I’m going to tell you a few fun places to visit with your shih tzu. Creativity is life. We must play. And now we want to bring our shih tzus to more and more places and fully integrate them into our life. Not just leave them at home all day.
I’ve been hosting Shih Tzu Socials since 2015. Anywhere from meeting at the Park, brunches, in gardens, a pumpkin patch, or a members big backyard. And one thing is for sure shih tzus don’t like the heat or dirty dog parks. And the moms don’t either.
(The exception being Levy Park. It has an area for small dogs, and there is no mud. so its a clean dog park.)
Our mission is to find cool things to do that are not the usual dirty dog park and dog-friendly hot patio. We are fancy pups. We like air-conditioning and strollers.
First things first, make sure your phone is fully charged or you have a backup charger. That helps me feel better, knowing that I will be able to share the photos with our shih tzu playgroup members and not run out of juice.
Creative Shih Tzu Playdates:
The Mad Potter Social
The Mad Potter Social
Paint pottery with your fluffy BFF and your dog-loving humans. Bring a bottle of vino and play some music. Get their paw print in on the design of your pottery. I think this is an all time fave for me and others in the group. Especially now in Summer. Its hot hot hot. We will be there on July 15. So if you are interested, messaged me on Instagram from @loveakasha‘s account.
If you’re not in Houston, look around your city and see what crafty things there are to do with your shih tzu. Whether it’s painting pottery, canvas, or setting up a fun painting sesh with a few of your friends. If you do this, it may help to ask a friend to help with the onsite logistics.
Graffiti Walls + Brunch Social
Graffiti Walls + Brunch Social
We ate brunch at Empire Cafe, and then walked down Westheimer to find all the colorful walls to snap. We left this social feeling inspired and ready for more. The combo of being outside, taking photos, and seeing all this beautiful art filled us up. As soon as the weather cools off a little bit, this one is back on! Stay tuned for a featured outing this fall.
I’m sure your city has walls around that you can visit. Make it a date. Drive around and take pics in front of them and post them on your Instagram. This is really fun with a group. You can help each other get all the kinds of creative shots. Got to love those jump shots.
Get Techy Social
Get Techy Social
We invited our Instagram friends to our social. They did not have to have shih tzus. It was a fun community and we got people on IG who were not on Instagram yet. The purpose here is to meet new people, reconnect with the regulars, and learn a new skill. We want everyone to share their furbaby with the world. Instagram can help you when it comes to your dogs memories and being able to share that with your extended family and friends. Plus it’s so easy to print them out now.
If you are on Instagram and haven’t already set up a service like Chatbooks to print your pics, nows the time. I have it set up to automattically print my IG photos and put them in a book. Every 60 photos they will print a book. Now they are printed and not stuck in the digital world. I love looking through them and showing them to friends.
Dog Master Trainer Social
Dog Master Trainer Social
In collaboration with Kriser’s and Kirk Cushing, we had a social that focused on training our lil shih tzus. It was such a great turnout, and everyone was able to ask specific Q’s regarding their pup and get some resolution on the spot.
Check your local dog boutiques, they usually have cool stuff going on. Anything from training, to nutritional food workshops, to yappy hours. If you want to do something more unique, call your favorite shop and ask them if they would be interested. More than likely they will say yes. They are always looking for fun days to plan and bring more people into their shop.
Halloween Pumpkin Patch Social
Halloween Pumpkin Patch Social
Shih tzus runnning around in costumes posing by giant pumpkins. And some hopping in the wagon and posing with hay and giant pumpkins. This one was really cute. We brought our cameras and started the phootshoot. They had props there like wagons with hay. Made our pics that much cuter. Thanks to St Lukes United Methodist Church for their beautiful pumpkin patch!
During the holidays, these patches pop up all over town. The key is to get there while there are still lots and lots of pumpkins. We went a little late in the month and luckily we were still able to get a good shot even with less pumpkins. By the time we left, there were not many left!
Shih Tzu Birthday Party
Dog Birthday Parties
There have been two parties and they came with cake that their moms made special so all the pups could eat. Decorations. Presents. Photos. We love being there for a doggies birthday. Akasha’s is Aug 2, so I’m starting to think about what we would like to do. There are so many other kinds of socials we have done, and I have a couple of tzupertastic ones I’m planning for Aug and Sept.
To plan a good party, scout a few restaurants. A few things to keep in mind is a large dog-friendly patio. Are there walls picture worthy? Nice decor? For example, if you want to take pics with a lot of greenery around, or maybe in a garden, be mindful of that when you are scouting for a place. Will they let you bring some party decor? One more thing, have it early in the day or late in the afternoon, early evening. You don’t want harsh lighting while trying to take birthday photos.
If you have any ideas you’d like to share, please do in the comments.
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