How I Motivated my Cat to wear (and be photographed in) his Halloween Costume

Rachael Ray Nutrish has sponsored this post, but all opinions are my own.

 I love looking at other people's pets wearing Halloween costumes! Often these pets are seen cavorting or posing in darling and creative scenarios. Not my boys.  Neither of my "boys" are huge fans of :

1) having their photos taken

 2) wearing much of anything other than the fur that they were born with.

 That is their right and I do everything in my power to honor that...except for maybe a handful of times each year. One of those times is Halloween. There are so many darling Halloween items available and tons of photos around the web of pets wearing them, that I so wanted to participate!   This year  Dakota was sent some adorable bandanas and I wanted  Cody to get in on a little bit of the "fun" of  wearing one. 

HOW DID I TAKE THIS DARLING PHOTO? READ ON!

One of the occupational hazards of having blogged for over eight years is when your pets see you coming with anything that looks even remotely like it might take photos, they often will:

  1) look in any direction other than the direction they should be looking towards in order to take a decent photo.

 2) Or, they will leave the room completely.

The other day when Cody and I were celebrating "a-certain-day-that-honors-cats" I decided I wanted to take some photos of him in his darling Halloween bandana.  The problem? Cody was sound asleep.  While an annoyance for him, I figured it was my perfect chance to make my move.

Why of COURSE I have food Cody! It may have taken me much of your ten years of life to learn this, but finally I learned that being the food-obsessed cat that you are, you will pretty much do ANYTHING for food. YES ANYTHING. 

My main tips for motivating YOUR cat (if they are food motivated as Cody is), to participate in a photo session that involves a Halloween costume or an item they normally wouldn't wear, and  that he  or she might not be over-the-moon about wearing is:

1) Schedule your photo shoot at meal time

2) Pick a food that he LOVES. In Cody's case that is his Rachael Ray Nutrish Indoor Complete. Rachael Ray™ Nutrish® Indoor Complete Chicken with Lentils&Salmon Recipe is a natural food for cats with added vitamins, minerals & taurine. This recipe contains a real superfood blend to meet the complete needs of your adult indoor cat and is available right where you shop for your family’s groceries!!

3) Allow him to sniff the bag of food. (you can loosely tie the bandana on while he is focused on his food!)

4) Be sure to pick an item/costume that your cat will NOT mind wearing for a few minutes. Some cats hate having anything on their heads (Cody is one of those cats), try and respect that whenever possible. 

5) Don't have them wear anything that will hinder or restrain their movements, breathing, etc.

6) Keep the session as short as possible! If your pet absolutely HATES what they are wearing REMOVE IT IMMEDIATELY. NO PET SHOULD BE MISERABLE TAKING A PHOTO. IF THEY ARE, STOP!

7) Don't tease your kitty make sure you are feeding some food each time you are snapping away!

A portion of proceeds from each sale of Nutrish is donated to The Rachael Ray Foundation,
which helps animals in need through  Rachael’s Rescue® Through September 2017,
Rachael’s Rescue has donated more than $21 million dollars to pet charities and
other organizations that do good for animals. The funds are used for food,
medical supplies, treatments, and more for animals in need. Many more animals
around the country need help, and through Rachael’s Rescue, together we can make
a difference in the lives of many four-legged friends

The photo above and the photo below were taken by holding Cody's bowl of Nutrish just high enough to pique his interest.  His expression in the photo below shows that he had just about enough of the photo session so we began wrapping it up.

Once we finished this part of the photo shoot, Cody decided he had a MUCH better idea for a Halloween costume! He decided he would trick or treat dressed as a bag of Nutrish!

See? I told you Cody would do ANYTHING to have his Indoor Complete! So, what do you think of Cody trick or treating as a bag of Nutrish? We LOVE IT! 

 Did you dress your pets up for Halloween? If so, Nutrish wants to see them! Get in on the fun by following @Nutrish on Instagram and sharing your photo with the hashtag #NutrishPets and #Sweepstakes and you could win $500 !!

Speaking of photos! Don’t forget to enter the Nutrish Furever Home Sweepstakes, which ends  on October 31, 2017 at 11:59:59 p.m. ET –you just might win $25,000 and a year of Nutrish food for your cat!

After all of that posing you humans will need a relaxing reprieve! Nutrish has MORE HALLOWEEN FUN JUST FOR THE HUMANS! DO YOU LOVE TO COLOR?

my hastily colored picture

Visit the Nutrish Pinterest Page  print out the special coloring page, create your masterpiece and share on Instagram using hashtag #NutrishPets

About Rachael Ray Nutrish: In 2007, with help from pet nutrition experts, Rachael Ray created Nutrish super-premium food and treats for dogs inspired by recipes from her own kitchen. In 2014, they were very excited to grow the brand into the world of cat food. Whether intended for dogs or cats, Nutrish recipes are made with simple, wholesome ingredients like real meat or fish, and do not contain poultry by-product meal or fillers.

HAVE A HAPPY, SAFE AND 

"DELISH" HALLOWEEN!!

 Love from,

A few years ago we received this
Pumpkin made by Marv's Mom Barb!