We might not be able to tell you whether it’s going to be a heatwave this summer (pretty please), or if you’ll get that promotion you’re gunning for (fingers crossed!), but consider this your crystal ball into the year ahead with your pet. From matching designer threads for pet and owner, to ‘clean eating’ diets and anti-establishment gear for rebel hounds, you can count on these 5 pet trends making a big splash in 2018!
Unisex printed sweatshirt and matching dog sweater by Coucou Wear
- MATCHING
Your dog is your BFF, and what do BFF’s do? Match! This trend has been creeping up for a while now, with plenty of pooch parents going mad over matching PJ’s like this ones from Fabdog. But this year will see ‘twinning’ burst into the mainstream, taking the trend beyond novelty items, and into designer fashion collections – snap!
Our top pick for hip outerwear is new Turkish brand Coucou Wear. Launched by designer Palmet Bal, who has a degree in fine art and textile design, the range includes printed sweaters, hooded raincoats and super cool tee-shirts, all perfect for the modern fur family, and without a ‘fur mom’ slogan in sight.
2. SUPER LUXE
Since we launched StyleTails in 2012, we’ve been on a mission to show you how you can create a beautiful life with your pet, including designer fashion and homewares aplenty. But things are about to step up a notch in 2018, with designer goods for pets propelled into the the ‘super luxe’ category. Sure it’s totally conspicuous consumption but for some it’s simply a matter of taste.
Our top pick for fashion-forward hounds is Wolfpack NYC – inspired by 1950s New York fashion, the brand’s signature winter coats are made from European aniline leathers and bespoke Italian hardware, with exaggerated faux-fur trims and velour linings to protect against the weather. Starting from a mere USD$275, what more could a chic city hound wish for?
3. CLEAN EATING
Ever since Elle McPherson’s trainer James Duigan started the whole ‘clean and lean’ craze, the ‘clean eating’ phenomenon has shown no signs of slowing down. In 2018 this trend will extend to the entire household, including our pets.
As pet lovers, we want our furkids to live a long and healthy life, full of energy and vitality, and diet plays a huge role in this. The media has done a lot to expose the reality of what goes into commercial pet foods over the past few years, including lots of cheap ‘fillers’ like grain and ash, which bulk food out but offer no nutritional value to the animal, In fact, these can actually cause reactions like itchy skin, diarrhoea and vomiting.
In response, there has been an explosion in natural, grain free, organic and raw pet foods, and what started as a niche market has now gone mainstream with a number of supermarkets even overhauling their pet food ranges to cater to more educated pet parents, making it easier than ever to feed your pet high quality, biologically appropriate food – WIN! We’re also counting on more of you choosing to make your own pet food this year – and we’ve got some great recipes to get you started.
4. ANTI-ESTABLISHMENT
Call it punk, rebel spirit, or just a big middle finger up to the big (orange) man, 2018 is all about tearing up the rule book and moving to your own beat. If your pets are anything like ours, they probably already operate by their own rules, so why not give them the right gear to do it in? Topping our list of offbeat pet brands is Australian maker of the coolest damn battle jackets for pets – Pethaus. And if you haven’t already seen seen these cult dog tags by Growlees, as worn of sassy insta-kween Dolly Pawton, then you’ve missed the memo. With slogans like ‘CUTE BUT PSYCHO. BUT CUTE’, and ‘I’M NO BASIC BITCH’, they are feisty AF.
5. BRING THE OUTSIDE IN
As we understand more about the natural behaviours of our modern feline friends, so too we become more aware of the need to provide the right kind of indoor environment for our cats. Cats are increasingly the popular choice for urbanites, meaning more felines are living a life exclusively indoors. We predict 2018 is the year more of you with indoor cats will bring the ‘outside in’. Whether it’s creating a lush indoor cat garden, ‘catifying’ your house with a cat friendly makeover including ramps, wall-mounted perches, hammocks and built-in scratchers, or trying out some great indoor games for cats which mimic the hunting instincts they would use outside.
6. THE LUXE DOG HOLIDAY
Taking your dog on holiday is not a new phenomenon, but 2018 will see dog friendly travel evolve to a new standard. According to new research by American Express, Britons will will spend £227 million taking their dogs on holiday this year, with over a quarter (27%) surveyed planning to take their pupster on vacation.
While there are plenty of hotels that claim to be ‘dog friendly’, many of these could better be described at ‘dog tolerant’. We predict this year will see more hotels upping their dog friendly cred, and offering full VIP (very important pet) packages, to make your faithful friend fully welcome.
Our pick of the litter is the new Doggy Divine package from Stapleford Park Hotel, a lavish Georgian country house hotel in Leicestershire. Setting a new standard in luxury dog friendly travel, Stapleford Park has commissioned bespoke luxury dog beds from local designers, Doggy & Gabbona of Melton Mowbray, each uniquely designed to complement the style and character of four select and luxuriously furnished suites at the 55-room country house hotel. Each bed is individually handcrafted and contains hypo-allergenic materials to aide in peaceful sleep.
New doggy menus have also been devised providing a selection of gourmet recipes including a main meat dish, Pawpato treats and character creams. To ensure maximum comfort and indulgence, Stapleford Park has also introduced a new Doggy Afternoon tea menu, offering a delicious selection of doggy biscuits and Pawsecco (herbal drink for dogs from local business Hungry Hounds Bakery), to sit alongside its traditional and very popular afternoon tea for human guests.
To help you sort the good from the bad, we’ve launched our Luxe Pet Guide – the discerning pet lover’s little black book. Find the very best hotels, B&B’s and inns that genuinely LOVE DOGS!
Have you spotted any other pet trends you think will be BIG in 2018? Tell us in the comments below!
The post 6 Pet Trends You Need to Know About for 2018 appeared first on STYLETAILS.