Tik Tok: I’m sure many of you should know, or at least have heard about this social media platform before. The app is commonly used by the younger crowd as an outlet to express themselves through the content that they create and share across the community. It usually comes in the form of singing, dancing, comedy sketches and sometimes even lip syncing. The list goes on!
Of course, another popular type of “challenge” content on TikTok are those that involve our favourite furkids. As the use of this social media platform has been on the rise lately, we’ll be sharing some fun TikTok trends for you to try with you furbabies!
Bring out your pet’s favourite treats and pretend to put a handful of it in your hands then “feed” it to them one by one. Watch them get confused as they continue to gobble down their imaginary treats!
More often than not, they tend to realise the game that we’re playing and they end up just looking at you with pure disappointment.
We highly recommend feeding them real treats after that!
For this challenge, you’ll need to prepare your pet for their meal or treat, and have them stay put while they wait for their command word to eat.
Here’s the twist: Rather than giving them their command word such as “okay!”, say something else like “octopus” or “oklahoma” to confuse them. Watch them rush towards their food and stop after realisation. So cute!
Let this be the test of your furbaby’s grace! Set up an obstacle course of objects on the floor to block the walkway and see how your kitty or pup manages to move through the obstacle without knocking anything over.
Most of the time, though, our feline friends have seemed to have the upper hand. Let us know how your pets fared with this challenge in the comments below!
Here’s a perfect challenge for you after you’ve stocked up the toilet roll supply at home! With this challenge, you’ll get to test your pet’s agility by having them jump over a toilet roll wall that gets taller with each level. Prepared to be impressed by what great heights your furbaby will be able to achieve!
Have a challenge that we missed out on? Let us know in the comments!
Do you feed your dogs raw? Feeding of raw meat-based diets to pets has become an increasingly popular trend amongst pet owners in recent years.
If you are a TikTok fan, loves #ASMR and intrigued by the world of raw feeding, you would have definitely heard about Chefs and Dogs, who has since gathered more than 1M followers on their Tik Tok channel! ?
We’re be honest – all of us here has been binge-watching their videos (I mean, who wouldn’t?!) From delicious sushi for rabbits, to woof-ing good pasta for your dogs, Chef and Dog has something for anyone who needs some recipes inspiration or just a break from all the Zoom calls (yes to ASMR). ??♀️
We are super excited to be able to interview Daniel to learn more about Chefs and Dogs journey – the motivations, challenges and even the little moments.
Meet Daniel & Caelan
Q:Tell us a little bit more about yourself and your pets!
I’m Daniel Tomas—chef by training and dog dad to two Australian Kelpies, Joey (boy) and Alkai (girl) and a border collie Caelan (boy) whose face is on the Chefs & Dogs logo.
Like the late David Bowie, Caelan has two different coloured eyes, a rare condition known as heterochromia, but no musical talents (that I’m aware of). We also have quails and foster cats & dogs.
Q:When was Chefs and Dogs founded? Are you doing this full-time now?
I founded Chefs and Dogs eighteen months ago as a local raw dog food delivery business in the capital of Australia (points for those who know this), Canberra. In addition to delivering raw meals, we sell a range of healthy treats and supplements Australia-wide.
You can purchase the Wagyu Christmas lunch from their website if you are based in Australia!
Running the small business has been a full-time job from the beginning, but over time I’ve invested more and more late nights producing TikTok, Youtube and Instagram content to spread awareness about pet nutrition.
Q:What got you started on feeding raw?
The journey started for me 6 years ago when Joey had lupus on his nose. After all manner of treatments proved ineffective, my partner and I consulted a holistic vet who advised changes to his diet.
Joey with Lupus
Through feeding a tailored raw diet along with a holistic approach guided by Kate from Holistic Paws, Joey underwent a remarkable recovery. It demonstrated to us what on the face of it sounds obvious—feeding a nutritious balanced diet to your pets, especially if they have special health requirements, can drastically impact their overall health.
Joey’s transformation after being fed raw
Q:What’s the motivation and reason for starting Chefs and Dogs? Did you self learn when it comes to feeding raw?
I learned raw feeding under the guidance of a holistic vet and dog nutritionist and I always advise my followers to do the same. Introducing fresh foods doesn’t need to be as radical as a complete diet overhaul. Whatever their level of comfort, we encourage pet-owners to take an interest in their pet’s nutritional needs.
Q: Where do you get the inspiration/recipes for your video content?
I’m a chef by training and have been creating recipes for the better part of a decade. Most of my inspiration comes from the amazing community. We get requests for everything from hermit crab to snail meals!
Q:What do you think is your top challenge when it comes to Chefs and Dogs?
The response of our community has been overwhelmingly positive. I try to provoke people to think of their dog’s diets differently and sometimes this requires going a little over-the-top (wagyu burritos or Michelin-star lobster for dogs anyone?).
Sometimes I work hard on a recipe I love and no one is interested, other times I throw something together in ten minutes and it goes viral. Creating content is about having the courage to take risks and put yourself out there.
