We discuss the various options for bringing pets to Walt Disney World and interview Abby, owner of Polka Dot Paws, about her Disney-themed pet products and how she creates magic for our furry friends.
Use the promo code DISLOVE25 to receive free shipping from Abbey's Etsy shop.
• Four pet-friendly resorts at Disney World: Port Orleans Riverside, Art of Animation, Yacht Club, and Fort Wilderness cabins
• Each pet gets Pluto's Welcome Kit with bowls, ID tag, and maps to pet relief areas
• Additional pet fee ranges from $50-$75 per night depending on resort and season
• Dogs cannot be left alone for more than seven hours and must be crated when alone
• Best Friends Pet Care near Disney Springs offers day care and overnight boarding with VIP options
• Disney Tales Collection at Disney Springs Co-op area specializes in Disney pet merchandise
• Abby from Polka Dot Paws creates custom pet bandanas, mouse ears for service dogs, and Disney-inspired home items
• She can create custom items matching cast member costumes for service dogs
• Find Polka Dot Paws on Etsy and Instagram with ready-to-ship and custom options
Hear Abbey's first episode with us from 2018 through this link.
Use code dislove10 to save 10% off your next Where in the Park Scavenger Hunt Game Packs order.
High quality, clean baby gear delivered right to your resort while on your Disney Vacation.
Use the code "dislove10" to save 10%!
Where In the Park game packs are fun & challenging for anyone who knows the parks and for newbies.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.
For all the latest news about our episodes follow us on Instagram @dislovewithvanessaandkris or on YouTube.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:26):
Welcome to the Diz Love Podcast with Vanessa and
Chris.
I'm Vanessa Ferguson.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
And I'm Chris Johns.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
We would like to welcome you to show number 157.
And for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney and in each episode we
have a guest who creates Disneymagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacations.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney magic into yourlife.
We'd like to remind our gueststo make sure to take a time to
(00:55):
review us on Apple Podcasts orany other platform where you
listen.
We always like to givelisteners a shout out and of
course, that helps the show grow.
And before we get started, wehave a message from some of our
friends.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Yes, our good friends Kevin and Amanda want you to
get the full experience everytime you go to your next park,
whether that be Disney World,disneyland or a host of other
amusement parks across thecountry.
They've created an awesomething.
It's called we're in the ParkScavenger Hunt Game Packs, and
what's awesome about this isthat it rewards people who have
(01:28):
a lot of experience in the park,but also those with a keen eye.
So, even if you're new, itgives you something to look for,
because, as you know, whenyou're in Disney World, there's
always something new that youmight have never noticed.
But with that detail, you canfind out.
And so use the code dislove10d-i-s-l-o-v-e-1-0 dislove10 to
save 10% off your next order.
(01:49):
That code's in the show notesand you can also find the link.
And what I really appreciate andI think Vanessa will know and
we can attest, while I have beento Disney I am a member owner.
I've been there many times.
I don't pay that closelyattention to a lot of things.
I can't wait're going to end upmeeting Kevin and Amanda here
soon and we're going to try itout, and what's going to be
awesome is I'm going to discoversome new things and we're going
(02:11):
to be in California, which I'veonly had one visit to.
That said, this is awesome, somake your next.
He's been there twice, oh see.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
So make next Really.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Two times.
I do not remember that.
So make your next trip toDisney a scavenger hunt.
She was on show for episodefive and she was our first like
regular product vendor.
We had had a one of the travelplanners on, but she was our
first like vendor, so we'resuper excited to have her back
on the show and in light of whatPolka Dot Paws is all about,
(02:58):
which is a lot of great productsfor your favorite pup.
She also has a few other newthings which she's going to talk
about, but I decided to talkabout bringing your pets to Walt
Disney World.
I will say our dog that we haveright now she is not a traveler.
Our previous dog was not atraveler, but we have lots of
friends that have dogs that aregreat travelers.
So we're going to dive into allof the different things that go
(03:21):
into bringing a dog to Disneyor other animals.
We're going to talk about someof the pet friendly resorts Best
Friends Pet Care Center, whichwe have our good friends, ann
and Ed, rave about Best Friends,and then, of course, for those
of you that are like us, who youcan't really bring your fur
babies with you, some greatplaces that you can shop for
them.
And of course it's importantwhen you are planning to know
(03:44):
the ins and outs, becauseobviously we're not just
bringing our dog to any resort,we have to be very particular in
it.
So there are four resorts onproperty where you can bring
dogs and we have stayed at allbut one of these.
Chris, could you guess oneresort where you could bring a
dog?
It's one of our favoriteresorts.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Grand Floridian.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
No one of our favorites from forever, where
we've always gone a long time.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
Port Orleans.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Yes, yes.
So Port Orleans Riverside, youcan also bring a dog to Art of
Animation, which we've stayedthere as well, yacht Club Resort
we've only stayed at.
Actually, we've not stayed atBeach Club or Yacht Club, we've
been at Boardwalk and thencabins at Fort Wilderness.
So Art of Animation, portOrleans Riverside, yacht Club
and Fort Wilderness, the cabins,and so the nice thing is that
(04:32):
if you are somebody who maybeyou have an allergy or something
you can't be around pets, don'tbe alarmed.
There are certain pet friendlybuildings, so that means that
you're not going to see a dogeverywhere, there's just certain
spots.
And one of the things that isimportant to know, too, is that
of course, there's an extra fee,just like with anything, and I
(04:52):
think we would all understandthat.
But listen to this, chris, thisis kind of fun.
All of the pets get Pluto'sWelcome Kit.
Wow, yeah, so it comes with amat, bowls, a pet ID tag,
disposable bags, puppy pads anda map of the pet relief areas
around the resort, and dependingon where you stay and what time
of year and all of that, it's$50 to $75 extra per night.
