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16 Aug 16

SuperZoo Top 15 picks! ...

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Walking the SuperZoo trade show floor in Las Vegas earlier this month, I am always looking for new, innovative, different, unique and useful pet products.  Products that may wow me or that I have yet to see in our huge industry.   While the trade show floor had 1,100 booths and I know I was clocking at least 5 or 6 miles a day walking around, in addition to a ton of meetings, I managed to see some very cool products.

For newbies to the trade show world (i.e. buyers/retailers) I always suggest to go to the new product section first – this alone is a big section – but where you will quickly be able to see new products and notate what booth they are at.

Some of my favorite and interesting finds are below:

Dog Products:

If you are in the market for a pet carrier Bark n Bag has you covered.  With many different styles and functions, there is something to choose from for everyone’s taste. A t SuperZoo they debuted their new Carrier the Noir Herringbone Classic. The Noir Herringbone Classics boasts the classic styling with smart detail in lightweight herringbone nylon is your pup’s home away from home.  The comfortable roomy interior makes it the perfect dog or cat travel companion.  Comes in the following sizes   Medium: 18″W x 10″H x 10″D. For pets up to 16″L x 9″H. Maximum weight: 16lbs: and Large: 20″W x 11″H x 11″D. For pets up to 18″L x 10″H. Maximum weight: 22lbs. There are some additional cool new features to this carrier as well, and they include: Fur Friendly mesh on 3 sides for ventilation; padded double tubular handle; adjustable shoulder strap; NEW! Adjustable gadget straps to secure in car with seat belt; machine washable quilted pad; two easy access zippered pockets; folds flat for storage and a sturdy patented construction. Visit their website to see more, and if you’re a retailer you should have these in your store!

If you are a pet parent who likes to Chews Happiness, then you will love the new additions to the Chews Happiness line of luxorious pet products. (Couldn’t resist their play on words!). At SuperZoo Chews Happiness launched their new line of handcrafted Leashes and Collars. The environmentally conscious line is handwoven from yak down that’s luxuriously soft, silky, and extremely strong. Yak down is naturally shed and is an extremely robust natural fiber. It is also much kinder to the planet than cashmere, which causes land degradation due to overgrazing of cashmere goats. Chews Happiness’ Founder and CEO explained that “we were so incredibly amazed regarding how soft and strong this incredible fiber is that we had to work with our Bhutanese artisans to fabricate these WOW leashes and collars!

In addition to the collars and leashes, Chews Happiness recently launched Happiness Hugs, stunning, environmentally conscious fashion from yak down that’s luxuriously soft, silky, and warmer than alpaca and cashmere.  These one-of-a-kind garments are consciously handcrafted by women artisans from Bhutan to Boulder, Colorado and celebrate the connection between dogs and their people. The cruelty-free, fairly-traded apparel for dogs and their moms are uniquely designed to spread Happiness vibes from Bhutan, the Land of Happiness. Each features traditional and spiritually meaningful Bhutanese motifs and represent ideals such as long life, stability, wisdom and the interconnectedness of all beings.

Highlighting the seafood menu are Pet Botanics’ Simply Salmon Strips and Simply Salmon Cutlets by Cardinal Pet Care debuted at SuperZoo. Made from 99% fresh Atlantic salmon from the coldest Norwegian waters, these treats are Organic and Non-GMO. They contain no anti-biotics, hormones or artificial flavor or color, have delectable flavor and aromas that are irresistible to canines. The salmon is flash frozen and shipped to Florida, then perfectly smoked by the traditional Scottish method to maintain taste, color, and nutritional value. Along with the tantalizing taste of real salmon, dogs will benefit from the Omega 3 anti-oxidants salmon is so famous for.

The Bog Tagok so this literally stopped me in my tracks.  Why?  Something I would have never thought of for a product, it has really nice and bright marketing materials and because I can totally relate!  So what is The Bog Tag?  Bog actually stands for Boy Or Girl – it’s a gender identification tag for your pets, now I will not say what I know you are all thinking!  But, my dog Cody who is a boy, neutered and happens to have a very pretty face, he gets often mistaken for a girly girl dog!  It doesn’t bother me when people say, “Oh she’s so pretty…” then look under and say, “Oops I mean he!”  I always respond with, “it’s ok, he has a pretty face!”  The Bog Tag’s tag line is, ‘Don’t Look Under Me.”  This product is creative, funny, cute and new for the pet industry.  Can you relate to this?

