Tips for a pets blog?

July 1, 2009 7:22 AM

I want to start a local pets blog and want to do it well! (All I've done so far is buy a great domain name.) What would you like to see on a local blog about pets? Does your city have one that is a good example?
posted by trillian to pets & animals (16 comments total)

I'd be interested in knowing how to locate local breeders, and I'd want to see reviews of them.

For example, if I wanted to buy a chinchilla, but would prefer to get one from a local (or reasonably local) breeder/expert - who's around? Ditto for various rat varieties/colors, birds, herps and other exotics.

I have this suspicion that there are more of those folks around that are easily seen, but making that first connection seems sort of difficult. If I were to start that research today, I'd probably hit craigs list, but I'd rather go to a special focus, local directory that could be subject to a sort of "peer review".
posted by jquinby at 7:32 AM on July 1

For dogs: (sorry, dog lover) -

Walking path reviews.
Off leash areas.
Dog parks.
Interviews with owners of pet stores.
Reviews of dog training classes/options.
Tips/tricks to teach dog.
Collar/harness/leash reviews.
posted by quodlibet at 7:44 AM on July 1

I'd like to know about local dog parks -- with reviews of them. I'd also like to know about local pet-friendly businesses. (Stores that let you bring your dog inside or hotels that allow pets, for example.)
posted by rhartong at 7:44 AM on July 1

I'd like a calendar of the different events where the breed/animal specific rescues can be found, or their fundraising events, all together in one place.
posted by librarianamy at 7:48 AM on July 1

seconding info about local pet-friendly businesses.

in addition to the awesome suggestions above, what about boarding/kennels for pets? information about pet "hotels" would be useful.
posted by gursky at 8:02 AM on July 1

Information about pet insurance - is it worth it, what providers are reputable.

End of life issues - these get ignored, mostly, then when you need the information it's terrible to have to research it. It would be good to know it's there when you need it.
posted by amtho at 8:06 AM on July 1

Perhaps you could help with lost pets? I think that would be a good service.

Thanks for thinking Local!
posted by tcv at 8:06 AM on July 1

I'd want evaluations of the veterinarians in the area. I'd want to know about local rescue groups and alternatives to the pound. I'd want to know about pet-food recalls and evaluations of pet food in general.

Interviews with vets, breeders, trainers, and animal-control officers could be interesting.
posted by adamrice at 8:08 AM on July 1

Hey - if you end up doing some (or all) of these, could you post a link to the final product?

Would that be kosher, admins?
posted by jquinby at 8:08 AM on July 1

Here are a few thoughts...

Photo gallery where people can post pictures of their pets
Feature local experts who can answer questions about health and behavior issues
Reviews of pet products (leashes, foods, toys, etc.)
Reviews of fiction / nonfiction books about animals

Generally, inviting the local public to contribute to the website is a sure way of generating attention, kind of like YELP for animal lovers.
posted by HeyAllie at 8:21 AM on July 1

Would that be kosher, admins?

Usually a link in the profile is okay, trilian please feel free to put a link there.
posted by jessamyn at 8:25 AM on July 1

I'd consider food reviews...new ones are coming on the market all the time, and lots of them have quite a bit of hype about them. I'm in the business and would love to be a contributor if you'd be interested.

Also, links to really good ask mefi answers. I refer customers all the time to threads on here that are particularly informative about issues that pet owners have.
posted by vito90 at 9:00 AM on July 1

All of the above suggestions sound wonderful but there are some fun things that don't seem to be mentioned.

I'm not sure what type of area you're from, but the cutesy town I'm from hosts a pet parade every year, as well as having a variety of other animal-centric events throughout the seasons. Coverage of things like that would be fun and you could get more traffic to the blog if you spread the word in person. The pet parade always had silly superlatives that got into the local newspaper, but a blog seems the more natural location for such frippery. I'm sure if you go looking, there will be kid-friendly pet related local events to cover.

I am always extremely curious about cats that I see in windows, and pets that I see around town in shops. "Interviews" with bookstore cats would be especially fascinating to me, and I'm always dying to know the names of the more striking dogs that walk my street. People love to have their pets show up on websites, so maybe having local pet profiles, perhaps the ones with interesting tales that people send in, might be a way to have that information and clinch in that local flavor.
posted by Mizu at 9:44 AM on July 1

These ideas are great -- thank you!

Usually a link in the profile is okay, trilian please feel free to put a link there.

I'd love to ... except that I try to keep my posts on here separate from identifiable stuff I do in "real life."

I'm in the business and would love to be a contributor if you'd be interested.

Cool, I will keep that in mind!
posted by trillian at 9:46 AM on July 1

In addition to the great suggestions above, I'd like a pet-sitter recommendations/evaluations. Especially those that handle exotics.
posted by sarajane at 12:06 PM on July 1

Are there any pharmacies locally that do pet compounding? I'd want to know about that. Where I live, there's one I know of that's insanely expensive compared to the medication I mail-order from a vet pharmacy in Texas. My guess is there may be other pharmacies around that would do pet compounding, but damn if I know how to find them. It would be awesome if someone found them for me.
posted by Stacey at 4:45 PM on July 1