Before I profess my love for Push Pushi and how its jackets keep our pet from getting wet, there’s something else I’ve got to say. As a fashion, food and travel blogger I’ve struggled in the coronavirus era. Writing about small shops and quirky places to eat usually brings me such joy. I love finding new things and helping other people discover them too, but these past few weeks my heart just hasn’t been in it. Maybe it’s because I’m worried about my family. Maybe it’s because I’m exhausted. Maybe it’s because I’m concerned about my day job and the clients who’ve vanished without paying their invoices. Maybe it’s because we can’t travel. Like millions of other people around the world, maybe it’s a million little things. Lately, instead of writing blog posts, I’ve channeled my energy into doodling on a little easel sharing fun facts, bad jokes and silly puns with my neighbors. I figure if my neighborhood billboard makes one person’s day a bit brighter, then the effort is worth it. Plus I get a hoot out of overhearing neighbors walking by reading my corny joke board to their kids.

A lavender colored whiteboard easel says, "Fun Fact: Raindrops are closer in shape to the top of a hamburger bun than a teardrop. Source: NASA.gov" Pink flamingos sit beside it in a Bay Area yard. Photo Courtesy of FoodWaterShoes
Rain, Rain, Go Away – One of the Neighborhood Billboards We Drew to Help Neighbors Smile During the Coronavirus Pandemic


Today something changed. I did my neighborhood billboard as usual, but then I read on SFGate that Specialty’s Cafe & Bakery will be shuttering all its locations. Specialty’s homemade sandwiches and its ridiculously good chocolate chips cookies were a staple of many an office meeting for me. It’s the end of an era. Specialty’s isn’t small (they have over 50 locations across multiple states), but they aren’t massive either. If they’re closing, how many other small to mid-sized businesses will follow suit? The more I mulled it over, the more I wanted to write and to keep sharing about the little places and people that make me smile. I wanted to keep helping people find and uncover cool local companies, so I decided today to get back to writing about little companies.

I figured Push Pushi might be a perfect post to start with for a few reasons. First of all, it has been quite rainy, gloomy and dreary these past couple days in the Bay Area (so other pet owners may be looking for a solution for their pups who are scared of the rain). Secondly, Push Pushi is a great little local company you can support without leaving your home. Third, I hope the thought of something as silly as big dogs being scared of the rain and puppy rain jackets will make a couple people smile during this time of murder hornets and mayhem.

We have a passion for local fashion. Here’s a list of some of the other little boutiques and labels we love around the globe.

I stumbled upon Push Pushi because our massive American Staffordshire terrier is ridiculous for a number of reasons, including the fact that she hate-hates the rain. We’re our little lady’s fourth home, so she went through a number of families and shelters before we rescued her. This means she has a lot of quirks that we don’t necessarily know the origins of including no tolerance whatsoever of raindrops. She’ll literally not go outside for days if it’s raining. Her bathroom boycotts were nerve-racking. If a storm was brewing, we’d hustle outside hoping to get one last number one out of her. If she so much as smelled rain on the horizon, she’d tug like a Clydesdale to get indoors. Bowels be damned.

I even tried to escort her P-Diddy style around our yard. I was her personal Fonzworth Bentley. I’d even hunch down to her level angling our human umbrella over her just so. (Ninety-eight percent of the time this meant soaking myself in the process while she turned up her nose and hightailed it indoors.) Rainy days are not working business days according to our Staffie.

A purebred American Staffordshire terrier (or Staffie / Staffy) sits on a cuddly blanket on a bed. This big meaty red and white dog is petrified and scared of the rain. She won't go potty or do her business outside if there are raindrops. Photo Courtesy of FoodWaterShoes
Pour Decisions – I’m an American Staffordshire Terrier. I’m a Rescue. I’m Also Afraid of the Rain.


I tried little waterproof doggie puffer vests thinking it was the rain bouncing off her back that was bothering her. Nope. I tried jackets with little dog hoods in case it was the drops hitting her dome that bothered her. Nope, that didn’t help either. I did Google search after Google search for, “wet” and “big” and “dog” and “scared of the rain” and “hates rain” and “dislikes rain” and “staffie” and “staffy” and “go potty” and “dog umbrella.” I even hunted for other big short haired breeds like “pit bull” and “Rottweiler” and “boxer” and “Doberman.” I scoured chat forums and trolled dog boards only to find loads of other big dog owners just like me who had lots of hilarious stories about dogs who hate the rain, but I didn’t find any good solutions.