(05:15):
So that's important to know,and there's going to be
designated areas at the resort.
So, as I just said, like thosepet relief areas.
So if I'm staying at PortOrleans Riverside and I don't
have my dog, I'm not just goingto randomly, let's just we're
going to say it, we're not goingto randomly step in dog poop
somewhere.
There are specific areas fordogs to be leashed on and
there's a couple of other rules,like if you are going to the
(05:37):
parks which most of us, when wego on most of our trips we are
going to the parks you cannotleave your dog in the room for
more than seven hours, which Ithink that's usually typical
about how long you'd leave a dogat home or something, and if
you leave them they have to bein a crate.
So if your pup is not cratetrained, then you would want to
investigate some of the otheroptions that we're going to talk
(05:59):
about with best friends.
So one of the things is thatthere of course are if your dog
is barking excessively orsomething, disney will contact
you and let you know you need tocome back to the resort.
But that's one of the like ourdog we have now.
She is a barker when we're athome, so we could not take her.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
No.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Sadie would not do well.
But another thing that isimportant to note too is that
when you are there for anextended period of time where
you would get housekeeping, theywill like kind of schedule it
with you to make sure that youhave a time where you'll have
the dog out of the room to beable to come and service the
room.
Now let's say you do bring yourdog, maybe you're staying off
(06:43):
property or you're at one ofthose pet friendly resorts, but
your dog just couldn't stay homethere's, couldn't stay in the
room by itself.
You also have best friends petcare, and we've not personally
had experience, but our friendsAnn and Ed they use it a lot and
they've always had such greatexperiences there.
They rave about the castmembers.
They always are showing us cutephotos and things about their
(07:05):
dog.
It's a full-service pet resortand it's actually near Disney
Springs and kind of that PortOrleans Saratoga Springs area,
so it's not too far and actuallywe used to pass it all the time
when we'd stay at Port Orleans.
Now the nice thing is,essentially they have everything
from like overnight stays.
(07:25):
So let's say you're not stayingat a I was just petting her yeah
, so one of the great things isthat this is a full service
resort, so you can do where youcheck them in for the whole day,
or you can have where they stayovernight, and they have all
kinds of.
It's so cute to see thedifferent suites they have.
(07:47):
They have bedtime stories thatyou can have added on tuck-in
service All kinds of greatthings.
They even allow kitties andrabbits as well, so it's a great
way for you to be able to haveyour pets cared for while you're
at the park.
Obviously, like, standardboarding is a lot different than
the VIP suites.
(08:08):
Vip suites come with TV timeand bedtime cuddles, so all
kinds of like little extras foryour pet.
And one of the things is,though, that you should book
early.
A lot of people I know thathave used it said that it's just
like anything else at Disneyyou got to be on, you got to
book it when that timeframecomes, because obviously other
(08:29):
people care about their pets andwant their pets there too, so
it's really important to makesure that you plan ahead.
If you're going to use BestFriends Now, let's say you are
not bringing your actual petwith you and you're like us, or
maybe your pet is with you andyou just want to spoil them a
little bit.
There is lots of great shoppingfor pet lovers at Disney and
(08:51):
there's a couple of specificshops.
Obviously you're going to findthings in the Emporium and some
of the bigger shops all acrossproperty, but there are a couple
that are just for pets things.
So over at Disney Springs inthe co-op area there is the
Disney Tales Collection.
They have lots of fun things.
We've gotten bandanas and bowlsand if you have a smaller pup,
(09:15):
little outfits and stuff andthen of course you can always
get an amazing bandana from Abbybeforehand.
But that's a great place that'slike just pet stuff.
And then obviously you cancheck out all the other shops
across property.
You'll find a lot of differentthings.
So it's really nice that Disneyrealizes that we all love our
(09:36):
pets dearly.
And for those of you who maybepets aren't your thing, just
know that Disney has it set upwhere it's not going to
interfere with your experiences.
I know I've even read in someDisney groups people have
allergies or different things.
If you're checking into aresort you can request to not be
near one of those buildings andyou can ask for an allergy
cleaning of your room, andDisney is always great at
(10:00):
accommodating when people haveany challenges or things that
they might need to address.
So just know that you're goingto be in good hands, no matter
what if you're bringing your pupor you're trying to avoid them,
but lots of different thingsfor you to be able to enjoy
bringing your pet with you.
And I'm going to have to ask ourfriend Ann for a picture.
She has a picture of her, oneof her girls and when they were
(10:21):
at Best Friends.
So again, don't hesitate totake your dog or your cat with
you.
They will be well taken care ofat Disney and, of course, you
can share those memories withthem and still enjoy your park
time as well.
So, before we get our call upwith Abby Chris, we have a
message from our friends Ericand Alexa.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Exactly If you're traveling with little ones.
Give our friends Eric and AlexaExactly.
If you're traveling with littleones, give our friends at
BabyQuip a call or, in this case, a link when planning your next
Disney vacation with littleones.
What's great about BabyQuip isthat they're going to bring to
you and your room new pieces ofequipment, whether that be a
stroller, a pack and play what'sa pack and play Vanessa it's
like those fold-up beds that youopen up.
(11:04):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
I never knew that it folds up into a rectangle kind
of boxy thing.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
So for many folks like us, we're traveling on a
plane.
A lot of this stuff is toocumbersome and too bulky to
bring on a plane, and so, withthat, take advantage of all the
great things Baby Quip does.
Eric and Alexa will take careof you, and their workers are
wonderful.
We've used them many times.
What's nice is that we havebeen able to get Karis on the
plane.
She's good through the airport,but in terms of Disney a long
day at Disney she cannot stillreally walk right now by herself
(11:29):
.
So what we've done is we'verented a stroller.
Every time we've got something.
It's been brand new, workswonderfully.
