her stocking.
"She’s getting a new velour blanket," Ms. Kohut said. "She likes them."
Lambertville’s Susan Brown still has some shopping to do for her Maltese, Misty.
"She’ll probably get a sweater and some little toys," she said. "She has a stocking, and she’ll get some little cat toys because dog toys are too big for her. She likes little toys. Usually, she gets a red bow when she goes to the hairdressers."
Misty won’t be alone at the hairdressers. Sue Coeyman, who does double duty as groomer as well as owner of the New Hope Pet Center in Logan Square, said, "We are very busy. We’re now grooming on Sundays because we’re so booked. I have a new groomer now, Sue Braun, with 20 years experience."
The two women are kept busy bathing, combing, trimming and glamorizing between 10 and 20 pets a day, readying them for their visit from Santa.
"We have all kinds of bows," Ms. Coeyman said. "Glitter ribbon, red and green. Sometimes people bring in jeweled collars."
Ms. Braun, whom at times goes beyond adorning pets with bows and jewels to please pampering pet owners, added, "I paint toenails. One lady wanted alternating red and green."