In this Halloween special of the Pets Add Life Podcast, hosts Chris Bonifati and Kristen Levine trade their usual looks for mouse and cat ears to celebrate spooky season with pets. From custom stuffed animals that capture a pet’s costume forever to a true crime podcast where animals help crack the case, it’s a festive listen for pet parents who love Halloween as much as their pets do.
Kristen kicks off story time with new National Retail Federation data showing Americans will spend $13.5 billion on Halloween this year, with about $920 million going to pet costumes. Pumpkin tops the list of the most popular pet costumes, followed by hot dog and ghost.
Chris shares a letter from Greg in New Jersey about Sammy, a 12-year-old Chiweenie who was paralyzed after a spinal injury at age three and now gets around outside in a wheelchair. Sammy has become a local celebrity, inspired a special-needs dog shirt for Freedom Park’s off-leash dog area, and won six consecutive Halloween pet costume contests.
Scott Myers, CEO of Budsies and Petsies, joins the show to explain how his team of artists and artisans turns photos of pets, Halloween costumes and all, into handmade, one-of-a-kind stuffed animal keepsakes. He shares the emotional stories behind many orders, from families honoring a pet who has passed to college students who can’t bear to leave their dog behind.
Paula Quintada, creator and host of the Dog Days of Murder podcast, brings a little true crime to the Halloween special. She shares how a dog walk sparked the idea for a show about animals that help solve crimes, and walks through real cases where a rescue dog and a talking macaw played key roles.
Alana Davis and Courtney Cox, co-coordinators of the Great PUPkin Dog Costume Contest in Brooklyn’s Fort Greene Park, share how Alana’s wheelchair-using Chiweenie, Howie, won Best in Show in 2021 dressed as a New York City hot dog cart, and how that win led them to help run the beloved 28-year-old community tradition.
The episode wraps up with two listener questions: the biggest Halloween hazards for pets, and how to tell if a dog is uncomfortable in a costume.
Special Guests:
Scott Myers, CEO of Budsies & Petsies
Scott Myers walks listeners through how Petsies turns a pet’s photo into a handmade stuffed animal, from identifying the color palette and markings to hand-detailing eye color, ear position, and even a nipped ear. He shares memorable custom orders, including a ferret complete with its wheelchair, and the thousands of customer stories that show how deeply people are bonded to their pets. He also talks about joining The SATO Project and Wings of Rescue on a mission that flew 100 rescued dogs and cats from Puerto Rico to the U.S. mainland.
Paula Quintada, Creator & Host of Dog Days of Murder
Paula Quintada, a dog groomer by trade, explains how a conversation about Dateline on a dog walk turned into a true crime podcast co-hosted by her corgi, Ein. She shares the Season 1 case of a rescue dog who insisted on going outside and found a little girl in a freezing ditch, and a recent episode where a parrot repeating “You’re fired” helped investigators connect a kidnapping victim to the house where she was held.
Alana Davis & Courtney Cox, Co-Coordinators of the Great PUPkin Dog Costume Contest
Alana Davis and Courtney Cox share how a few nights of cardboard and tape turned Howie’s wheelchair into an award-winning hot dog cart, and how Howie, a former escape artist who turned up in Alana’s driveway the day her family lost their older dog, became a dog with a destiny. They also explain why the Great PUPkin celebrates creative, handmade, New York-centric costumes and invite listeners to come watch the free event in Fort Greene Park.
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