Copying KayaTheShepherd's Instagram

Hey everyone! I had originally planned to do this as a video, with shots showing Diego and I actually trying to get each photo. Then, right before I went to Fiji I emptied all my SD cards thinking that I had already imported all my videos onto my computer. I hadn't. That means, that instead of video you just get the photos side by side. I hope you laugh as much as I did, and please if you try and recreate these as well, tag both KayaTheShepherd and I.

This attempt was hard! Mainly because I couldn't get Diego's teeth to stick out while in this upside down position. We tried a few times to dry off Diego's teeth to get them to stick, but by the time I had my camera positioned, he had already licked them clear. I could have probably achieved a similar look with Chico in his natural sleeping position, but I couldn't get him to leave his king-sized bed. 

This one was a mess! I thought we would easily be able to do this one with my Fitbit. Ollie is forever rolling on his back whenever you go to pat him so I had always planned to use him for this photo. Unfortunately I learnt that he only does it when close to you, so whenever I moved away to take the photo he would scramble in an attempt to follow me. I did manage to get Diego to do a pretty similar pose, but he wasn't wearing the watch! Please enjoy the following photos where you can see a visible attempt, but no clear winner. P.S there were heaps more of these fail photos, we tried for quite a bit of time to get this shot.

The signature water scenes! I posted Diego's recreation of this when I first had the idea to copy Kaya's Instagram pictures and everyone correctly guessed Kaya right away. I hope that means I done a good recreation. The trouble with these photos is that I only had access to a river, unlike the lake that Kaya had, so therefore I have a bit more background in mine. Otherwise, I think these two came out pretty well and you can see my attempt at trying to get the best angle possible. 

My favourite recreation by far! I absolutely adore this one, and although there are small changes I would love to make to get it perfect, I think we done quite well! My Pikachu toy has his face slightly on the side, instead of the front so had to angle Diego and the toy in a way that it made it look front on. I also spent a long time trying to tire Diego out so that he started panting. The first set of photos I took of him were of his stern face and it didn't quite give the same effect.

Lastly, another Ollie recreation! I tried to train Diego to lay his head down so that we could get this photo, because in all staged photos of Diego laying down he will still have a raised head. I managed to get him to learn the trick of lowering his head, but he would not look happy doing it. When I went up to my sisters, she said that Ollie always lays like that so we decided to use him. Like the previous photos, him doing it always, and him doing it on camera were two different things. We did have him placed on wood like Kaya, but he didn't want to rest his chin at all on the wood. We transferred him to the grass but by this time he was way too excitable and wouldn't participate as well as would have been liked. The end photo is pretty cute though. 

What were your thoughts? Did you have a favourite? I would love to know! I also want to do a few more of these and put in a bit more effort to get the perfect shot, so if you have any accounts you would like us to copy, let me know!

Make sure you follow Kaya the Shepherd on Instagram! Her stuff is absolutely gorgeous!

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Interview with Smack Bang Store

If you don't live in Wellington, or live under a rock within Wellington you may not know what Smack Bang is! This store has recently opened up within Wellington City, Tory Street to be exact and it is shaking up the way you view a pet store. Amelia has made the perfect store which is a mix of amazing, top quality pet products and beautiful homewares that makes you wish you had a Pinterest worthy house. Every time I step inside the store I want to spend thousands and re-do my house into a marble, pink and white theme. If homewares aren't your style though, the pet products are wonderful, and are an eclectic mix of products from throughout the world and locally. I got the chance to speak with Amelia and ask her some of the business questions I have always wondered.

What made you originally start SmackBang?
Having always been interested in interior design I had been wanting to open a homewares store for a while. I’ve been in hospitality for the last 15 years and wasn’t enjoying it anymore. Through a series of events over the last few years (both good and bad) we were finally in a place where we could actually make it happen so we jumped at it! The pet side of things came second - I was complaining about how ugly everything was and why everything had to be covered in paw prints - your dog doesn’t care what it looks like, we’re the ones that have to stare at it! People put so much time, effort and money into making their homes look the way they want them to, why should the stuff for your pets be any different? You should be proud of your stuff, not hide things out of view! It was a lightbulb moment we both had at the same time and couldn’t figure out why no-one else was doing it.

Why did you chose to have a physical and online store instead of just an online store as is common currently?
Despite scaremongering that bricks-and-mortar retail is dead, I did a LOT of research and came to the conclusion that no, it’s not - retailers just need to adapt to being an omni-channel store. There’s two main reasons I decided on opening a physical location, 1. We provide an experience in-store that couldn’t be matched online. A lot of the products we stock haven’t been seen in New Zealand before and love seeing people’s faces light up when they enter the shop. We’ve placed an emphasis on design in the shop that wouldn’t be able to be portrayed as well if it was just online. Allowing (read: encouraging!) people to bring their doggos into the shop adds to that in-store experience. 2, Myself personally, I wouldn’t buy anything more than $150 online unless I had seen it for myself first. So much can differ to what you see online - colour, material, quality, size - and I wanted people to be able to see the products first hand. And for the same reason people take their kids shopping - you need to see if what you’re going to buy will actually fit your dog!
(Morgan popping in to say she is completely right and has made a beautiful store that makes you feel like you are having an experience by visiting it. It is one of the few stores where I could browse for hours and enjoy every second of it.)