You can navigate the park likea champ and with that, check our
show notes to learn more aboutBabyQuip.
And again, not only are wegiving them a pitch, but we're
users.
We use their stuff.
It's brand new and please makeyour life easier, and I can tell
you right now, vanessa and I,we're packing for a big trip.
(11:51):
It's stressful.
Imagine, after all your bags,having to bring a stroller.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
One more thing and we're using Baby Quip even at
Disneyland.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Awesome.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
So give us just a minute and we're going to get
our show, our call up with Abby.
We would like to welcome Abbyback to the show.
Her shop, polka Dot Paws byAbby, has been one of our.
Really she was our first vendorguest way back in 2018.
So I'm going to put a link inthe show notes.
She was a guest in November2018 for episode five, so we are
(12:25):
so happy to welcome Polka dotpaws by abby back.
A little bit about her again.
Some things have changed sincewe all last met.
Um, she is a mom to a humanchild now, as she she puts it
along to her fur child, obi andher shop.
She is doing a lot of ready toship items, but she does still
(12:47):
do some custom items and, as youwould guess from the name, she
does a lot of really cute,awesome things for for dogs and
we've actually gotten stuff fortwo different dogs from her over
the years.
So she's a full-time workingmom and, of course, she loves to
keep her love for Disney alivewith with her shop.
So we'd like to welcome Abbyback to the show.
Speaker 3 (13:06):
Hello guys Hi.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Well, we always like to start off with asking what is
a favorite thing at a Disneypark.
So recently we've been askingpeople what is your favorite
show at any of the Disney parks?
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Okay, I think I'm gonna say World of color.
Um, I remember watching worldof color at dca um, I think the
year that it opened, which Ithink was 2010 um, and I
remember just being like blownaway, like that was like nothing
else I've ever watched.
(13:43):
So that's always been like oneof my favorites and like it.
Just, it just still gives methe goosebumps every time, and
then I just I have to havehonorable mention.
Is I really wish we had like afestival of the Lion King over
here on the West Coast, causethat's probably my favorite from
from Florida.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
Oh, for sure, and we're actually going to
Disneyland this weekend, sowe're excited to show our
daughter World of Color.
She's not saw it yet, so we'reexcited so great.
For sure Now, of course, we'veheard about your business years
ago, but we have a lot of newlisteners, so we'd love to have
you tell them about yourbusiness and what are the
products you offer connected toDisney.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Okay, so I started this back in, I think, 2016.
And I was just like makingsomething.
I think I was just at thefabric store and I saw like a
cute Star Wars fabric and my dogis named Obi after Obi-Wan
(14:47):
Kenobi and we're big Star Warsfans.
So I bought it and I was liketrying to think of what to do
with it and I decided to makehim a bandana.
And I didn't really like havingto like tie it around his neck,
so I wanted to make a kind thatyou could like hang off of his
collar.
So I sort of came up with my ownpattern and, um worked on it
(15:12):
for a while until it I felt likeit was, um, you know,
repeatable and consistent.
And then I worked on, um,different sizes, um, and then
that kind of just evolved overthe years.
But yeah, my, my main, my mainitem that I sell is is pet
bandanas.
It's a lot of dogs, but peoplealso like them for their cats.
(15:35):
In the smaller sizes it canwork for a cat, any animal that
wears a collar.
Really, I have made some forbunnies in the past.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Um, yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
And then, um, I've expanded kind of over the years.
I started making mouse ears fordogs.
Um, those are really popularwith, like, folks who have
service dogs that take them tothe parks, um, so I've got those
.
I've got a couple of otheritems now that are more like
home focused.
A couple of other items nowthat are more like home focused.
(16:12):
Um, there's um like some decalsthat I made that look like the
Disney park mailbox.
Um, those are pretty popular,and a couple other things here
and there, um, uh, like hairclips and um, uh, I I've I've
made over the years some like,uh, dog bowl mats that you can
put down under your, your pet'sbowls, um, so, yeah, but but the
(16:36):
the, um, the bandanas are kindof my main item and there is a
pretty big variety, but it is,you know, for my own interest,
mostly Disney-themed.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
That's awesome, and I have two quick questions.
The first one is how many timesdid it take you to perfect the
pattern for your first bandanafor your pup?
Speaker 3 (17:07):
bandana for your pup.
Um, I, you know I I don't knowif I give you an exact number,
but um, you know I I made thisoriginal one for him and it
actually kind of had likepointed ends, so it was like a
full triangle, and then Idecided to sort of make like the
ends be at a right angle, um,just feel a little cleaner.
So I kind of like changed that.
And then, um, my mom, my momand my grandma actually are um,
(17:30):
also, uh, seamstresses, so.
So I don't know what word welike to use, but um, so I
learned a lot from them and mymom gave me some feedback on,
like the early ones that Ishould, you know, turn the turn
the seams twice so that, uh,there's um, you know, it doesn't
start to unravel on the edges,and um, and then I kind of used
(17:54):
her dog and some other largerdogs to test out like the larger
sizes and come up with, likewhat are the know, what's a,
what's a good, like um, varietyof sizes, um, so I go extra
small, small, medium, large, um,and then, you know, I also do
offer sometimes to people um,like, if you have an extra large
(18:17):
or a really really tiny dog I.
I can customize the size.
So I actually have a friend whowell, an Instagram buddy who
you know, we became friendsthrough my business.
She has a teeny, tiny, like twopound Yorkie.
Oh wow Shout out to Simba ifhe's listening but yeah, he has
(18:40):
a custom size and then I've alsomade really huge ones for, like
people's big dogs.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
So yeah, Now you mentioned all the awesome things
you make.
What is the one product that,when somebody orders, it really
brings you joy to create?
Speaker 3 (18:56):
Oh, that's a good question.