Then it hit me. When I watched her closely it wasn’t so much that getting wet seemed to bug her. Instead, it almost seemed as though the raindrops hitting her forehead broke her concentration. Like she’d be sniffing along in her usual area and get one drop on her noggin and that was what would make it game over. If I could just get an umbrella located over her beak area, that might work, so she could focus and get down to business. Maybe I needed to attach an umbrella to my dog’s head. Was something like this possible? Did such a thing exist or would I have to resort to duck taping it together myself? I began sniffing around the internet. Someone out there had to have tackled this problem and that’s when I came across Push Pushi.

A large big red American Staffordshire staffie staffy dog who is scared of the rain wearing her silly pink rain jacket from Pushi Pushi. Our puppy also is wearing a black leash from Puppies Make Me Happy. She's sniffing outside to do her business during a storm. Photo Courtesy of FoodWaterShoes
Pretty Puddle Jumper – Our Pup Braves a Rain Storm in a Hot Pink Push Pushi Rain Jacket and a Black Puppies Make Me Happy Leash


Push Pushi is a family owned and operated local company out of Santa Rosa, California. Entrepreneur Steffen Kuehr works on a number of brands including TekTailor (which owns Sonoma-USA and BPA-USA), and, of course, Push Pushi. His sustainable fabric focused businesses create everything from protective knee and elbow pads for frontline heroes in law enforcement and the military to doggie raincoats.

We are Cali proud. Curious about some of the other small business in California that we love and support? Here are some of our favorite California-based small and mid-sized businesses.

According to Waste 360, Kuehr’s companies have even upcycled damaged firehoses from the Sonoma County Kincade wildfire and turned them into useful items like dog leashes, coasters, floor mats and rugs. During the pandemic Kuehr says they’ve focused their production efforts on making and delivering thousands of face masks for workers at area hospitals and local businesses. (TekTailor donated the masks it made to a local volunteer based organization called, Shield Our Heroes, which was recently featured on KTVU Fox 2.)

Push Pushi’s dog jackets feature a detachable and collapsible umbrella-style hood. I was hopeful, but fear set in when I saw the first size in the drop down menu which was, “teacup.” Oh no. What’s a big dog owner to do? Thankfully Push Pushi designs go all the way up to an extra large. (Our dog is a solid 65 pound meaty little tank and the extra large fits her with plenty of extra room/girth to spare. There’s a rather lengthy strip of Velcro-type strip that secures under your pooch’s belly.)

There are retractable awnings for our porches and convertible cars, so why not have a retractable hood for our pooches too?

When her bright pink Push Pushi coat arrived in the mail, I was nervous and skeptical. If this didn’t work, I didn’t know what else to try. As I bundled her up, my husband just kept laughing. Our dog looked fit to head out on the Oregon Trail with her giant bonnet bouncing to and fro as she strutted indoors. I took a deep breath and we headed outdoors.

Our American Staffordshire Terrier FINALLY Goes Potty in the Rain Thanks to Her Push Pushi Jacket


As funny as our dog looks in her Push Pushi raincoat, it works. It protects our pup without squishing her ears and it also gives her a wide range of motion, so she can sniff to her heart’s delight without rain landing on her nose and forehead. If you struggle with getting your dog to go outside in the rain, I’d highly recommend giving one of Push Pushi dog coats a try.

Push Pushi
Address: Santa Rosa, California
Hours: Available Online
Phone: (844) 364-3644 (DOG DOGI)
Email: info@pushpushi.com
Pricing (All in USD): Dog Raincoats / Rain Jackets $19.95 to $49.95, Fashion Puppy Attire $29.95 and Up, Dog Bandanas $7.95 to $10.95, Dog Collars $9.95 to $19.95, Leashes $11.95 to $19.95, Tote Bags $24.95, Dog Carriers $89.95, Throw Pillows $24.95

We get it, it’s tough work reading word after word about goofy dog and puppy raincoats. Give your pointer finger some much needed exercise after all that heavy scrolling you just did. If you enjoyed our article on Push Pushi let us know. Please click the “like” button with a star on it at the bottom of this post, share the link to this article via your social media handles or email this article to someone you know who might have a pooch who hates the rain.

If you’re feeling super ambitious, we’d love it if you’d buy us a cup of coffee, so we can visit and review even more awesome places for you!

For more information on our conflict of interest disclaimer, please see our About Krista page.