How have you found the reaction to your store has been?
It varies widely from amazement and excitement, to people complaining about the prices/can’t believe people spend that on their pets, but mostly positive! Wellingtonians are a super supportive bunch and love getting behind a local business. The like-minded people far outweigh the negative ones.

What has been the hardest part of starting Smackbang?
Getting a business off the ground in New Zealand isn’t easy, and at times feels like the system is working against us. Patience and perseverance is key. I had a hard time convincing people that I was worth investing in, and without the backing of my partner it would never have happened. I’m very lucky!

If you could change one thing that you done at the beginning, what would you change?
That’s a tough one. Everything that’s happened up until this point has resulted in what we are, so there’s no one thing I would change as such. Little things like shelving could’ve been altered, a longer counter etc, but there’s nothing major that I can’t change anyway! Mistakes are all part of the process - without them I wouldn’t be learning anything!

What has been your greatest accomplishment with Smackbang?
Getting open! From starting the company to opening the doors was 9 months and at a few points didn’t feel like it was going to happen. We couldn’t even view the space for months as it was cordoned off while the Reading’s carpark was being demolished from the earthquake. Everything else rested with the bank - no loan, no business - and that was an extremely frustrating process.

Have you always worked, or wanted to work in the pet space?
This is my first stint at an animal-focused career (loving it!). I’ve always worked in customer service so a lot of those skills transfer very easily into retail. I wanted to set something up for myself where I could work going something I love - dogs and shopping! I’m in this for the long haul so having something I was passionate about was key - life’s too short to be doing something you don’t like!

What is your favourite thing about working in the pet space?
I get to pat dogs all day! We love listening to people talk about their pets and seeing the love they have for them - it restores a bit of faith in humanity!

Where do you see yourself and your business in the next five years?
Our long term plan for Smack Bang (all going well!) is to expand, first to Auckland then Christchurch. We’ve also been considering going down a path of creating our own items - collars and leads, beds, bowls etc. But it’s early days yet!

What are some of your favourite international and local brands?
Huts & Bay is a definite international fave. The teepees, cat diamonds and hoodies are beyond cute, and the quality and workmanship is insane. Can’t go past Mashbone for fave local brand. People love getting behind a local project, particularly when they’re sustainable and healthy!

What is your favourite product you stock currently?
So hard to pick just one! The Loyal Canine Co. No1 Pawmade has been a lifesaver this summer. Poor Wellington doggos aren’t quite used to this hot weather and the pavements have been doing a number on their toe beans! It’s an all natural ointment that helps to heal cracked/dry pads and forms a protective layer to help protect from future damage.

Do you own any pets? If so, tell us about them!
We’ve got two 1year old Shih Tzu x Maltese brothers, Gus and Finn! We had a little Maltese called Freddy, very sadly he got GME (basically dog meningitis) and lost the fight last New Years Eve at only 3 years old after 6 months of chemo and trips back and forth to Massey in Palmerston North. I’ve never cried so much in my life. Home just isn’t right without a dog and we saw these two pop up and fell in love straight away. They’ve got completely different personalities - Gus is very shy and timid around strangers, and Finn thinks he’s a Rottweiler but is a sucker for belly rubs, but they’re both equally great cuddlers! (Gus on the left in photo).

For any one wanting to start their own pet related business, give us your number one tip. 
Do your research! But most importantly you have to believe in the concept - conviction is everything! If you’ve done the research and still believe your concept will work then throw everything you have into it.

www.smackbang.co.nz

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My Fijian Adventures!

Hey! If you didn't know, recently I went on a seven day trip to Fiji, and I have to say it is by far my favourite holiday ever. Although, it was sad to have to leave Diego at home while I was off exploring a whole new country. I thought it would be cool to share a couple of my best stories from my adventure, and some photos of what I got up to! This is all about me though, Morgan, not Diego. So if you are only here for his beautiful face, you'll have to wait until next Thursday. Feel free to catch up on our YouTube channel while you wait hehe.

Barefoot Kuata Island
Instead of just sticking to the mainland for our stay, we decided to spend half the time on one of the many little islands. We chose Kuata for the fact that they offered shark diving and snorkelling, which is also one of the main reasons we chose Fiji out of all the Pacific Islands. I am the most happy with this part of our trip, and I don't think we could have chosen a better island to visit. The staff were incredible. I don't think I have ever felt so welcome, cared about and safe in my life. The marine biologist on the island is also from Upper Hutt just like me! I felt like I have now gained a new Island family and cannot wait to go back to see them again. Oh, don't let me forget to say that the Island itself is breathtaking, well cared for and offer a lot of different activities to do. We went from hiking, to snorkelling, to playing volley ball with the staff, to diving and finally dancing into the night with the rest of the tourists.

