I recently attended the BlogPaws pet and social media conference in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. As many of you know, I'm a human dad to six dogs. To say that going to BlogPaws was a treat for me would be a huge understatement. I'd never seen so many pets and animal lovers in a single gathering.
Once all the meet and greets were over with, and the conference was finally underway, the larger-than-life Newfoundland, Leroy, quietly stole the show. As a major animal lover, I'd obviously heard of Newfoundlands, but I can't say I'd ever encountered one. When I first met Leroy, the lyrics to Jim Croce's 1973 "Bad, bad Leroy Brown", started running through my head... "the baddest man in the whole damned town, badder than old King Kong, meaner than a junkyard dog..."
While that is a catchy tune, it doesn't really describe Leroy accurately: he's as sweet as sugar and so well-mannered, with not a bad bone in his body. A gentle giant if you will. When I met him, you would've thought I was a 10-year-old kid, not a 48 year-old adult, lol. I honestly felt like I was meeting royalty, he was so august and majestic. Leroy is the epitome of the "larger than life" idiom, a virtual people magnet all throughout the conference, hospitable and patient with everyone that wanted a photo op.
Former veterinary technician-turned-blogger, Jennifer Costello of My Brown Newfies, brought Leroy to the BlogPaws conference. My Brown Newfies is a pet / lifestyle blog about dogs, pet health, pet products, family, and the totally crazy stories that only ever seem to happen to Jen and her dogs. Jennifer is a wife, mom to two children, and owner of three dogs. Her two Newfoundlands, Leroy and Sherman, are what inspired her to start the blog.
Scrolling through My Brown Newfies' blog posts, their value is instantly recognizable: they're informative, funny, and upbeat. One post that specially stood out to me was Here's 15 reasons newfie moms rock, some of which include tidbits such as:
"Repair Woman. She can take apart any vacuum cleaner, unclog the hair from it and put it back together in less than 10 minutes. Three days a week. All year long. She knows that there is NO vacuum cleaner that can handle Newfie hair without her intervention."
and
"Wrangler. She wrangles several hundred pounds of dog and multiple kids into one area and has their undivided attention for 15 seconds. She can travel with them AND have every single one come back fully intact."
Another entry I found very witty was 6 Ways Motorists Can Assist Me In Enjoying A Nice Walk With My Dog. The title itself is hilarious- the implication that motorists should be concerned with a dogwalker's requirements is, on the face of it, silly. If you think about it, though, they really ought to be.
This post is full of practical issues and humorous tips from Jennifer, based on situations she constantly runs into when she's walking her dogs. From politely asking motorists not to beep, to suggesting drivers pull over if they have questions, rather than come to a dead stop in the middle of the road, it's not just for Newfie moms and dads, but for every kind of dog out there.
With her great content, beautiful pics of her dogs, and wealth of information, it's no wonder My Brown Newfies won the 'Best Pet Humor Blog' award at BlogPaws!
Bottom line, My Brown Newfies is firing on all cylinders. This website is a place for family, friends, and animal lovers. And of course, Newfie lovers... but that goes without saying.
With Jennifer's great content, beautiful pics of her dogs, and wealth of information, it's no wonder My Brown Newfies won the 'Best Pet Humor Blog' award at BlogPaws!
Congratulations Jen.