By Tamra Boooth, Keeeps
Dogs are great aren’t they? Through good times and bad, they’re always there to provide companionship, love and comfort. With a quarter of British households owning a dog, Brits are clearly a nation of dog lovers. Keeeps HQ is home to Milo, a cockapoo, and the office wouldn’t be the same without him.
But there are so many amazing things that our four-legged friends do, which makes them amazing. With a smell 40x better than ours, they can sniff out medical problems which can lead to diagnosis of various conditions (dogs are currently being trained to sniff out Covid) and can alert owners suffering with diabetes to a drop in blood sugar levels and that they need more medication.[1]
We celebrated International Dog Day this week, a whole day has been dedicated to man’s best friend so we can take the time to appreciate all they do for us. To celebrate, we’ve explored how to make dinnertime (or “Din Dins” as it is known in our household) your dog’s favourite time of day by treating them to a new ceramic food bowl.
5 reasons your pooch will love a pottery dog bowl:
1. It looks stylish
Pottery dog bowls come in all different shapes, sizes, colours and patterns to suit not only your dogs’ size, but also their personality and your home décor! Other products on the market like stainless steel provide many of the same properties as ceramic, in that it is sturdy and easy very easy to clean, with most being dishwasher friendly. However, there is no doubt that when it comes to the style department, ceramic is the hands-down winner.
Whether your home is Art Deco, Coastal or Bohemian in style, you’ll find a ceramic bowl to match the feel of your home. Milo loves his dog bowl made by Victoria Johnston and we have to say it reflects his colourful and cheeky personality!
2. It’s hardwearing
Did you know that dogs move their bowls around because it makes their dinner seem more enticing?! The motion of the bowl makes their food move, making it seem alive and makes dinnertime a more exciting and fulfilling time.[2] So, it’s important that your dog’s bowl is sturdy enough to take a bit of ‘ruff’ and tumble.
Of course, when dropped on the floor from a height, handmade pottery, like mass-produced is likely to break (it’s handmade, not invincible!) but is sturdy enough to withstand an energetic mealtime and heavy enough to stop the contents of the bowl ending up on the kitchen floor.
3. Provides a safe and healthy meal
Ceramic is widely regarded as one of the safest choices for dog bowls.[3] It is easy to clean, non-porous and a well-cared for bowl doesn’t attract bacteria. Whilst cheap, mass-produced pottery may be prone to chips, cracks and breakages, handmade ceramics are much better quality and tend to outlast their mass-produced counterparts. The quality of the clay and glazes used by studio potters, and the level of skill put into each product is mirrored in the condition of the product itself. For example, mass produced ceramics are usually fired quickly to keep costs down[4] which in turn effects the longevity of the item.
Durability is key to a safe and healthy meal for your dog. When a bowl becomes chipped, it should be replaced, as bacteria can gather in the unglazed surfaces and there is a risk of your pet ingesting debris from any further chipping.[5] Handmade pottery dog bowls are less likely to chip and provide a scrumptiously safe meal for your doggie.
4. Supports local business
All of Keeeps’ dog bowls are lovingly handcrafted by UK potters. By purchasing a Keeeps dog bowl, you’re helping support a local business as well as local craftmanship and skill, which in turn supports your local economy and high street.
The Keeeps paw-fect dog bowl is one of our ‘Just for Keeeps’ products. When curating the bowl with our lovely potter Victoria, we used Milo as our test-doggy, incorporating everything we know that Milo loves, and equally hates, as well as taking his eating habits into consideration when designing the bowl to make sure that your dog will love it too!
5. It’s eco-friendly!
Whilst ceramic is fired in a kiln (of which there are obvious eco-downsides) studio potters have adopted alternate eco-friendly practices when making their pottery to reduce the environmental impact.
Given we are still excavating handmade pottery from Egyptian times, we have evidence that pottery lasts a lifetime (or thousands of lifetimes!). Think of the crockery in your cupboards. How long have you had them and check out their quality? If they are handmade or made by a good quality ceramics brand, we’ll wager you’ve had them for years and there is little to no damage. In a generation where “buy once, buy well” is increasingly important, handmade pottery really fits the bill.
Treat your new, old, or soon-to-be best friend to a handmade ceramic food bowl this International Dog Day - It would be barking mad not to!
Sources:
[1] 10 amazing facts about dogs - PDSA
[2] Why Do Dogs Move Their Food Bowls - Wag! (wagwalking.com)
[3] Best Dog Bowls: 15 Bowls For Your Beloved Pet (countryliving.com)
[4] What Makes The Perfect Handmade Mug? How Big & Why Handmade? (thelittlepotcompany.co.uk)
[5] What Kind of Dog Bowl Is Best for My Dog? (thesprucepets.com)