I really like it's kind of a,it's kind of a two edged, double
edged sword, because I reallylike it when someone asks me to
you know kind of flex mycreative muscle and make
something really unique orreally like detailed, sure, but
(19:16):
then I also end up being like ohman, why did I make this so
detailed?
This is now taking me so mucheffort.
Or or then someone else sees itand is like oh, can you make me
one?
Speaker 1 (19:30):
And it's like oh, that took me so many hours, but
yeah, I'll make it again.
Now that ties into our otherquestion that we always like to
know how your products offerthat disney magic.
So do you have some examples ofsome of those different things
that you might have made?
Speaker 3 (19:39):
um, so some uh, what comes to mind, and those ones
that can be like reallyrewarding but also sometimes
frustrating, is had folksrequest for me to make like a
bandana that matches either likeis is inspired by, like
character costume at the parksor, like I made one that was
(20:00):
based on, like the Mickey uhMickey outfit that he wears on
one of the cruise lines.
And I've made bandanas that aremodeled after a cast member
costume that the person iseither just like a fan of or
folks who have a service dogthat they take to work with them
.
I've made a number of thoseover the years for people who
(20:22):
want their service dog to matchtheir cast member costume.
Oh nice, so those are alwaysreally fun.
But yeah, it can be a challengeto try to source something that
looks similar to the materialof the costume or, you know,
make something that matches thatlevel of detail.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
You know you mentioned all the awesome things
you make.
Where can people go online tofind your product?
Speaker 3 (20:45):
Yeah, so I sell on Etsy, um, under polka dot pause
by Abby.
I am also on Instagram, um, atpolka dot pause by Abby.
Um, you can, uh, and there'slinks there to to my Etsy shop,
um, but, yeah, that's uh, that'sthe kind of the best places to
find me online.
(21:06):
Um, and and uh, uh, you guyskind of mentioned um at the top
of the intro that, uh, I had ahuman child, um, so I'm I'm a
little less involved in my shopthan I was a few years ago, but,
um, you know, I definitely tryto keep that Um, I'm still open.
I switched to kind of selling alot of ready to ship items.
(21:28):
That way, you know, I can, Ican turn that around as soon as
you order it.
Um, but if you go to myInstagram, you can also see,
like, old things that I used tomake and, uh, I'm happy to, you
know, take a custom request fromsomeone who, even if you might
not see that in my shop anymore,if you just send me a message
and say, hey, you know, can youmake me this?
You know XYZ character?
(21:50):
Um, I'm happy to still still dothat as time allows, um, and
hopefully one day I'll be ableto um, put more effort back into
creating new items and stuff,but yeah, um, so definitely
check out Instagram if you wantto see things that you might not
be able to see in the shopanymore now, what is your?
Speaker 1 (22:09):
so let's say, our dog's birthday is coming up and
we wanted to get her something.
What's the typical turnaroundtime if I need to order
something from your shop?
Speaker 3 (22:20):
um, most stuff that is on my Etsy shop is ready to
ship, so I get that into themail.
I think.
I think it is within a week,but it's usually quicker than
that because it's all ready togo.
I just need to drop it off.
So essentially like two weeksmaximum, because you know,
(22:41):
probably takes three to fivedays in the mail, um, but and
then if you, if you want torequest something more, uh,
custom, probably two to threeweeks um to make it and then
shipping time.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
So so about about three weeks now, if you had to
pick your favorite item in yourshop right now, what is that?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
oh, that's a good question.
Um, I don't know, I really um,I have um just a variety of of
of random stuff in there.
I'm trying to think what.
(23:23):
What would be my favorite rightnow?
Speaker 1 (23:26):
um that's okay, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (23:32):
I don't know, maybe the um.
Well, I really do like the um.
I I've made this.
Uh, this is actually not a petitem, but it's something that's
been really popular lately isthe mailbox decal.
It's like a stick-on thing thatyou can put on like a box or
you know whatever you want tostick it on with.
(23:52):
It says Disneyland or DisneyWorld mailbox and it looks like
those green mailboxes that yousee on Main Street.
And there was an item that Iput mine on that was from Ikea,
which Ikea stopped making, butum, you can sometimes find them
or something similar online andum kind of just brings that like
little, that little main streettouch to your, to your home.
(24:16):
You feel like you're walkingdown main street and you know I
I keep like my mail in it, mylike incoming mail, my bills and
stuff.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So, yeah, well, we will make sure to put the links,
of course, to all of yoursocials and to your shop in the
show notes and also a throwbackto our first episode together.
But thank you so much forjoining us again, abby.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
Yeah, thanks for having me.
I hope you guys have fun atDisneyland this weekend.
I'm very jealous.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
Thank you so much.
We are excited it's been a fewyears since we've been there, so
thanks so much for being withus.
Speaker 2 (24:51):
Thank you again to Abby for joining us today.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
And now we are on to our two-minute trivia and our
wisdom.
From Walt quote and Chris,you're up with trivia.
Mickey and Minnie have a pet.
What's the name of that pet,pluto.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
Trivia Mickey and Minnie have a pet.
What's the name of that pet?
Pluto.
Donald Duck has a pet.
What is the name of his pet?
Speaker 1 (25:07):
Can you tell me what kind of pet it is?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
It's a St.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
Bernard, I have absolutely.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
It's probably something weird like Rufus or
something.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
It's actually named after a Spanish liberator.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
That doesn't help me at all.
Bolivar the Saint Bernard.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
Oh wow, I'm going to have to look up and see a
picture of him.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
He first appeared in 1936, and I don't know how many
times.
You probably kind of one fingerthe number of times Bolivar has
shown up outside of that.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
Well, that goes to show we heard trivia a while ago
that Donald Duck has the mostnumber of shows made after him
more than Mickey.
So that makes sense that hewould have a dog too.
All right, so let's round out.
