Embrace Pet Community blog

Lyger versus the Bissell Lift-Off

While I was chatting with our new friends at Bissell, it came up that I've been using a shop-vac to suck up the Lyger hair that collects on my hardwood floors.  (Forget about rugs!)  They took pitty on me and sent me a Lift-Off MultiCyclonic Pet Vacuum.  Talk about a game changer!

The 15" cleaning path and seven surface height settings make cleaning my floors FUN! Yes, Vacuuming is FUN!  That's a strong testament coming from someone that's spent 11 years constantly chasing of tumble-Lygers.  (Notice in the pic on the left that Lyger is eyeing his nemesis.  He hates vacuums!)

The photo right shows the unit in the process of being assembled, which took all of five minutes, but actually helped me to understand more about the unit's features and attachments:

• The canister is detachable, which is EXCELLENT for carrying up the stairs and getting in those little corners.  The canister is small enough to rest on your stair, so you don't have to hoist it up the entire time.
• There are multiple brushes, including the Pet Hair Eraser and a combo-tool brush, both of which can be used with the telescoping want.  (Telescoping wand may be my favorite feature!)
• It's got a HEPA filter to catch danders. Whew!
• It's bagless, which means no buying specifically sized refill bags.

Let's focus on the "pet" specific part of this product, the Pet Eraser.  This attachment is part of the extension and has a spinning rubber brush to pick up extra tufts left about.  While it didn't do very well on the velour upholstered chair (which might as well be embroidered with dog hair) but it did a great job on my sofa upholstery.  It sucked the hairs up even though it's a ribbed fabric that is hard to clean.

More importantly, it did a good job on my floors.  The height adjustment made it easy to get under sofas, entertainment centers, etc.  It glides nicely, and even after being used to a heavy duty suction, this had the suction needed to get the job done. 

After my good response to the SpotBot, this vacuum hasn't let me down.  Lyger's going to have to deal with it--the MultiCyclonic Pet Vac is here to stay! $179.99 at Amazon.

 

PetSafe 5 Meal Automatic Feeder

There are the occasional days where Lyger is home alone for a long night with the dog door, which he doesn't mind at all.  Frankly, I'm sure he'd prefer it to being crated and toted places when we have quick over-night trips.  Rather than bring a neighbor in just to feed and medicate him while we're away for 20 hours, we wanted to try a pet feeder.

We put it to the test for the two days before the Thanksgiving holiday when we'd be away for about 30 hours, just to give it a dry run.  It's a bit tedious to program, as you must program each feeding for the next 7 feedings, rather than just telling it to feed at 7am and 5pm every day.  Additionally, I don't quite grasp why the device allows you to program 7 feedings but has only 4 rotations.  (The first feeding is available as soon as you set it down, so I don't count that as 5 feedings while you're away from home.)

But, once it's programmed...what do I have to say about it.  I set it up for AM and PM feedings, it fit his 1 cup easily and I just popped his arthritis pill in a pill pocket so he'd scarf it up.  It worked, just as expected, on a few big batteries.

I like the convenience and comfort that I don't have to bother neighbors to come learn his food and medication needs just for a one or two off feeding. The feeding tray is dishwasher safe and compact. 

But, this particular device has a lot of drawbacks in the programming department.  I'm still not sure if the device will restart its cycle at the end of it's 7 pre-programmed cycles, and it doesn't mention it in the instructions.  My biggest complaint is that you have to program each individual feeding instead of just telling it what times the dog eats and having it figure out the math on its own.

But, the item was on sale at PetSmart for $39.99 (normally retailing for about $47.99), and that allowed me to go spend the holiday with my in-laws a few hours away and relax, without needing to bring someone else in over the holiday.  Of course I came home and spoiled my boy, but it's given us a new freedom to come and go without inconveniencing our guy.  I think this would be ideal for these sorts of situations, or perhaps other pets that need scheduled feedings or medications daily. If it helps people help their pets, that's not something I can complain about.

Bissell SpotBot: Clean Up Your Pet's Act Contest!

It's finally here--the much anticipated Bissell Spot Bot giveaway!

Accidents are to be expected, especially when it comes to a pet friendly office.  Embrace's hub is no exception.  Our blue carpet has seen better days.  So, we were thrilled when the Bissell SpotBot came to our rescue.

Here's the how-to: It's an all-in-one unit, so you just fill the clean water reservoir with a little water and a bit of the Pet Stain and Odor cleaning formula that is included.  Set the brush head over your stain and press the magic button:

The unit runs for a few minutes (with an acceptable amount of noise) to clean the area, then a *beep* signals that you've got a clean spot.  As you can see in our photo, the brush area wasn't able to cover the entire stain, but never fear--there is a manual brush attachment option that you can use to get the excess cleaned up.  Look how nice the clean center area is compared to the stained area, or even the not-so-stained area around it.  The area that was cleaned is clearly cleaner than any spot around it.

