Product Review: Martha Stewart Pets Measurement Dog Bowl

A friend found this Martha Stewart Pets Measurement Dog Bowl for me on clearance while she was Ru-sitting. It's a hard plastic bowl with measurements inside, in half cup increments. The idea is to conveniently measure your dog's food to help avoid overfeeding. The bowl has a non-skid bottom, and a handle molded into the side to make it easy to pick up.

Photo by Erin Koski

I am highly in favor of portion control for pets, because most dogs are fat. Is your dog fat? Probably. I prefer to measure food by scooping it out of a bag with a measuring cup, but this bowl would be a reasonable option if I was pouring food out of a smaller bag.

I don't use plastic bowls though, because they are basically impossible to clean. Plastic seems impermeable, but is actually prone to developing tiny scratches that tend to harbor bacteria. (Plastic cutting boards do the same thing!) Dirty dishes give James cat acne, so I stick with metal, ceramic, and glass pet dishes.

Pros: Helps maintain and reinforce portion control. Can also be used to monitor water intake.

Cons: Plastic surface can cause allergic reactions and harbor bacteria over time.

Bottom Line: I'd love to see this bowl in metal or ceramic, or at least in some fun colors. The white is pretty boring.

Product Review: Martha Stewart Pets Puffer Coat

This Martha Stewart Pets Puffer Coat definitely came from Petsmart, before I found it at a thrift store. This is a 100% polyester coat stuffed with fluff and made to look like a winter jacket for people. There are no sleeves, instead there are straps with velcro closures at the neck and belly. Our jacket is a size small.

Photo by Erin Koski

This little dog coat is slightly more functional than many of the Martha Stewart Pets products we've tried. As I've mentioned before, I always feel like the Martha Stewart stuff was designed by people who never actually had to use it. The brand is filled with good intentions and clever ideas that often don't pan out in actual reality.

Most of Ru's everyday wear is from Petco. This is because Petco's house brands are cut to fit dogs with medium and long backs. Wider or fatter dogs can still wear them just fine, but the clothes will fit longer on them.

All of Petsmart's dog clothes are made to fit dogs with short backs. This means that they fit body types like pugs and English bulldogs, with comparatively wider chests. Dogs with longer backs and smaller chests can wear them, but the clothes will usually end up ridiculously short on them. The puffer coat shown here is a good example of that fit. The tail end of the coat is cupped to fit around the dog's rump and hold in heat. Since the coat is much too short for Ru, it just bulges awkwardly around his loin instead.

Were this a size medium jacket instead of a small, the neck and belly straps would be much, much too large for Ru. He's longer than most chihuahuas, but clothes made for dogs with average proportions usually fit him reasonably well. Petsmart makes some super cute dog clothes, but they seem to be designed entirely for a certain body type.

Pros: Warm, easy to put on. No sleeves, sits well clear of armpits.

Cons: Cut to fit cobby, short-backed, wide breeds.

Bottom Line: I do not have a bulldog, shih tzu, pug, or sturdy terrier to wear this.

Product Review: Martha Stewart Pets Fabric Harness

This double buckle harness by Martha Stewart Pets is an interesting design. The neck and chest straps fasten with metal tongue buckles, and there are no straps to rub the armpits or insides of the legs. These were some of the first products I saw from Martha Stewart Pets at PetSmart. They came in four sizes and three colors.

Photo by Erin Koski

This harness is kind of strange. I had considered getting one for Brisbane when they first came out in 2010, but they just fit too weird. Despite being advertised as lightweight, I found the thick straps and heavy metal buckles to be way too bulky.

Photo by Erin Koski

It's an interesting design, but I'm not sure it's terribly effective. The chest and neck straps are only attached at the back, there is nothing connective them between the front legs. While this prevents rubbing in the armpits, it also allows the neck strap to ride up and sit in the same place as a regular collar.
 For that reason, I'm not entirely sold on the idea that this harness will protect a sensitive trachea from pulling.

Like the other Martha Stewart Pets harnesses I've tried, the sizing on this one feels wrong. This particular harness fits Ranger's neck just fine, but is huge in the chest. Likewise, when I tried them on Brisbane a few years ago I found they either fit well in the chest or the neck, but never both.

Pros: Definitely will not ride into armpits or cause friction rubs inside the front legs. Definitely does not impede free movement of the shoulders. Could be the answer for a very hard-to-fit dog, particularly one with a huge chest and tiny neck.

Cons: Very thick and bulky straps, weird sizing. Difficult to clean, once stinky, it's stinky forever.

Bottom Line: Well they stopped making them so I can't be the only person that had issues.