We're talking about pets, we'retalking about animals, so I
thought this was a great quotefrom Walt.
Animals have personalities likepeople, and must be studied,
(26:04):
isn't that true?
We never know what they'rethinking.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
We, sure don't.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
So thank you so much for joining us on this episode
of the Diz Love podcast.
Don't forget to check out ourother episodes on Buzzsprout and
to follow us on social media.
Again, I'm Vanessa.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
And I'm Vanessa and I'm Chris.
This podcast is not affiliatedwith the Walt Disney Company or
its holdings, and it is intendedfor entertainment purposes only
.
Welcome to the Diz Love Podcast with Vanessa and
Chris.
I'm Vanessa Ferguson.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
And I'm Chris Johns.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
We would like to welcome you to show number 157.
And for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney and in each episode we
have a guest who creates Disneymagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacations.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney magic into yourlife.
We'd like to remind our gueststo make sure to take a time to
(00:55):
review us on Apple Podcasts orany other platform where you
listen.
We always like to givelisteners a shout out and of
course, that helps the show grow.
And before we get started, wehave a message from some of our
friends.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Yes, our good friends Kevin and Amanda want you to
get the full experience everytime you go to your next park,
whether that be Disney World,disneyland or a host of other
amusement parks across thecountry.
They've created an awesomething.
It's called we're in the ParkScavenger Hunt Game Packs, and
what's awesome about this isthat it rewards people who have
(01:28):
a lot of experience in the park,but also those with a keen eye.
So, even if you're new, itgives you something to look for,
because, as you know, whenyou're in Disney World, there's
always something new that youmight have never noticed.
But with that detail, you canfind out.
And so use the code dislove10d-i-s-l-o-v-e-1-0 dislove10 to
save 10% off your next order.
(01:49):
That code's in the show notesand you can also find the link.
And what I really appreciate andI think Vanessa will know and
we can attest, while I have beento Disney I am a member owner.
I've been there many times.
I don't pay that closelyattention to a lot of things.
I can't wait're going to end upmeeting Kevin and Amanda here
soon and we're going to try itout, and what's going to be
awesome is I'm going to discoversome new things and we're going
(02:11):
to be in California, which I'veonly had one visit to.
That said, this is awesome, somake your next.
He's been there twice, oh see.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
So make next Really.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Two times.
I do not remember that.
So make your next trip toDisney a scavenger hunt.
She was on show for episodefive and she was our first like
regular product vendor.
We had had a one of the travelplanners on, but she was our
first like vendor, so we'resuper excited to have her back
on the show and in light of whatPolka Dot Paws is all about,
(02:58):
which is a lot of great productsfor your favorite pup.
She also has a few other newthings which she's going to talk
about, but I decided to talkabout bringing your pets to Walt
Disney World.
I will say our dog that we haveright now she is not a traveler.
Our previous dog was not atraveler, but we have lots of
friends that have dogs that aregreat travelers.
So we're going to dive into allof the different things that go
(03:21):
into bringing a dog to Disneyor other animals.
We're going to talk about someof the pet friendly resorts Best
Friends Pet Care Center, whichwe have our good friends, ann
and Ed, rave about Best Friends,and then, of course, for those
of you that are like us, who youcan't really bring your fur
babies with you, some greatplaces that you can shop for
them.
And of course it's importantwhen you are planning to know
(03:44):
the ins and outs, becauseobviously we're not just
bringing our dog to any resort,we have to be very particular in
it.
So there are four resorts onproperty where you can bring
dogs and we have stayed at allbut one of these.
Chris, could you guess oneresort where you could bring a
dog?
It's one of our favoriteresorts.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Grand Floridian.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
No one of our favorites from forever, where
we've always gone a long time.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
Port Orleans.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Yes, yes.
So Port Orleans Riverside, youcan also bring a dog to Art of
Animation, which we've stayedthere as well, yacht Club Resort
we've only stayed at.
Actually, we've not stayed atBeach Club or Yacht Club, we've
been at Boardwalk and thencabins at Fort Wilderness.
So Art of Animation, portOrleans Riverside, yacht Club
and Fort Wilderness, the cabins,and so the nice thing is that
(04:32):
if you are somebody who maybeyou have an allergy or something
you can't be around pets, don'tbe alarmed.
There are certain pet friendlybuildings, so that means that
you're not going to see a dogeverywhere, there's just certain
spots.
And one of the things that isimportant to know, too, is that
of course, there's an extra fee,just like with anything, and I
(04:52):
think we would all understandthat.
But listen to this, chris, thisis kind of fun.
All of the pets get Pluto'sWelcome Kit.
Wow, yeah, so it comes with amat, bowls, a pet ID tag,
disposable bags, puppy pads anda map of the pet relief areas
around the resort, and dependingon where you stay and what time
of year and all of that, it's$50 to $75 extra per night.
(05:15):
So that's important to know,and there's going to be
designated areas at the resort.
So, as I just said, like thosepet relief areas.
So if I'm staying at PortOrleans Riverside and I don't
have my dog, I'm not just goingto randomly, let's just we're
going to say it, we're not goingto randomly step in dog poop
somewhere.
There are specific areas fordogs to be leashed on and
there's a couple of other rules,like if you are going to the
(05:37):
parks which most of us, when wego on most of our trips we are
going to the parks you cannotleave your dog in the room for
more than seven hours, which Ithink that's usually typical
about how long you'd leave a dogat home or something, and if
you leave them they have to bein a crate.
So if your pup is not cratetrained, then you would want to
investigate some of the otheroptions that we're going to talk
(05:59):
about with best friends.
So one of the things is thatthere of course are if your dog
is barking excessively orsomething, disney will contact
you and let you know you need tocome back to the resort.
But that's one of the like ourdog we have now.
She is a barker when we're athome, so we could not take her.
