Birthday › Ideas

Pet birthday & Gotcha Day ideas

Practical, pet-safe guides for celebrating your dog or cat: party ideas, cake recipes, photos, invitations and adoption anniversaries.

• Dog birthday party ideas your dog will actually enjoy

  Simple dog birthday party ideas that dogs actually enjoy: themes, games, pet-safe treats, guest tips and a free printable kit.

• Easy dog-safe birthday cake recipe

  An easy dog-safe birthday cake recipe with peanut butter, banana and a yogurt frosting – plus ingredients to never use and portion sizes.

• Cat-safe birthday cake: a tiny tuna or chicken cake

  A simple cat-safe birthday cake made from tuna or chicken and egg – no flour, sugar or dairy – plus portion sizes and foods cats must avoid.

• How to celebrate your dog's first birthday

  Ideas to celebrate your puppy's first birthday, what changes at one year old, a health checklist and how to plan a puppy-safe party.

• Pet birthday photo ideas (and how to actually get the shot)

  Creative dog and cat birthday photo ideas – cake smash, balloons, age signs, flat lays – plus simple phone camera tips to get your pet to look at the lens.

• Gotcha Day ideas: celebrating your pet's adoption anniversary

  What Gotcha Day is and 20 ways to celebrate your adopted dog or cat's adoption anniversary – at home, outdoors and by giving back to rescues.

• How to find out your dog's birthday – or choose one

  How to estimate a rescue dog's age and birthday from records, teeth and vet checks – and simple ways to choose a birthday when no one knows it.

• Cat birthday ideas that cats actually like

  Low-stress cat birthday ideas: cat-safe treats, new toys, enrichment, photo ideas and gifts – for kittens, adults and senior cats.

• Dog birthday party checklist (and the foods to keep away)

  A printable-style checklist for planning a dog birthday party: two weeks out, the day before and on the day, plus a list of party foods that are toxic to dogs.

• Pet birthday invitation wording, captions and puns

  Copy-and-paste dog and cat birthday invitation wording, Instagram captions, puns and thank-you messages for your pet's birthday or Gotcha Day.