Snorkelling
Let me start by saying, this wasn't the guided snorkelling with sharks, this was just from the beach with the free equipment. This is a really long, and really funny story to explain and I don't think typing it will do it any justice. Instead, I shall just show you the photos and say, coral hurts. Also, sorry for the excess skin, but there was no way to avoid... I would like to mention, I didn't get caught on coral just the once either, it was twice. Over two days. I think it's safe to say that I should not snorkel ever again but I did get to see some cool fish, and baby sharks!

Diving with Sharks
This is as cool as the title suggests. I went open water diving with Bull Sharks. I don't have my diving certification, but this has really encouraged me to get it. We went diving to 12 metres where we hid behind a tiny wall made of coral. In front of us, sometimes within touching distance, were bull sharks that can range from 1 - 3 metres. They were getting fed fish carcasses by a bad-ass woman in front of the wall who was constantly surrounded with other fish, and little tawny nursing sharks. This was the most incredible experience, and definitely in the top five of things in my life. We were under water for around 40 minutes, but it hardly felt like ten. If you ever get the chance to do this, I 100% recommend you doing it, no matter the cost. I couldn't really afford to do it, but rearranged some funds to make sure I could do it after seeing some peoples footage. Speaking of footage, my goPro stopped working because of the pressure at that depth, so the only photos I have are complete luck.

Quad Biking/Zipling
Back on the mainland we stayed at the Hilton to really change up the dynamic of our trip. However, we made sure to keep some adventure into the trip by going on a quad bike adventure. Like snorkelling, I have never done quad biking so this was yet another first on this trip. I thought we would be quad biking in the middle of nowhere, where I could feel safe, but I was wrong. We started by quad biking through Nadi. Fijian traffic rules make no sense to me, and I am contemplating if they even have rules. It was crazy. Finally we got out of the city and went onto a dirt road to Sleeping Giant Mountain. Driving through Nadi and its outskirts really opened my eyes to how Fijian's live and how impoverished the country is. We are so lucky to live in New Zealand, especially in relation to pets. Our destination was Zip Lining in Sleeping Giant Mountain and this was incredible. Zip lining through bush over looking a beautiful river. It was lovely. And then we quaded home, back through Nadi traffic!

Those are some of the highlights of my trip, but I did film a bunch of little clips so will be compiling a video together showing the excitement on my face during all these moments and more. I am hoping to have that up in April :) I hope you enjoyed!

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Bully Sticks - Daisy's Doggy Deli

The pet food industry is a strange one where pets healthy nutrition doesn't seem to be the main objective for a lot of the global brands. Pushing out a product that looks and sounds good is enough, and the ingredients are pushed to the side. Actually, why not just add a dog selfie stick to your product and then even more people will want to purchase? Never mind that the nutritional value is next to naught, if not detrimental to your dogs health.

A big thing for the pet food industry is rawhide, although in recent years thanks to social media, it has decreased in sales. Rawhide is the by-product of the leather industry, and if you look at the way it has been created, it doesn't seem like much of a food item at all. If you want more information into it, www.porkchomps.com/dangers-of-rawhide has a great info-graphic on some of the reasons why rawhide is bad for dogs. The reason people like feeding their dogs rawhide is that it keeps them entertained for a short space of time. When you are dealing with dogs like Diego, or other high energy dogs, it makes a peaceful few moments if your dog is chewing on something quietly.

This is where Daisy's Doggy Deli comes in! They have started stocking Bully Sticks which are the rawhide free alternative to a longer wearing product. They are made from NZ Cattle and have been carefully dried with absolutely nothing else added. These are chemical free and have nothing nasty hidden so you can rest assured that you are giving your dog nothing but the best. You can get a 10 - 12 pack of regular bully sticks, or if you have a bigger dog or stronger chewer you can get the Bully Braid. This is three bully sticks braided together and then dried, making it tougher and last longer.

Are you aware of what a bully stick is? I found out and was deeply horrified that Suzanne from Daisy's Doggy Deli was having to touch those to braid them into shapes and dry them. Bully sticks are made from a cows pizzle, which in other words is their penis. Just a little bit of information for the next time you are handling a bully stick.

Diego loves these bully sticks and can devour one of the single ones within a minute. I have also found them the perfect size to stuff out of Kongs to make it harder for Diego to get the contents, or as a handle when frozen. With these treats though you need to make sure you are constantly watching them as they eat as it's easy for them to break off larger chunks.

All in all I think this is a great product, and something that I will be continuing to buy for Diego in the future. If you get some make sure to tag us and Daisy's Doggy Deli in your Instagram photos. Nearly forgot, for those great people that read to the end of my posts, if you use the code DAISY10 at checkout you will get 10% off :)

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