Speaker 2 (06:20):
No.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
Sadie would not do well.
But another thing that isimportant to note too is that
when you are there for anextended period of time where
you would get housekeeping, theywill like kind of schedule it
with you to make sure that youhave a time where you'll have
the dog out of the room to beable to come and service the
room.
Now let's say you do bring yourdog, maybe you're staying off
(06:43):
property or you're at one ofthose pet friendly resorts, but
your dog just couldn't stay homethere's, couldn't stay in the
room by itself.
You also have best friends petcare, and we've not personally
had experience, but our friendsAnn and Ed they use it a lot and
they've always had such greatexperiences there.
They rave about the castmembers.
They always are showing us cutephotos and things about their
(07:05):
dog.
It's a full-service pet resortand it's actually near Disney
Springs and kind of that PortOrleans Saratoga Springs area,
so it's not too far and actuallywe used to pass it all the time
when we'd stay at Port Orleans.
Now the nice thing is,essentially they have everything
from like overnight stays.
(07:25):
So let's say you're not stayingat a I was just petting her yeah
, so one of the great things isthat this is a full service
resort, so you can do where youcheck them in for the whole day,
or you can have where they stayovernight, and they have all
kinds of.
It's so cute to see thedifferent suites they have.
(07:47):
They have bedtime stories thatyou can have added on tuck-in
service All kinds of greatthings.
They even allow kitties andrabbits as well, so it's a great
way for you to be able to haveyour pets cared for while you're
at the park.
Obviously, like, standardboarding is a lot different than
the VIP suites.
(08:08):
Vip suites come with TV timeand bedtime cuddles, so all
kinds of like little extras foryour pet.
And one of the things is,though, that you should book
early.
A lot of people I know thathave used it said that it's just
like anything else at Disneyyou got to be on, you got to
book it when that timeframecomes, because obviously other
(08:29):
people care about their pets andwant their pets there too, so
it's really important to makesure that you plan ahead.
If you're going to use BestFriends Now, let's say you are
not bringing your actual petwith you and you're like us, or
maybe your pet is with you andyou just want to spoil them a
little bit.
There is lots of great shoppingfor pet lovers at Disney and
(08:51):
there's a couple of specificshops.
Obviously you're going to findthings in the Emporium and some
of the bigger shops all acrossproperty, but there are a couple
that are just for pets things.
So over at Disney Springs inthe co-op area there is the
Disney Tales Collection.
They have lots of fun things.
We've gotten bandanas and bowlsand if you have a smaller pup,
(09:15):
little outfits and stuff andthen of course you can always
get an amazing bandana from Abbybeforehand.
But that's a great place that'slike just pet stuff.
And then obviously you cancheck out all the other shops
across property.
You'll find a lot of differentthings.
So it's really nice that Disneyrealizes that we all love our
(09:36):
pets dearly.
And for those of you who maybepets aren't your thing, just
know that Disney has it set upwhere it's not going to
interfere with your experiences.
I know I've even read in someDisney groups people have
allergies or different things.
If you're checking into aresort you can request to not be
near one of those buildings andyou can ask for an allergy
cleaning of your room, andDisney is always great at
(10:00):
accommodating when people haveany challenges or things that
they might need to address.
So just know that you're goingto be in good hands, no matter
what if you're bringing your pupor you're trying to avoid them,
but lots of different thingsfor you to be able to enjoy
bringing your pet with you.
And I'm going to have to ask ourfriend Ann for a picture.
She has a picture of her, oneof her girls and when they were
(10:21):
at Best Friends.
So again, don't hesitate totake your dog or your cat with
you.
They will be well taken care ofat Disney and, of course, you
can share those memories withthem and still enjoy your park
time as well.
So, before we get our call upwith Abby Chris, we have a
message from our friends Ericand Alexa.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Exactly If you're traveling with little ones.
Give our friends Eric and AlexaExactly.
If you're traveling with littleones, give our friends at
BabyQuip a call or, in this case, a link when planning your next
Disney vacation with littleones.
What's great about BabyQuip isthat they're going to bring to
you and your room new pieces ofequipment, whether that be a
stroller, a pack and play what'sa pack and play Vanessa it's
like those fold-up beds that youopen up.
(11:04):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
I never knew that it folds up into a rectangle kind
of boxy thing.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
So for many folks like us, we're traveling on a
plane.
A lot of this stuff is toocumbersome and too bulky to
bring on a plane, and so, withthat, take advantage of all the
great things Baby Quip does.
Eric and Alexa will take careof you, and their workers are
wonderful.
We've used them many times.
What's nice is that we havebeen able to get Karis on the
plane.
She's good through the airport,but in terms of Disney a long
day at Disney she cannot stillreally walk right now by herself
(11:29):
.
So what we've done is we'verented a stroller.
Every time we've got something.
It's been brand new, workswonderfully.
You can navigate the park likea champ and with that, check our
show notes to learn more aboutBabyQuip.
And again, not only are wegiving them a pitch, but we're
users.
We use their stuff.
It's brand new and please makeyour life easier, and I can tell
you right now, vanessa and I,we're packing for a big trip.
(11:51):
It's stressful.
Imagine, after all your bags,having to bring a stroller.
Speaker 1 (11:55):
One more thing and we're using Baby Quip even at
Disneyland.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Awesome.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
So give us just a minute and we're going to get
our show, our call up with Abby.
We would like to welcome Abbyback to the show.
Her shop, polka Dot Paws byAbby, has been one of our.
Really she was our first vendorguest way back in 2018.
So I'm going to put a link inthe show notes.
She was a guest in November2018 for episode five, so we are
(12:25):
so happy to welcome Polka dotpaws by abby back.
A little bit about her again.
Some things have changed sincewe all last met.
Um, she is a mom to a humanchild now, as she she puts it
along to her fur child, obi andher shop.
