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Brownie Troop 67255 Earns Pets Badge

Submitted by Sara Smaling

Metro Denver

Englewood

Third Grade Brownie Troop 67255 recently earned their Pets badge. While learning all about pet care, the girls also had fun making fleece dog blankets. The troop donated the blankets, along with some canned dog food, to the Little Old Dog Sanctuary. The sanctuary rescues old and special needs dogs and cares for them to their end of life.

We want to hear how your girl is using her Girl Scout skills by taking initiative, caring for the community, and Girl Scouting at home. She can send in her story here.

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Girl Scouting at Home: Earn your Brownie Pets badge Part Four of Five

Girl Scouts of Colorado’s Outreach Program team has created a series of materials, including videos, to help Girl Scout Brownies earn their Pets badge at home!

Now, let’s move on to Step Four, which is to make your pet feel loved by creating a custom toy for them.

Make a dog toy/puzzle. Check out our videos on how to make different kinds of treat puzzles or a toy for a dog.

Don’t have a dog? Make a DIY toy for other types of pets. See ideas linked below:

Cat

https://kittyclysm.com/sock-fish-cat-toy-diy/

https://hubpages.com/animals/pipe-cleaner-cat-toy

Bunny

https://www.thesprucepets.com/toys-for-pet-rabbits-1237198

https://bunnyapproved.com/diy-rabbit-toy-ideas/

Hamster https://squeaksandnibbles.com/diy-hamster-toys/

Lizard https://reptile.guide/bearded-dragon-toys-activities/

We want to hear how your girl is using her Girl Scout skills by taking initiative, caring for the community, and Girl Scouting at home. She can send in her story here.

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Girl Scouting at Home: Brownie Pets badge Part Three of Five

 

 

 

 

 

Girl Scouts of Colorado’s Outreach Program team has created a series of materials, including videos, to help Girl Scout Brownies earn their Pets badge at home! Step One was to find out what care different pets need. Step Two involves learning about keeping pets comfortable. Step Three focuses on keeping a pet healthy and safe.

Exercise your pet. Dogs need a lot of exercise to make sure that they are happy and healthy. Taking them on walks is a great way to exercise them! Take charge of your dog’s exercise by mapping a route around your neighborhood that you can take them on.

Map a short walk around a couple of blocks for some fresh air and map a longer one around a local park to really get the dog’s energy out! You can use the map apps on a smartphone to plan your route or other apps and websites like MapMyRun. Once you’ve created some routes, take a walk!

OR

Research the foods/items your pet shouldn’t eat. Did you know that dogs shouldn’t eat grapes? Or, cats shouldn’t have onions? Snakes shouldn’t eat fireflies. Keep the Animal Poison Control hotline number (888-426-4435) somewhere visible, like on your fridge, if your pet accidentally eats something it shouldn’t! Look at this resource for a complete guide to poisonous substances. https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/animal-poison-control

Foods to avoid feeding your pets:

  • Alcohol
  • Avocado
  • Chocolate/Coffee/Caffeine
  • Citrus
  • Coconut products
  • Grapes/Raisins
  • Nuts
  • Onions, Garlic, Chives
  • Raw/undercooked meat, eggs, bones
  • Salty foods
  • Xylitol (a sweetener found in gum, candy, baked goods, toothpaste, and more)
  • Yeast dough

Other products to protect your pets from:

  • Certain plants including aloe, tomato plants, amaryllis, daffodils, azaleas, tulips, lilies, and many more
  • Human medication
  • Household cleaning products
  • Essential oils
  • Dryer fabric softener sheets
  • Grout
  • Petroleum jelly
  • Mosquito repellent with DEET

OR

Learn five “stay-safe” commands to teach your dog. Caring for a dog is a big responsibility, and it’s your job to keep your dog, and other dogs and humans around them, safe. To do this, you should teach your dog some basic safety commands. These commands set boundaries and guidelines to help them have a safe and happy life.

  • Come
  • Stay
  • Leave it
  • Drop it
  • Wait

The key to training your dog is using positive reinforcement, like treats. For tips on how to train your dog, talk to your veterinarian or look at these helpful resources:

We want to hear how your girl is using her Girl Scout skills by taking initiative, caring for the community, and Girl Scouting at home. She can send in her story here.

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Girl Scouting at Home: Brownie Pets badge Part Two of Five

Girl Scouts of Colorado’s Outreach Program team has created a series of materials, including videos, to help Girl Scout Brownies earn their Pets badge at home! Step One was to find out what care different pets need. For Step Two, you’re going learn about keeping pets comfortable, so we’re going to make a cozy cat cave.

Materials

  • Deep Cardboard Box (with no lid)- You can use different-sized boxes to make a cat cave that works best for the age and breed of your cat. Use the box that will work best for your cat’s needs!
  • Long sleeve T-shirt
  • One rubber band
  • Comfy bedding material (blanket, towel, or even a sweater)

Directions

  1. Begin by stretching your long-sleeved T-shirt around the box, with the neck-hole of the T-shirt facing the open top of the box.
  2. Next, pull the shirt around the box in such a way that the neckhole of the T-shirt is centered on the top of the box. The neck hole will be the “door” that enables the cat to enter the cave.
  3. Once you have the “door” of the cave centered on the box, pull the sleeves of the T-shirt tight around the back of the box and secure them together. If the sleeves are long enough, you can tie the sleeves together. Otherwise, just use a rubber-band to connect the two sleeves.
  4. Finally, place the bedding material inside the box to complete your comfy cat cave. If you have any of your cat’s favorite toys or catnip, you can also put that inside the cave to make it extra welcoming for your furry friend.

We also created a video to help you complete this step of the badge, check it out here.

We want to hear how your girl is using her Girl Scout skills by taking initiative, caring for the community, and Girl Scouting at home. She can send in her story here.

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Girl Scouting at Home: Brownie Pets badge Part One of Five

Girl Scouts of Colorado’s Outreach Program team has created a series of materials, including videos, to help Girl Scout Brownies earn their Pets badge at home! Step One: Find out what care different pets need.

Research the basics of care for two different pets. Maybe you want to learn about how to care for a puppy, kitten, turtle, or even a hedgehog! Whatever the pet is, learn the most important ways to care for that pet. With your caregiver’s permission and after taking the Girl Scout Internet Safety Pledge, go online to find out what the experts have to say about caring for different types of pets. Try to find websites run by veterinarians or animal shelters for the most accurate information. Other good research websites include:

You can also call friends or family members with pets and ask them what they think are important ways to care for their pet.

Bonus: Create a “care” poster or video for your favorite pet

  • Team up with a sibling or caregiver to make a two-minute video about the essentials of caring for a specific type of pet. If you have a pet at home, maybe they can even make a guest appearance!
  • Use a piece of paper and some craft supplies to create a poster to remind you of how to care for your chosen pet. Be sure to make it colorful and add some illustrations!

We understand that not everyone has a pet at home. For an alternate activity for the first step of this badge, check out this video.

We want to hear how your girl is using her Girl Scout skills by taking initiative, caring for the community, and Girl Scouting at home. She can send in her story here.