Doggy Style (thedoghouse.co.uk)

Member Name: susie19

Product:	thedoghouse.co.uk
Date:	19/06/06 (507 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots of gift choice, easy to navigate and email reminder service.

Disadvantages: You might spend more than you intended!

I’m not particularly fond of dogs especially after having had a big hairy one slobber all over my bare legs this morning which also tried to nip me through its muzzle. Yuk. Recently however, I have discovered a lovely non slobbery, hairless and stylish doggy to help me out. Are you sitting comfortably?

If you’re anything like me (you can still like dogs if you wish), you may find that trawling the High Street or even browsing posh indoor shopping centres gets a bit wearing when you’re looking to buy gifts for that hard to buy for person. I find myself groaning at the idea now, funny really, I used to so love shopping.

Thedoghouse.co.uk is an online shopping site, set up in 2003 which offers a reminder service (via email or SMS) to help you not to forget important dates. For those of you that can’t remember dates, this service could be a godsend, your very own get-me-out-of-the-doghouse card. The website also provides an online gift shop.

If you have never heard of thedoghouse.co.uk, you can be assured that this is a reputable site as it has recently claimed rank 5 position in the Hitwise Top 10 UK gift websites (firebox.com claimed the number one spot).

The website
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A smart black screen initially appears for a nano second before the stylish easy-on-the-eye doghouse website pages load. The website is well presented and offers a variety of options for browsing from the homepage. The doggy logo (can’t quite work it out…doggy eyes and doggy paws) is tucked into the top left hand corner and the dancing groovy dog logo can be found in the bottom left hand corner.

A funny aside on the homepage is news of who is currently in the doghouse. The other day it featured a snippet of news about Sir Cliff swearing, today it is the Beckhams v the Germans. There is also a full news and gossip section to thedoghouse website, with breaking news, sport, entertainment and more.

Doghouse Gifts
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The website has a wide range of gifts, gadgets and experience days out for men and women and a few gifts suitable for babies and children. Current categories to search include:

• Gadgets • Lifestyle & Home • Self Spoils • Office Fun • Adventures • Shares • Toys and Games • World Cup • Father’s Day

Products that can be found on thedoghouse website are wide ranging. I bought a selection of goods include a daft pair of googly eyed glasses for my son who always loves to play the fool, a reading book light for reading under the covers, a toy for a school party present and a smart CD carrier case. There are some fun gadgets like a blow up Hot Lips bath pillow, practical travel gadgets, adventure days out such as hot air balloon trips and Ferrari racing. There are more than 700 gifts to choose from so another thing I liked about thedoghouse website is that you can search by category but also by personality so you can choose gifts suited to:

• Beauty Nut • Bookworm • Sports Head • Naughty • Music / Film Buff • Fashion Plate • Flower Child • Odd Bod • Travel Bug • Gournet Lover • Sweet tooth

By the way, the naughty section requires adult consent to view gifts in this category, although there is nothing too offensive. Look out for the fun wee willy condoms if you need to deflate someones ego!

The top selling gifts are also listed on the homepage. Hot product of the moment is a Play & Freeze Ice Cream maker!

Navigating the Website
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As previously mentioned, browsing can be done via category or personality. There is also the ability to search the hundreds of gifts by price, £0-£10, £10-£20, £20-£50, £50-£100, £100+ and these can also be sorted by price low to high, high to low, A-Z or Z-A! This is useful and time saving if you are searching for a gift for a particular person or want to stick to a certain price range.

Buying from thedoghouse
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I recently placed an order for several items. The ordering process was simple, as with most other online shops, you simply add your desired items to the basket and proceed to the checkout when completed. I had a £5 voucher off a £25 order voucher which was easy to use at checkout. There are a variety of postal options; first class Royal Mail post costs £3.95 and next day delivery costs £5.95 (UK). After entering my delivery address and credit card details, I immediately received a confirmation email. The following day I heard by email that my goods were on their way and the goods arrived, neatly packaged in a cardboard box, the next day. All were present and correct.

Recommend?
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Lovely doggy style, highly recommended.

Summary: A website offering a great variety of gifts and an email reminder service.