How to Throw a Dog Themed Birthday Party
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A dog themed birthday party was on the books for our pre-schooler, leaning more towards the puppy concept. We wanted it to be a little different, in the concept that it would be a service learning opportunity. She already had a ton of toys, more clothes than she could possibly wear, so this seemed like a great option. Make the gifts all about donations for the local Humane Society.
Throw a Dog Themed Birthday Party
The Humane Society is a great place for rescuing animals, however it is a kill shelter. That makes us sad. Very sad. Two things really effect the lives of the temporary residents: the budget to care for them and the availability of space to house them. Collecting donations off of their wish list helps with the budget problem, giving a little extra time for the critters to have a chance to find their fur-ever homes. We opted to invite her entire preschool class, in hopes taht we would round up a bunch of great goodies to help!
Dog Themed Birthday Party Invitations
We handmade the invitations with a cute puppy on the front. It helps that I am an avid scrap-booker, and whipped out my handy Cricut. The inside of her invitations read:
Puppy Parties Are So Much Fun
That is why we’re having one!
Instead of a toy that won’t be missed,
Please just bring something from this list:
We then looked over the wish list from their website and created a smaller version that we included with the invitations. You could just add a few items for cats and dogs that your local Humane Society needs.
Dog Themed Birthday Party Food
Simple food like hot dogs, a large batch of puppy chow, and the addition of puppy cupcakes? It all fit the theme perfectly! Add in lemonade and even a box or two of Scooby Snacks for everything you need to keep the littles munch happy.
Get my Puppy Chow recipe here: Puppy Chow
We hit the local dollar store and picked up a few dog bowls to house the Scooby Snacks and Puppy Chow. It made for a cute addition to the theme and with a frugal touch.
Budget wise? Birthday parties are a part of childhood and just plain fun to host! I know some thrifty families choose not to throw an actual party but looking at the costs? The hot dogs were free from coupons. I made the puppy chow with free ingredients from couponing. Country Time lemonade was another large bargain and came in at a whopping $0.10 The puppy cupcakes came from one $0.50 cake mix and frosting that I made from scratch.
Dog Party Birthday Themed Goody Bags
Why are we so set on goody bags? They do two things – leaves everyone going home with something in their hands, and no one cries because they didn’t win a game. The trick is to make them something that is actually worth having, not just some crappy cheap plastic toy that is pitched by their moms as soon as they get home.
She LOVES to have goody bags and this year is no exception. We got the mini beanie dogs from Oriental Trading Company along with the puppy collar bracelets. If you wrap it twice, the bracelet will work as a dog collar for the little pups. Set the pup on a mini PlayDoh and pop it all in a little bag. Viola! You have a goody bag and it ran us about $1.40 a kid because I scored the PlayDoh in the after Christmas 75% off clearance.
Birthday Party Games
Speaking of games, this year is a bonus! Instead of creating games or a project for the little ones, I bumped her party up a few weeks to be the day before my Tupperware Team Family Picnic. I always have a bounce house here for the team event, so we double dipped with the buisiness paying for it. Since the business is paying for it, so I am getting “free” entertainment for the puppy party and the kids took great advantage of it.
Here is the really neat thing about the puppy party: we said no presents for Sarah, but included that list for the local humane society – so they could get something off that list and bring it.
What was fun? They all had the items wrapped up! Gift bags, shoe boxes with fancy paper and more! You can tell that they were excited about what goodies they brought for the animals and she had a lot of help opening things up.
This wagon FULL of great things for the animals. I am amazed at how generous everyone was — all the toys, treats, food and even a bed! Just look at how much great stuff! From my phone call, I understand that they will give Sarah a tour and got out some of the smaller animals for her to pet/play with, she might even get to feed some treats to a few of the pets! Again, this will be another great photo opportunity and this whole event should make for a great 8×8 scrapbook album!
What did the other parents think? They absolutely loved the idea and most of them stayed during the part to see everything, as well as taking pictures. They were enchanted with the idea of less toys, and the overall message of giving back.
Sarah and I will take the loot to the Humane Society and get lots of pictures! It’s about having fun with the friends and giving back to society. Don’t worry – when it is time for the family birthday party (a few weeks later) she will get her share of goodies. (We did, you can see it here: Puppy Party Finale)
You can see a very tired girl here – she didn’t even finish her ‘popsicle’ before she passed out, LOL! She was a great hostess, got her share of bouncing in, passed out cupcakes and goody bags, hugged all of her guests as they were leaving and gave out plenty of thank yous…it was really a very fun day!
Other birthday party ideas you may find interesting:
- Mermaid Birthday Party – With Free Printables!
- Rainbow Birthday Party
- The Princess Party
- The Dinosaur Party
- The Movie Theater Party