I was able to get about three cycles of automatic cleaning out of one batch of mixture.  I'm guessing we'll probably use the entire 16oz bottle of cleaner in about four or five refills.  Fortunately, you can get a 32oz bottle for $16.29 at Amazon.  The dirty water is stored in a easy-to-empty resevoir, so you never have to get your hands dirty.

The SpotBot is so fun that I actually came in EARLY one day just to clean up carpets.  It got up several unidentifiable stains, including one that looked to be grease or oil based.  My co-workers came in and said, "Oh, the floors got cleaned?" Yes, the SpotBot was on it!Whether your cat had an upset tummy or the housebreaking went awry, this tool is going to save you a ton of work! 

Thanks to Bissell, you too can get a SpotBot to clean your blemished carpets.  They're sponsoring our Clean up Your Pet's Act Contest! 

To enter:
Go Like Bissell on Facebook and tell them that Embrace sent you.
Hit up our Facebook wall with a photo of your cat or dog being a little naughty--did they get into the trash can or unroll the toilet tissue? Show us!
OR
Comment here with your pet's best bad behavior--share the story that's *almost* too shameful to tell.

Better yet, comment and post a photo to double your chances!  We'll select the naughty pet prize on December 28 and Bissell will send you a SpotBot!

The SpotBot and other rockin' Bissell products are available at Bissell.com.  I think you'll be wow'd by how many products they offer--so there's something for every clean-up need.

Comments or photos submitted before 12/27/11 will be considered for entry. Winner will be contacted by Embrace Pet Insurance for prize fulfillment via sponsor.  Embrace staff and families not eligible to win.  Must not have won within last 90 days 

Luke's All Natural November Savings

Luke's All Natural has a nice little coupon to help you cut costs on your natural pet foods and treats and toys.  This month only (for registered customers only) get $2 off $25 or $5 off $50 with codes Save2 or Save 5.  Limit one coupon per month.

Check out their list of new and cool products including the oddly named cats balls, dog toys from West Paw Designs (shown), and more.

 

10% off Kitty Holster

Crazy K Farms is offering nice incentive for folks wanting to walk their cats while supporting breast cancer research.  The rest of this month they're offering 10% off the pink kitty holster.

Just call 800-980-4165 and mention this discount when placing your order to save and have 10% of the proceeds donated to breast cancer research.

FURminator Fall Giveaway

Today, the sun is shining, the leaves are fallingand fall is in full swing, complete with Lyger blowing his coat, AGAIN.  Where would we be without the FURminator?  I like the FURminator so much that I have a spare that I loan out to with friends and family that haven't yet undergone the life changing experience that is FURmination!

Now, you too can experience the magic, the bliss, the transformation that is a well groomed pet and a fur free home.

FURminator is giving away one cat or dog FURminator de-shedding tool. Yes, you read it right. You can win a FURminator.

To enter:

1. Go like FURminator's Facebook page and tell them Embrace sent you.
2. Go to Embrace's Facebook page, post a photo of your pet and tell us why you want a FURminator

We'll draw a winner from the photos on November 1st.  What are you waiting for? Go post!

Photos submitted during the month of October will be considered for entry. Winner will be contacted by Embrace Pet Insurance for prize fulfillment via sponsor.  Embrace staff and families not eligible to win.  Must not have won within last 90 days

SmartScoop Litter Box

A greatly anticipated review from Laura's experience with the SmartScoop.

I’m a bad cat mom. I confess that I’m no good at cleaning out the litter boxes for my three cats – like really no good. Everyone else seems to get to it every day (or at least that’s what they say they do), but I end up leaving it way longer until it’s desperate (and the cats are crossing their legs). Luckily, the cats don’t seem to be traumatized by this and aren’t peeing in inappropriate places; but still, I really could do better by them.

So, I was very happy to try out the OurPets SmartScoop kitty litter box. I’ve never had an automatic box before in all the years I’ve had cats because it seemed like a lot of money for something that seemed so… hokey! How could this actually work and keep things clean and not freak out the cats? Seemed too much of a risk to try it so I never did.

Now, I wouldn’t give the box back. It’s not perfect, but for the things that matter the most – doing the job and not freaking out the cats – it’s a champ. Definitely an A on the school grading system.