She is doing a lot of ready toship items, but she does still
(12:47):
do some custom items and, as youwould guess from the name, she
does a lot of really cute,awesome things for for dogs and
we've actually gotten stuff fortwo different dogs from her over
the years.
So she's a full-time workingmom and, of course, she loves to
keep her love for Disney alivewith with her shop.
So we'd like to welcome Abbyback to the show.
Speaker 3 (13:06):
Hello guys Hi.
Speaker 1 (13:09):
Well, we always like to start off with asking what is
a favorite thing at a Disneypark.
So recently we've been askingpeople what is your favorite
show at any of the Disney parks?
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Okay, I think I'm gonna say World of color.
Um, I remember watching worldof color at dca um, I think the
year that it opened, which Ithink was 2010 um, and I
remember just being like blownaway, like that was like nothing
else I've ever watched.
(13:43):
So that's always been like oneof my favorites and like it.
Just, it just still gives methe goosebumps every time, and
then I just I have to havehonorable mention.
Is I really wish we had like afestival of the Lion King over
here on the West Coast, causethat's probably my favorite from
from Florida.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
Oh, for sure, and we're actually going to
Disneyland this weekend, sowe're excited to show our
daughter World of Color.
She's not saw it yet, so we'reexcited so great.
For sure Now, of course, we'veheard about your business years
ago, but we have a lot of newlisteners, so we'd love to have
you tell them about yourbusiness and what are the
products you offer connected toDisney.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
Okay, so I started this back in, I think, 2016.
And I was just like makingsomething.
I think I was just at thefabric store and I saw like a
cute Star Wars fabric and my dogis named Obi after Obi-Wan
(14:47):
Kenobi and we're big Star Warsfans.
So I bought it and I was liketrying to think of what to do
with it and I decided to makehim a bandana.
And I didn't really like havingto like tie it around his neck,
so I wanted to make a kind thatyou could like hang off of his
collar.
So I sort of came up with my ownpattern and, um worked on it
(15:12):
for a while until it I felt likeit was, um, you know,
repeatable and consistent.
And then I worked on, um,different sizes, um, and then
that kind of just evolved overthe years.
But yeah, my, my main, my mainitem that I sell is is pet
bandanas.
It's a lot of dogs, but peoplealso like them for their cats.
(15:35):
In the smaller sizes it canwork for a cat, any animal that
wears a collar.
Really, I have made some forbunnies in the past.
Speaker 1 (15:45):
Um, yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
And then, um, I've expanded kind of over the years.
I started making mouse ears fordogs.
Um, those are really popularwith, like, folks who have
service dogs that take them tothe parks, um, so I've got those
.
I've got a couple of otheritems now that are more like
home focused.
A couple of other items nowthat are more like home focused.
(16:12):
Um, there's um like some decalsthat I made that look like the
Disney park mailbox.
Um, those are pretty popular,and a couple other things here
and there, um, uh, like hairclips and um, uh, I I've I've
made over the years some like,uh, dog bowl mats that you can
put down under your, your pet'sbowls, um, so, yeah, but but the
(16:36):
the, um, the bandanas are kindof my main item and there is a
pretty big variety, but it is,you know, for my own interest,
mostly Disney-themed.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
That's awesome, and I have two quick questions.
The first one is how many timesdid it take you to perfect the
pattern for your first bandanafor your pup?
Speaker 3 (17:07):
bandana for your pup.
Um, I, you know I I don't knowif I give you an exact number,
but um, you know I I made thisoriginal one for him and it
actually kind of had likepointed ends, so it was like a
full triangle, and then Idecided to sort of make like the
ends be at a right angle, um,just feel a little cleaner.
So I kind of like changed that.
And then, um, my mom, my momand my grandma actually are um,
(17:30):
also, uh, seamstresses, so.
So I don't know what word welike to use, but um, so I
learned a lot from them and mymom gave me some feedback on,
like the early ones that Ishould, you know, turn the turn
the seams twice so that, uh,there's um, you know, it doesn't
start to unravel on the edges,and um, and then I kind of used
(17:54):
her dog and some other largerdogs to test out like the larger
sizes and come up with, likewhat are the know, what's a,
what's a good, like um, varietyof sizes, um, so I go extra
small, small, medium, large, um,and then, you know, I also do
offer sometimes to people um,like, if you have an extra large
(18:17):
or a really really tiny dog I.
I can customize the size.
So I actually have a friend whowell, an Instagram buddy who
you know, we became friendsthrough my business.
She has a teeny, tiny, like twopound Yorkie.
Oh wow Shout out to Simba ifhe's listening but yeah, he has
(18:40):
a custom size and then I've alsomade really huge ones for, like
people's big dogs.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
So yeah, Now you mentioned all the awesome things
you make.
What is the one product that,when somebody orders, it really
brings you joy to create?
Speaker 3 (18:56):
Oh, that's a good question.
I really like it's kind of a,it's kind of a two edged, double
edged sword, because I reallylike it when someone asks me to
you know kind of flex mycreative muscle and make
something really unique orreally like detailed, sure, but
(19:16):
then I also end up being like ohman, why did I make this so
detailed?
This is now taking me so mucheffort.
Or or then someone else sees itand is like oh, can you make me
one?
Speaker 1 (19:30):
And it's like oh, that took me so many hours, but
yeah, I'll make it again.
Now that ties into our otherquestion that we always like to
know how your products offerthat disney magic.
So do you have some examples ofsome of those different things
that you might have made?
Speaker 3 (19:39):
um, so some uh, what comes to mind, and those ones
that can be like reallyrewarding but also sometimes
frustrating, is had folksrequest for me to make like a
bandana that matches either likeis is inspired by, like
character costume at the parksor, like I made one that was
(20:00):
based on, like the Mickey uhMickey outfit that he wears on
one of the cruise lines.
