Holiday in Seminole Heights!

Please stop by Health Mutt for holiday in Seminole Heights!
Its a night of giving back on December 10th in Seminole Heights. As you visit each participating independent retailer, a proceed of your purchases will go to Francis House.

Francis House is a non-profit, day respite center designed to respond with compassion and justice to the spiritual, emotional, educational, and physical well-being of individuals and families infected, affected and at risk for HIV/AIDS.

Come out and join us on this special night from 6 until 9pm. There will be light refreshments and raffle prizes at each shop.
Bring your friends, bring your family, and shop local for the holidays!

Health Mutt will be donating a pet related gift basket (food, treats, human t-shirts, dog bowl, calendar and MORE) & a Publix gift basket
Raffle tickets are $1 each or $10 for an arm's length (about 15 tickets)

See you there!

Dogma calendars for sale!

The calendar features adopted Dogma dogs of all shapes and sizes and their amazing stories. Calendars are $16 each and ALL proceeds go to Dogma Pet Rescue for the care of our adoptable animals. Dogma depends solely on community donations to feed and care for our dogs and each calendar sold helps to save a life!
Pick one up at our shop, 6116 N. Central Ave, Tampa FL 33604

Snuggles 4 Paws

Health Mutt is a drop off locations for Snuggles 4 Paws, so bring any warm items you have, let's keep the doggies WARM this winter!!

Grand opening is TOMORROW!!!!

Please come join us for the grand opening! Its from 10-3 and we will have a lot goin on! Vendor booths, Dogma adoptable dogs, free doggie MASSAGE from 12-1:30, food, fun and LOTS of GIVEAWAYS!
Also, the church across the street is having an outdoor festival at the same time! It's going to be so fun, bring you pups along with you!

Your dog will drool over #2: ANTLERS!

Antlers are a popular chew because they are naturally shed, don't stink, aren't messy, don't splinter into tiny pieces, last forever, and most of all, dogs LOVE them! We have them in all different sizes, come take a peek!

The brand we brought in is Antlerz, and here is what they have to say:

Antlerz are a totally new, 100% natural, mineral rich, long lasting dog chew. The new chew is made from a natural material that is rich in minerals, does not splinter and comes from a completely renewable source: Deer Antlers! Wild deer shed their antlers once a year as part of a natural process, after which the deer re-grow another set. These shed antlers are gathered by ranch workers and transported to QT Dog's manufacturing facility. The antlers are cut to the appropriate size, cleaned, and packaged to produce dog chews. ANTLERZ™ hold up substantially longer than most traditional chews made from plastic, bone, or compacted starch. A minerals analysis of these dog chews show high concentrations of calcium and phosphorus, with trace amounts iron, zinc, and sodium. Unlike processed livestock bones ANTLERZ™ don't chip or splinter when they are being used by even the most aggressive chewing dogs. A dog's chewing action grinds ANTLERZ™ down slowly. Deer antlers are a 100% natural, mineral rich dog chew that contains no plastics, no petrochemicals, no empty starches or artificial flavors.

*Please be careful when buying Deer Antlers for dogs on the internet, there are now many companies selling products that are so-called "fresh" Antlers for dogs which are not cleaned or sterilized properly. These products will not last nearly as long as the original Antlerz products and are prone to many problems including bacterial issues! We only recommend the best for your pups! ***

THINGS YOUR DOG WILL DROOL OVER SERIES

We have so much new product coming in, I am starting a series to highlight certain products and why I think they're awesome (and why your dog or cat will, too!)



Your dog will drool over #1: Zoo Rest beds from West Paw Design!
Made in Montana, these beds are one machine washable piece, great for travel yet stylish for your home! Come check them out at our shop!
www.westpawdesign.com

Adopt-a-less-Adoptable Week!

Six Steps to Prep a “Pet Emergency” Kit Today, for Peace of Mind Tomorrow!

Six Steps to Prep a “Pet Emergency” Kit Today, for Peace of Mind Tomorrow!

This is an article from our friends at Earthbath...they make the shampoo and spritz for our dog wash. Biodegradable, flea treatment compatible and all natural!

Picture update

This is where the dog wash will be, the floor has a nice anti-slip grip to it. We will also be adding a white fence around the dog wash. Tomorrow the plumbers come to get it all set up!

This is my aunt, Joyce, who came down from Georgia to help us out! 

This is where the photo studio and consultation room will be. There will be a wall here, and a little vintage window my mother, Brenda found. That way you can peek in during the shoot!


Thats it for now! 

Small updates

Good morning! Kendra here, just wanted to jot down a few updates- I talked to the department of revenue about my DR-1 form and, apparently its on its way....this paperwork is important because when I get the certification back, they give me 2 other forms that I need to complete so I can finally get some suppliers. I am been waiting 18 days now for the DR-1 to get back to me, so I am feeling a bit impatient!!

The dog tubs are getting shipped out Saturday...they are just the fiberglass shells and then I have to create the base. The fun thing about this is I can make them look unique and really pretty!

Today, I am mopping and painting the floors. We are only going to paint the dog wash and the photography studio, instead of the entire floor.

The walls are out that need out, framing starts next week, and then the drywall gets hung! Also, my new camera and some other photo equipment is on its way.

The next big decision I have to be making is what point of sale software I want to use. It's between lightspeed and checkout, because its for an iMac.
if anyone has suggestions, let me know!

We got published!

The people from Seminole Heights' Patch were kind enough to do an article about Health Mutt!
Click here to read!

