If you’re a pet parent, odds are you’ll end up spending St. Patrick’s Day with your dog. Mostly because you spend every day with your dog! St. Patrick’s Day is a traditionally religious celebration commemorating Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, and the arrival of Christianity to the Emerald Isle.
You might already be familiar with some of the common western traditions associated with celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in America. They include, drinking, feasting, parading, wearing green, drinking, and shamrocks. Even though these traditions weren’t originally associated with the religious aspect of the holiday, they all connect back to the holiday in a special and distinct way. They’re awesome traditions that are a blast to celebrate, especially when you can include your dog! We’ve narrowed down a few of the most classic traditions and explored ways you can adapt them so that you and your dog can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day together!
Parades are a mainstay of St. Patrick’s Day. St. Paddy's Day Parades actually found root in America, when Irish Americans would gather to celebrate the holiday. Parades naturally grew out of these religious gatherings and have continued to develop over the centuries. Now, St. Patrick’s Day parades can be found all across the country. One of the most famous ones is in Chicago, where they even dye the river green.
While parades are an undeniably fun time for people, not all dogs are able to handle the crowds and commotion. Unless you’ve done your research and determined that a parade is a dog friendly event, and know that your four legged friend can enjoy the abundant sights and sounds without feeling overwhelmed, it’s a good idea to find an alternative event. There are generally dog friendly events that are put on specifically for dog owners wanting to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with their pets. Do some research into your local area to find out if there’s an event where you and your pup can party it up. If there isn’t, then organize one yourself! You’re probably not the only pet parent in your neighborhood looking to celebrate!
Wearing green is another tradition that has been adopted by St. Patrick’s Day revelers over time as well. While several early depictions of the Patron Saint of Ireland display Patrick in blue, green is now the universally embraced color of Ireland and of St. Paddy’s Day. Regardless of whether you wear green from head to toe, or add just enough to your outfit to escape the pinching fingers of enthusiastic friends, dressing in green colors is a mainstay for celebrating the holiday.
Unless you have a white dog who’s been rolling around on a freshly mowed lawn, your dog won’t be able to join the St. Patrick’s Day outfitting on their own. However, you can help them out by getting them a new St. Patrick’s Day accessory like a collar, name tag, or a scarf to sham-rock. There are plenty of options out there from shamrock shaped name tags, to clover covered collars.
Drinking and feasting is common on St. Patrick’s Day and stems from the catholic tradition of lifting the sharp restrictions of Lent for the day. St. Paddy’s Day typically falls in the middle of the 40 day period of Lent where restrictions on diet and alcohol consumption are in place for observant Christians. It’s a day of reprieve from Lent’s restrictions and encourages indulgence in those restricted foods (like meat) and alcoholic beverages. This has been embraced in the modern day as a chance to indulge in rich foods like corned beef and cabbage, and drink some Guinness beer, or beer that's been dyed green.
Dogs love food, and they love a raucous good feast, especially when people are eating and drinking (and dropping food everywhere.) Pretty much all dogs break out the classic puppy eyes when they’re begging for a bite of food from the table. While it’s ok to feed dogs with human food in moderation, it’s important to keep their health in mind. There are a lot of unassuming foods that can be poisonous for your pup. A very important one of them to highlight on St. Patrick’s Day is alcohol. A simple rule to follow is: don’t get your dog drunk. They’re probably goofy enough as is. Another thing to keep in mind is that dogs don’t digest salt and fat very well, so things like corned beef aren’t safe to give them in large portions.
That being said, there are still plenty of fun ways to feast with your furball on St. Patrick’s Day. Namely, you can make your own treats using special clover shaped molds, or put together a few green-colored snacks that are safe for them to eat. Here’s a list of dog-safe, green foods that your pup will love: peas, spinach, olive oil, zucchini, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cucumber, celery, asparagus, green beans, cabbage, kale, and lettuce. You can give these to your pup as a snack or combine them to make your own green St. Patrick's Day treats.
Even though your pup can’t have alcohol, there’s still a way to let them enjoy a beer with the rest of us. Several companies now make DOG BEER. Yes that’s a real thing. Of course in reality it's just a bottled up dog-safe broth of sorts, but still! Imagine pouring a pint of Guinness for yourself and then cracking open a can of Good Boy Dog Beer or a bottle of Bowser Beer for your pup too. The 21st century is truly incredible.
Now that you’re equipped with this pot of golden tips, go be the best pet parent you can be! Make your friends green with envy over how successful your St. Patrick’s Day celebrations are. And if you want to make your St. Patrick’s Day celebrations extra special, grab an Inkopious shirt from our St. Patrick's Day Collection! Find your breed in our St. Patrick’s Day collection so you can show off your pup and your pride!