How it works:

• It requires some thought to put it together but I think my 7 year old daughter could have managed it with a little of mom’s help so it wasn’t too bad at all. Took about 10 minutes to put together.
• You need a socket near where you want the box to do since it does need electricity to work. I put the box in my laundry room and had to run an electric cord from a slightly awkward place down to the box but it’s all set now.
• You’ll need clumping litter to make this work.
• The cats jumped right in after I set it up and had no problem with it at all. I put it right where the old tray went so that shouldn’t have been too hard for them and it wasn’t
• The way it works is that the cat does her business in the box and then goes off to do whatever kitty naughtiness she desires. When she leaves, the box senses that a cat has visited the box (indicated by a flashing light on the side) and fifteen minutes later, it will filter through the cat litter and tip up the clumped litter into a covered collection tray (see video) - kind of like tipping the dumpster back into the garbage truck
• What generally happens at this time is that all children and cats in the vicinity rush to the litter box to watch in awe as the waste gets stuffed away nicely. Better than TV!
• The collection tray has plastic bags you use to collect the waste and you’ll want to wash out the litter tray every couple of weeks or so to keep it clean (I know, I think they suggest weekly but you know me, THE bad cat mom)

 

All in all it does a very nice job.

My recommendations for improvement:

• Power button: the on/off button is an electronic button. No big deal except that if the power goes out, the litter box switches off but won’t come back on when the power restarts. Something you want to keep an eye on and to let your cat sitter know about
• Spillage: the grate that filters the litter sometimes gets to the far end of the box and dirty litter can fall onto the floor as it’s getting scooped up. It’s only once in a while but it seems that this could be fixed by putting a curved lip right at the end to encourage dirty litter backwards and into the box, not outwards
• Noise: this isn’t the quietest machine in the house (check out the video) so if it’s beside your dining room, your guests are going to wonder what the sudden noise is if it goes off in the middle of your fancy dinner.
• Cleaning: it’s not the lightest tray in the house either and it’s not easy to take off the mechanics to wash just the tray itself. I’d make it more obvious how to do that as who reads instructions anyway.

None of these issues though are deal breakers. Having the SmartScoop litter box in the house has made for a much more positive litter box experience for us all. Now I just need two more for the other levels in the house. 

Pet Perfect from Shark review

Lyger, (aka Mr. Fluffy Pants) has a naughty habit of getting up on this chair in our sunroom when we leave.  Since it's easier to clean the chair off before sitting in it than it is to train the old dog not to do that, we picked up a spiffy new handvac at Target.  The Pet Perfect from Sharkwon out, basically because it has the only handvac with a pet hair brush attachment.  Oh, and it's a pretty green color.

So, without further adieu, our review:

Firstly, the battery needs a good long charge, so no instant gratification here.  But, once it's charged, it's got good suction, paired up with a nice rotating brush head to whisk up the pet hair. We've been using it for about 2 months (during peak shedding season) and it's worked remarkably well on the furniture and car upholstery.  To give you an idea of what our pet fur workload is: we use a full sized shop vac to clean our floors.  So we're pretty rough on vacums. 

Here's a side by side of where I've vacumed (left) and what's been left to do (right, shaggy white side).

 

The charge is not great, (if you watch the video, you can hear it was dying after a few days of being off the charger) but it works remarkably well when it's fully charged.  I have absolutely no complaints about it's ability to pull up hair and dust (including spilled coffee grounds, dust, dirt, etc.) and it seems reasonable that a super light weight handvac has a smallish battery. I'd rather have the keep the unit charged than lug a 20 Lb. appliance around.

Video, so you can see I didn't have to scrub the upholstery with the nozzle.  It comes off just as easily as you'd want.

$48 or so from various sellers on Amazon.

 

Martha Stewart Pets: Kitty Dual Feeder

How stoked are we to be testing out a new cat product from the Martha Stewart Pets line? Super stoked! Based on past product tests, the quality and designs always live up to the domestic guru's reputation.

The Dual Cat feeder (left) and mat is actually quite cute, but they're functional too.  The bowls are non-skid melamine with separate stainless-steel bowl inserts, making cleanup easy. They've got freshness lids, convenient hand grips, and a mat to catch any spills or dropped food.  Perfect for the messy kitty.

Embracer Alex's kitten, Miss Kitty, is quite the messy eater.  She strews food everywhere as she eats, so he's the perfect test candidate for this. We'll keep you posted as she puts it to the messy test.  Who knows?  Maybe Martha Stewart bowls even make the food taste better?

You can partake in the exciting new release too! To enter to win a feeder and mat, head to our Facebook, and upload a photo of your feline, with a caption about your cat's favorite food.  Does she come running for turkey?  Chicken soup? Go nuts when you broil fish?  Tell us and you'll be entered to win.

Rules:

Cat photos, with captions about food, submitted during the month of September will be considered for entry. Winner will be contacted by Embrace for prize fulfillment.  Embrace staff and families not eligible to win.  Must not have won within last 90 days.

$7 for $15 at Pugs to Persians

I love heartsy, and I love it even more when it's for my pets!  Today's bargain: $7 gets you $15 at Pugs to Persians, good toward their adorable collars, harnesses, pet mats and more. Need a new cat harness? Got it.  Need a super cute bandanna for fall? Got that too.  What are you waiting for?  Only 40 vouchers left.