And I've made bandanas that aremodeled after a cast member
costume that the person iseither just like a fan of or
folks who have a service dogthat they take to work with them
.
I've made a number of thoseover the years for people who
(20:22):
want their service dog to matchtheir cast member costume.
Oh nice, so those are alwaysreally fun.
But yeah, it can be a challengeto try to source something that
looks similar to the materialof the costume or, you know,
make something that matches thatlevel of detail.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
You know you mentioned all the awesome things
you make.
Where can people go online tofind your product?
Speaker 3 (20:45):
Yeah, so I sell on Etsy, um, under polka dot pause
by Abby.
I am also on Instagram, um, atpolka dot pause by Abby.
Um, you can, uh, and there'slinks there to to my Etsy shop,
um, but, yeah, that's uh, that'sthe kind of the best places to
find me online.
(21:06):
Um, and and uh, uh, you guyskind of mentioned um at the top
of the intro that, uh, I had ahuman child, um, so I'm I'm a
little less involved in my shopthan I was a few years ago, but,
um, you know, I definitely tryto keep that Um, I'm still open.
I switched to kind of selling alot of ready to ship items.
(21:28):
That way, you know, I can, Ican turn that around as soon as
you order it.
Um, but if you go to myInstagram, you can also see,
like, old things that I used tomake and, uh, I'm happy to, you
know, take a custom request fromsomeone who, even if you might
not see that in my shop anymore,if you just send me a message
and say, hey, you know, can youmake me this?
You know XYZ character?
(21:50):
Um, I'm happy to still still dothat as time allows, um, and
hopefully one day I'll be ableto um, put more effort back into
creating new items and stuff,but yeah, um, so definitely
check out Instagram if you wantto see things that you might not
be able to see in the shopanymore now, what is your?
Speaker 1 (22:09):
so let's say, our dog's birthday is coming up and
we wanted to get her something.
What's the typical turnaroundtime if I need to order
something from your shop?
Speaker 3 (22:20):
um, most stuff that is on my Etsy shop is ready to
ship, so I get that into themail.
I think.
I think it is within a week,but it's usually quicker than
that because it's all ready togo.
I just need to drop it off.
So essentially like two weeksmaximum, because you know,
(22:41):
probably takes three to fivedays in the mail, um, but and
then if you, if you want torequest something more, uh,
custom, probably two to threeweeks um to make it and then
shipping time.
Speaker 1 (22:54):
So so about about three weeks now, if you had to
pick your favorite item in yourshop right now, what is that?
Speaker 3 (23:03):
oh, that's a good question.
Um, I don't know, I really um,I have um just a variety of of
of random stuff in there.
I'm trying to think what.
(23:23):
What would be my favorite rightnow?
Speaker 1 (23:26):
um that's okay, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (23:32):
I don't know, maybe the um.
Well, I really do like the um.
I I've made this.
Uh, this is actually not a petitem, but it's something that's
been really popular lately isthe mailbox decal.
It's like a stick-on thing thatyou can put on like a box or
you know whatever you want tostick it on with.
(23:52):
It says Disneyland or DisneyWorld mailbox and it looks like
those green mailboxes that yousee on Main Street.
And there was an item that Iput mine on that was from Ikea,
which Ikea stopped making, butum, you can sometimes find them
or something similar online andum kind of just brings that like
little, that little main streettouch to your, to your home.
(24:16):
You feel like you're walkingdown main street and you know I
I keep like my mail in it, mylike incoming mail, my bills and
stuff.
Speaker 1 (24:25):
So, yeah, well, we will make sure to put the links,
of course, to all of yoursocials and to your shop in the
show notes and also a throwbackto our first episode together.
But thank you so much forjoining us again, abby.
Speaker 3 (24:39):
Yeah, thanks for having me.
I hope you guys have fun atDisneyland this weekend.
I'm very jealous.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
Thank you so much.
We are excited it's been a fewyears since we've been there, so
thanks so much for being withus.
Speaker 2 (24:51):
Thank you again to Abby for joining us today.
Speaker 1 (24:54):
And now we are on to our two-minute trivia and our
wisdom.
From Walt quote and Chris,you're up with trivia.
Mickey and Minnie have a pet.
What's the name of that pet,pluto.
Speaker 2 (24:59):
Trivia Mickey and Minnie have a pet.
What's the name of that pet?
Pluto.
Donald Duck has a pet.
What is the name of his pet?
Speaker 1 (25:07):
Can you tell me what kind of pet it is?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
It's a St.
Speaker 1 (25:11):
Bernard, I have absolutely.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
It's probably something weird like Rufus or
something.
Speaker 1 (25:24):
It's actually named after a Spanish liberator.
Speaker 2 (25:26):
That doesn't help me at all.
Bolivar the Saint Bernard.
Speaker 1 (25:30):
Oh wow, I'm going to have to look up and see a
picture of him.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
He first appeared in 1936, and I don't know how many
times.
You probably kind of one fingerthe number of times Bolivar has
shown up outside of that.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
Well, that goes to show we heard trivia a while ago
that Donald Duck has the mostnumber of shows made after him
more than Mickey.
So that makes sense that hewould have a dog too.
All right, so let's round out.
We're talking about pets, we'retalking about animals, so I
thought this was a great quotefrom Walt.
Animals have personalities likepeople, and must be studied,
(26:04):
isn't that true?
We never know what they'rethinking.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
We, sure don't.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
So thank you so much for joining us on this episode
of the Diz Love podcast.
Don't forget to check out ourother episodes on Buzzsprout and
to follow us on social media.
Again, I'm Vanessa.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
And I'm Vanessa and I'm Chris.
This podcast is not affiliatedwith the Walt Disney Company or
its holdings, and it is intendedfor entertainment purposes only
.
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