Max, who was mentioned in the article

Shedding season!

This is my sister, Lauren's, cat named Chloe. She likes coconut oil to help control shedding. She gets it in her bowl, but some cats and dogs like to lick it right off your finger!

A healthy diet, omega supplements, and brushing often are some tips outlined in the article below to help control shedding


Tips to control shedding- click here!

Demolition project has commenced!

First, I wanted to show you guys, this is the outside of the building. I think it's so cute, and it's over 100 years old!

I know its kind of hard to tell with the furniture and stuff in the way (that stuff won't be in the store, it isn't ours..it's just there..)

This is another view of what it looks like so far...that front wall you see will get taken down on Monday and a wall will go up right in front of where I am standing in the picture. It is going to be my photo studio and office space. This picture is taken from the back right of the store.

This is where there used to be big walls and red carpet (you can kind of see the carpet in the earlier picture). This is where the dog wash will be. We took down the walls to open up the space, and are replacing it with a cute fence. There is a skylight above the dog wash area, and with the walls down, it shines through really beautifully.

This door is from a big wall in the front of the store that will be taken down (it really divides the place). But I love this door, so we are still going to use it!

That's it for now, lots of other big changes coming soon!

Ever wonder what the difference is?

Natural, organic and holistic differences

This article explains why it's important not just to look for the word "natural" but to make sure the food is holistic! 

Myths of high protein

Having an older pet myself, my family dog, Max (a 16 year old Sheltie), I have had to look into the right diet for him as he ages. I was always told that high protein would be too difficult for his kidneys. Turns out, new studies show that that's not true!
Now Max is on a raw food, which is even easier to digest than the processed dry food. He's feeling so much better! And no low-protein diet! More about raw to come...



Here's an article the good people from Orijen posted on their site. Orijen has an article online (more like a database!) called the white pages. This is where I found the facts about high protein. Article below.
Myths of High Protein

Thinking of decorating ideas...and benefits of lemongrass

so, it's time for me to start thinking about decorating. I want to use a lot of repurposed material to make some really fun displays. My friend is giving me an old door, and I am going to try to add some shelving onto it. I also want to gather a whole bunch of mason jars and make a chandelier out of them...I found a site that gives a tutorial on how to make one, and I also found a site about how to tint the colors of the mason jars. I think it'll be a fun project!
I need to be thinking about fun props for dogs and cats in the photo studio...I want to make (with the help of my mom) a chair out of a suitcase! I have seen something similar for dog and cat beds, which would also be really fun to make.

On a side-note, I went to a folklore herbalist class yesterday, and found out some pretty fun stuff! The topic of the class was veterinary herbalism, and I found out that lemongrass helps with urinary tract support and digestion in animals, and you can put it right into their water! Also, this is one of those plants that grows really easily in Florida and can get really big!
Dogs will choose to eat the lemongrass if they need it- if you've ever had a dog eating grass, perhaps this is why.

Here is an article on why dogs occasionally nosh on grass:
why do dogs eat grass?

-Kendra

yay! the first time my names been next to the business!

Aurora orange, herbal garden and morning breeze....

sounds pretty, right? Those are the paint colors I just got samples of for the new space!!! 6116 N. Central avenue is officially off the market! Also got a chandelier today to put in the dog wash area. Can't wait for it to all start coming together!

Updates

I have found a space! I have found a space!!
After a lot of looking around, I have decided that Health Mutt will be located at 6116 N. Central Ave!
It is a big space with enough room for a self-service dog wash, photography studio, and for the actual shop. It is in the same plaza as Velo Champ, a boutique bicycle shop. It is a few blocks from Starbucks and in a cozy neighborhood area.
We begin construction around August 1, we need to take down a lot of walls to let the nice natural light shine through. We also need to do some plumbing and build a couple of walls also.
I am also in the works of finally getting a logo, this is something I am really looking forward to. Health Mutt will really come to life once there's a logo!
More updates soon..

Updates

So, I've been going to free business seminars in Tampa to help me figure out what all I will need to start up my own business. There is so much that goes into it! I need to get a trademark for my store name, decide what type of business I would need (I decided on LLC), find a space, start thinking about marketing and branding, building a website, and get money somehow to start it all up!
I know that I want Health Mutt to be in Seminole heights, it's where I live and there is a real need for some healthy pet food and dog wash services in the area! So many people have happy, well loved rescued cats and dogs in the area. The particular space I have been looking at is on Central and Hanna, a few blocks from the Starbucks and in the same plaza as Velo Champ and New Way Cafe. This is a historic building that will need a lot of love, but I really think it would work. Since I first saw the space, I just have a feeling like that's it. It even has a cute window front so people could look and see the dogs getting washed! Or maybe see some of our fresh baked healthy treats on display!

The history

After graduating college last fall with a degree in fine art, it was time to find a job. A "real" job...I had already been working at Groovy Cats & Dogs, a holistic pet food store, for about 3 years at the time, but was only getting part time shifts. It was perfect while I was in school, but now I'm not. I started looking into internships at the Dali museum, contemporary art museum, basically anywhere that I would be able to use my degree. I knew from working at Groovy I liked event planning, management, organizing, as well as being involved in the community. Jobs I was finding that worked with my art degree just didnt seem to utilize all of the things that make me happy.
So, I've decided I am going to put together the things that make me happy and make it into an actual career by starting up Health Mutt!
It is exciting, scary and at times, tedious so far. There's a lot that comes with owning and creating a business!