Monday, June 7, 2010

Search for Pet Patterns... Calling all Big Dogs!

This is a first for me, combining some book reviews with a pattern search! In Fall 2009, I became an "Aunt" to a Newfie that my friends adopted. I found this a great excuse to make things for a dog (and later fight to get Pita to wear them!) The problem... there are very few patterns for large dogs out there, and Pita will become >100 lbs. In fact, I have not been able to find them yet! I continuously find patterns for smaller dogs.

Some patterns that came up in my search (even though they're not for large dogs):
  • Custom Dog Sweater - With discussion on how to make a sweater to fit your favorite animal. This is the best option for large-dog clothing that I've found.
  • Norwegian Dog Sweater - Beautiful two color pattern. The model is a smaller dog
  • Christmas Jumper - A little ribbed hoodie for your poochie!
  • Garter Stitch Shelter Blanket - Dogs need love too (and cats).
  • Duck squeak toy - This is so cute. I would be nervous about the dog tearing it apart, but then again, it wouldn't be too different from other stuffed toys.
I altered my search to find specifically knits for Newfoundlands... I need BIG dogs. Not even sweaters, but knit-able Halloween costumes or something would be fun.

At first I came up with mitts (that happen to be darling... but they're for humans, not dogs dog.) I found a newfie (and other breeds) charts for sale, but that is not helping my search for free patterns.

The other item that comes up in these searches are services to spin your pet hair into yarn. At first I was thinking that this is very strange, but how is it different to take dog or cat hair when we use sheep and rabbits all of the time?

So my search did not turn up anything like I had hoped. Please contact me if you know of any free knitting patterns for large dogs!