The hardest part is finding the right balance between content that is fun and engaging, but also provides educational information for pet owners.
Q: Any tips for pet owners who wants to feed raw but not sure how to get started?
As with a lot of things, first do no harm. It’s best to take advice from a holistic vet and pet nutritionist to ensure you are feeding your dog a complete and balanced diet. But this doesn’t mean it’s too hard and safer to just stick to kibble—there are lots of ways you can gradually introduce fresh foods to your pet’s diet.
There are also a lot more local suppliers like us providing fresh and raw dog food which can help owners learn the ropes.
Meet Caelan, Alkai & Joey
There is always a trade-off between time, money and quality when it comes to cooking. I always say feed the best food you can afford with your budget, whether that is a little bit of a fresh or full fresh. Shop around for specials, build a good relationship with your butcher, buy in bulk and freeze. I go through some of these tips in my YouTube videos.
Food hygiene is essential when handling raw meat. Wear plastic gloves and always clean your hands, any utensils and preparation areas, as well as your dog’s bowl, between meals. While we’ve all experienced it at some point, it’s a bad idea to let your dog lick yours or your children’s faces—this can transmit bacteria.
Q:Of all the recipes and videos you have done, which is your favourite?
After over 400 videos it’s hard to pick! Birthday cakes are always fun—we make these for our clients and can cover all manner of themes. It’s as much fun for the owner to make as the dog to eat!
Q:What kind of viewership changes have you seen since you started making these videos?
The community has transformed since our early days and we’re so grateful to everyone who has been there from the start. We are seeing more and more owners of cats and other pets who are looking to feed fresh. Some of our followers may not even have a pet yet, but find the videos satisfying.
It’s a mixed community now and as the trends and specific areas of interest shift, I try to keep our core theme at the heart.
Q:What has been your proudest Chefs and Dogs moment so far?
While it’s fun to make viral content—I never would have thought I’d hit a million followers and receive almost 50 million video views a month—it’s the small things that have made me proud. In the early hours when I wrap up my work with the food business, I usually create a video and read through all of the comments and direct messages.
Hearing stories of pet-owners who have been inspired by my videos to feed their pets fresh food is hugely gratifying. You may have guessed I love dogs and the transformative impact they can have on our lives as owners, so I love hearing when it goes the other way.
Q:What is your ultimate vision and goal for Chefs & Dogs?
The vision has always been the same—spread awareness about the benefits of nutrition for a dog’s diet. I’d love to see fresh feeding becoming the norm, or at least fresh food be considered the most desirable diet for pets – just as it is for humans.
Daniel, founder of Chefs & Dogs
Follow Daniel & fam on their TikTok, Instagram or Youtube to learn more about fresh feeding for your pets! ?
Do you love such feature stories? Comment below and let us know who do you want us to interview next!
We are two sisters who stumbled upon Tiktok in August 2019. Out of curiosity, we downloaded it. We were just scrolling through and came across a “petswave” trend. We found it cute, and thought of trying it out. Within a few minutes of posting, there were already views, likes and comments. By the next day, it was already 20,000 views.
After the first video, we started to grow a huge interest in Tiktok. We decided to try a dance that was trending on Tiktok. We thought to ourselves that since people liked the first video, which was Tuti nodding her head and swaying, people would like her dancing. To our surprise, it got 100,000 views in a day.
What were the challenges we faced?
Even though we did trends and had views for some of our videos at the start, not every video thereafter did well. There were also some videos that did not do well. We did struggle for some time to find our niche. We kept trying trends and never gave up even when we didn’t get views or followers.
Cats are not easy to train, we would reward them with snacks after completing a Tiktok video. To add on, coming up with creative content ideas was tough as well. Not every trend was easy to fit into our niche. Sometimes, we would not be able to execute some ideas and have to think of others.
How did we gain 800,000 followers?
Our account grew slowly. It was only after we found our niche that we were able to grow more. When we did Yuki’s first positive video, we had around 100,000 followers. Yuki’s positive video was what people loved, and finally we found a niche for Yuki! We found Tuti’s niche by doing a trend which showed a point of view of Tuti being a boss cat, and it went viral with over 13 million views!
How do we come up with content ideas?
Content ideas are not easy, and we struggle till today to come up with them! There are also videos that we have done but never posted because we feel like the execution is poor.
It does take up time, Tiktok videos are mostly 15-60 seconds, but it mostly takes us hours to execute just one video.
Why we love doing Tiktoks?
After getting known for Yuki’s positive videos, we would receive messages everyday on our Tiktok and on our Instagram, of how much Yuki’s video has helped them! It is truly heartwarming, as we didn’t expect we could be helping people. People started saying that even Tuti makes them happy!
As for Yuki’s positive videos, we would use our own emotions and feelings to keep it as real as possible.
We are extremely grateful for all of our supporters! It feels surreal that we receive fan arts and fan edits everyday. We never thought we would reach this far the moment we started Tiktok.
