A DIY Puppy Pool Party for Hunter's First Birthday

This little cutie turned 1! I don’t talk about our dog a lot, mostly because once I start I can’t stop (so be prepared for a longgg post), but he has been a Godsend since the day we got him. He’s the fluffy little light in my life that’s helped me through migraines, seasonal affective symptoms, and motivates me to create a healthier home. My parents joke that I treat him like a real child, so it’s really no surprise we went all out for his first birthday.

Deciding on a theme was the easy part. Growing up in Florida with a summer birthday always means one thing- POOL PARTY! After getting a kiddie pool, I made a 100% dog friendly cake, homemade treats, goodie bags, & bananas in preparation for his best friends coming over. They had the greatest time and you can learn how to DIY your own puppy pool party!

DIY No Sew Dog Bandanas

Part of the treat bags were these no sew bandanas. I tried using the fabric glue from the no sew lumbar pillow, but the cotton was so thin you could see the glue. I also consider using pinking shears for a quick, non-fraying option like they use for groomers’s bandana but knew that Hunter & his friends play rough. All 3 bonding tape method bandanas held up perfectly for the party & subsequent dog park visits!

You’ll Need
thin cotton fabric
fusible bonding tape
iron

Start your bandana measurements with the longest side equaling the diameter of your dog’s neck + 4-6″ for tying. From the middle of that line, mark a point as far down as you’d want the bandana tip to be. Connect this dot to the ends of the long side and cut.
(Or if you want to skip all that, I made Hunter + Co’s bandanas 32″ (long side) x 22″ (short sides))
Fold over & iron the edges of the triangle to form a hem. Trim the corners to 45º for a clean finish. Tuck the bonding tape under the hem.
Iron according to the bonding tape instructions. For the one I used, I found that if you drench a thin piece of fabric and use a steam setting as you iron, the tape works perfectly.

Wheat-Free Peanut Butter Puppy Cake & Dog Safe Cake Decorations

Before any of the party planning got started, all I wanted was a simple cake for Hunter. I looked up dog bakeries in town, researched a bunch of recipes, and came across Puppy Cake. If you saw the all natural dog toy DIY, you know I’m a bit overzealous when it comes to giving Hunter the best. I was blown away by Puppy Cake’s commitment to using human grade, simple, natural ingredients, so I wanted to give their cake mix & ice cream a try. I was planning on making their carob chip cookies as well, but Hunter got into the mix before I had a chance. Judging by his absolute zero remorse, he loved the cookie mix.

After nailing down the cake, I started researching dog friendly cake decorations and got… nothing. I figured I could make something happen out of this evidenced based list of dog safe foods. At this point I really did start wondering if I was crazy, but these would make great sugar alternatives! And the dogs went nuts for the pineapple flowers, so really, it was worth it ;).

Quick disclaimer- this post is not sponsored. I reached out to Puppy Cake because I thought their products were the absolute best and they gifted Hunter some treats 🙂 All opinions are my own, even when they sound fanatic. Puppy Cake Tip: They have their best sellers available on Amazon (any products linked here are via Amazon) for slightly more but they end up being cheaper than their site after shipping. That is unless you order $25+, then definitely order through their site! Just let ’em know ctrl + curate sent you ;).

Pineapple Flowers & Sweet Potato Sprinkles

1 sweet potato
1 pineapple
muffin tin
Silpats

Baking times can be unpredictable when using an oven instead of a proper dehydrator. The noted times worked well with our oven, but do check the flowers & sprinkles every so often, especially towards the end.

Also, a mandoline would be incredibly useful for the pineapple flowers. The pineapple slices need to be as thin as possible or they just won’t dry out and hold their shape. I highly recommend using Siplats instead of parchment paper too. For whatever reason, the test pineapples just seemed to get soggy on parchment paper and didn’t hold their vibrant yellow color.

Preheat oven to lowest temperature or 180º.
Peel & slice sweet potato into thick wedges, sort of like carrot sticks. Grate the wedges and spread out in a thin layer on a Silpat. Pop in the oven for ~3 hrs, giving the pan a good shake every once in awhile to prevent clumping.
For the pineapple flowers, slice off the top, bottom, & rinds of the pineapple. Use a small spoon to core out the seeds.
Cut the pineapple into thin thin thin slices. You should be able to see through them. If the slices are extra juicy, pat dry with paper towels.
Spread out the slices on a Silpat and toss in the oven for ~1.5 hrs, flipping every 30 minutes.
Immediately after baking, shape them in muffin tins and let cool.

Peanut Butter Puppy Cake

Puppy Cake mix*
6 in cake pan
pineapple flowers
sweet potato sprinkles

Bake cake according to package instructions and let cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan. Let cool another 30 minutes on a rack before frosting. You can add rice flour to thicken up the frosting if you find you’ve added too much water.
Dust the sweet potato sprinkles on top.
Layer up the pineapple flowers for stunning texture.

*I used 2 boxes for a layered cake & because 2 large & one very large dog would be sharing. 1 box is more than enough for one dog or you can make cupcakes for smaller dogs!

Goodie Bag & Treat Station

What kind of party would it be without treat bags?? We set up a little treat station with different kinds of homemade dog treats that guests could take as well as tennis balls that coordinated with their bandanas.

In addition to the cake & treats, the puppy pals got their first taste of doggie ice cream! This was probably the biggest hit. It being a summer outdoor party in Florida, I can see why.

This stuff is so freaking cool! It comes in a pint as a powder so you don’t have to worry about it melting in transit. You just add water, freeze, & it’s ready! We got Puppy Cake’s Maple Bacon flavor, but they have vanilla, pumpkin, peanut butter, & blueberry too. I tried doling out each dog their own portion, but as you can see, they always wanted the one the others had.