This is definitely a product that will make you think, the ZugoPet new dog car harness called the Rocketeer, which according to the owner of the company will keep your small dogs safer than any pet car harness out there.  I have to say I had my doubts of the product, because of the way the dog is harnessed in, I can see dogs wriggling their way out of this or just not being comfortable while in the car.  But they have had it crash tested, and watching that video was very impressive.  Right now the 25lbs sized dog, and according to the veteriniarn the company consulted, the dog should not be in the car harness more than 45 minutes.  I think this harness will of course depend on your own dog.  Will he stay in the harness?  Or fight you tooth and nail not to be in it.  You have to know your dog, and should never force your dog.  I would say do very short time periods of the dog being in this harness to get them used to it, short like a minute or two at the time and reward your dog tremendously while in there.  I do give them a lot of credit for wanting our dogs to be safe in the car while traveling, it’s so important.   If any of my small dog friends have used this or are trying it out, I would love to know what your thoughts are.

Dog Product trends I noticed while there were Pop-up tents and other products to keep your dog shaded from the sun while out camping or watching games with your pup:

I thought Shady Paws was pretty cute, especially for small to medium sized dogs.  Could work is you have a pup with you at the beach, and don’t have an umbrella, or just for you backyard while hanging out with your pup.  I could also see cats seriously taking over this product! Meow!

The Cool Air Cot by Gen7Pets is a great idea, could even be used for dogs in animal shelters too.  The one they had there didn’t seem like it would hold large dogs, again small to medium. They do have a large size that goes up to 36″ but I can’t see really big dogs on that.  I like this too for the beach if you are with your dog, for them to sit on the hot sand, this will get them up of the ground a bit.

Popup tent and accessories by P.L.A.Y. was just too darn cute, the display itself made me want one.  Really cute for camping trips for your dog too cool off, and even has a bed on the inside.  Of course if your taking your pup with you camping he should be safe and secure with you in your tent or camper at night!  This would be great for dogs that like to be in their own ‘den’ even in your house too.

Cat Products:

Remember Tetris? Now you can assemble Katris lynks for your cat!  KATRIS Lynks are modular, so they can be placed and rearranged in many different combinations and builds – either on their own, or in combination with other KATRIS blocks, which increases options for play and fun for cats and their owners (or vice versa). KATRIS Lynks’ superior material and craftsmanship allows them to last longer than other cat scratchers, thereby eliminating pet owners’ needs to purchase a multitude of replacement pads. KATRIS Lynks come equipped with real Teak wood covers on their sides, making them look stylish in homes, as well as protecting the pads from wear and tear.

The Catit Senses Activity Center by RC Hagen is a serious cat activity center, I can definitely see this keeping indoor cats quite busy.  Reminds me of a habit trail, but it has interactive center with a scratching post, ball to go through the tunnels, treat tree and dispenser and area for your cat to dig for food.

The Dharma wool Monster Cat Cave stands out for just how funny and cute it is.  This would be perfect for cats that like to hide under furniture and take a cat nap, and I could see small dogs loving this as well.  Made from 100% wool, and bright colors that are made from safe and eco friendly dyes – this definitely stood out.

Bird:

These Wool bird nests also stood out to me, while I was there admiring these unique and really adorable new products, a few pet retailers who specifically sell bird products, I asked, “Will pet birds really go into these?” the answer was an absolutely! Sadly, I did not get the product company name – but will look for it and edit this post.

Fish

Having a salt water fish tank just got easier with the Evo Saltwater Fish kit.  It’s the size of a regular fish tank, and has a very bright 11000K LED that provides optimal conditions for healthy coral growth color and conditioning.  It also has a powerful 3-stage filtration with oversized media delivers fantastic water quality.

Of course the other big trend that a lot of companies are either getting into or adding to their line are Cannibis treats and products for dogs or cats. Which is CBD oil derived from the marijuana plant, but…the jury is still out on this for me, would like to see in a few years after studies have been done and how affective/safe they are.  I have read studies and have seen new reports how the products are effective for humans with many ailments, and know CBD has helped in many cases.

Now we head to the P3 Pet Trade Show in Chicago next week and I am will be curious to see if there are any stand out pet products there as well!  Were you at SuperZoo, what was your favorite new find?




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