1. Getting Started
How do I start?
2. Guests
Who to invite?
3. Location
Some great ideas for party themes
4. Food
It's all about the food
5. Activities
Keeping everyone entertained
6. Other Resources
Web sites to check out
Activities
Keeping everyone entertained: Part 5 of 6While the adult party guests may be content to simply sit around and chat, it's better if think ahead about structuring the party time for the canine guests and even small children who may be attending. Plan some fun party games, rent a couple of videos for the adults or children to watch.
Indoor party entertainment
If you're planning an indoor party, you're more limited in what you can do, depending on venue. Here are a couple of ideas:
- Bring big Kong toys filled with cheese or peanut butter, one for each guest.
- Have lots of training treats on hand and throw contests for best sit, stay, roll over, shake a paw...
- Pick up some rope toys so the dogs (and the humans too, if they like) can play tug of war!
- Have each doggie guest come in costume and have a mini-fashion show! You might want to pick up some small toys to use as prizes for best costume, most original, funniest, etc.
Outdoor party entertainment
If you're planning an outdoor event, you have a lot more room to move. A few ideas for games:
- Bring enough balls so there are at least one ball per doggy guest and play free-for-all fetch.
- Rent or buy agility equipment like a tunnel for the dogs to race through; make sure you have lots of training bits or other treats to offer them when they run through successfully!
- Bobbing for biscuits. Fill a small tub or child's pool with water, throw some biscuits in, he who gets them out fastest wins!
Regardless of your venue, remember to involve the children at the party! Kids have a lot of fun participating in the games and doling out treats to the winners.
Photography
Don't forget to ensure you have a way of capturing the day on film! This will be a memory you'll want to look back on and laugh about later. When deciding on photography, you have a few different options.
The truly pampered pooch might have a professional photographer stop by for a while to take photos of the event, and perhaps even portraits of each of the canine guests! This would make a lovely gift for doggie guests and their owners.
Get everyone in on the act! If you're looking for a less expensive alternative, pick up enough one-time-use cameras so that each guest can have his or her own, and let your guests document the day themselves! You'll be sure to end up with a lot of great memories.
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