Mommy Bus Cat Carrier Deluxe Package Giveaway!

November 8, 2011

By Karen Harrison Binette

We are psyched to be able to offer this very generous giveaway from the Mommy Bus pet carrier company, which also sells pet inspired,fashionable clothing and jewelry through its MoBu Couture brand.

The incredible giveaway package includes a Mommy Bus soft sided cat carrier, a very cool MEOW hoodie and two cute pieces of sparkly silverplate, rhinestone cat jewelry. Retail value @ $206.

I admit to being kind of a snob when it comes to quality and style, so products have to be pretty good to get a nod from me. The company sent us samples of the items you’ll have a chance to win, and they definitely make the grade.

While the Mommy Bus is the company’s signature product and the featured part of our giveaway prize, I’m going to take a moment to gush about the MEOW hoodie. When I first toured the Mommy Bus website, this cool hoodie caught my eye and completely won me over. I think we all know the stereotype of the catlady wearing the ratty cardigan or the sweatshirt with the flocked “kitten chasing ball of yarn” embellishment. With the MEOW hoodie, we can show our love for cats while remaining fashionable and defying that old frumpy stereotype. It’s a nice heathery pink with a vintage athletic style MEOW applique, it’s stylishly long and figure hugging, and it is as soft and cozy as can be. It also comes in WOOF for those who love both cats and dogs.

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The Mommy Bus is of even better quality than hoped for, and is the ne plus ultra in stylish pet portability. It is awesomely cute, nicely designed, sturdy, and well made from good materials. Everything from the screened windows to the interior strap and clip is of reassuringly good quality. I can picture it lasting for years. As though all of that were not enough, the bus has cleverly integrated zippered compartments and snazzy jeweled ornaments used for the lights and on the wheels. It has a good set of hand carry handles and a padded strap for either walking kitty to the car or taking her on an outing.

So, the Mommy Bus carrier is stylish, secure, easily portable and well made. How does it perform, you wonder?

I had the perfect test subjects right here in my own home, my 2 1/2 year old twins; lightweight generally cooperative Nobby, and heavyweight generally uncooperative Tuppy.

We began our test with little Nobby, who I’ve never had trouble getting into a hard shell carrier, though she tended to cower once inside them. First I placed the bus on a low table, unzipped the top and let the kitties sniff around. Then I picked Nobby up and gently folded her legs inward and lowered her into the bus, and hooked the safety strap onto her collar. I reassured her that she was ok, and zipped the carrier closed; then I opened the screened windshield zipper so she could peer out cutely like the cats and dogs in the Mommy Bus promotional pictures. Oops! I had forgotten to adjust the strap, so she climbed out of the window and stood there tethered next to the carrier. I unhooked her, placed her back into the carrier, secured the safety strap and used the slider to adjust the length. At this point, Nobby could still climb halfway out, so she would need to be hooked to a harness or have the safety strap shortened to keep her from climbing out when the peek-a-boo window was opened. I experimented with opening the window part way until she realized she could sit and look our cutely like the good little kitties in the promotional materials.

Next came the carry test. I picked up the carrier, which has a nice padded bottom, by the way, and was pleased to find that it didn’t sag and Nobby didn’t slide down to one end. I tried both the long strap and the handles on my shoulder; my personal preference is to carry it with the the handles on my shoulder, though the gals in photos I’ve seen all seem to favor the strap. I’ve always carried my handbags, laptop cases and LL Bean bags this way, so it makes sense that I’d use the Mommy Bus the same way.

Walking with Nobby in the bus was easy and without problem; she seemed fine inside and didn’t show any signs of misery. When we stopped for a test of sitting and hanging out together outside, Nobby was calm and enjoyed the air and peering out of the screened windows. I opened the front peek-a-boo window for her and she tried to get out again but learned that she could look out without climbing out when I again took a few minutes to close the window, open it partially, and then open it all the way and pet and reassure her. All in all, a great result. Better still, I left the bus out on the low table later, with the top flap and front window open, and she climbed through the window and sat in the bus all on her own. I call that the ultimate success.

Once I’d given the Mommy Bus the “easy” cat test with Nobby, it was time for Tuppy’s turn. Tuppy is well know as the cat of a thousand claws when it is time to go into the hard shell carrier, or even the jumbo wire dog crate. He is also a big, solid boy; not fat, but heavy. I set the carrier back on the low table, put his Tickle Pickle toy inside for familiarity, picked him up, folded his limbs inward, lowered him inside, gave him a little pat and a reassuring word, zipped up, and done! No fighting, no yowling, no freaking out. Needless to say, I was more than pleased with this. As I raised the carrier from the table it felt a bit heavy, but once I had it on my shoulder there was no problem with the weight. As with Nobby, walking around with kitty was fun and easy. I strapped the carrier into the car and took a little ride; all good. I also allowed Tuppy to sit outside with me and enjoy the out-of-doors from the safety of his carrier. He was content to sit inside the bus, peer out through the screened windows and get some safe outdoor time.

Like Nobby, Tuppy was a great sport for the first time ever in a carrier. I finally feel like my cats can be portable little travelers. I can picture Mommy Bus owners taking kitty to work, visiting friends, or on any number of outings, as well as that formerly dreaded trip to the v-e-t-. I now feel like my own kitties can go places with me, be safe and comfortable, and enjoy the trip. Oh, and we look very fashionable, too. Am I laying it on thick just to promote the comapny’s products? No, I really feel this way.

A final note about the carrier: The product page at the company website says the carrier is for pets up to 15 pounds. Tuppy weighs close to that, and I, personally, would use the carrier for a heavier pet than the 15 pounds. The carrier is well made and well balanced and can take it.

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Whiskers The cat Pin

Lastly, we have the two pieces of crystal and silverplate jewelry; a pendant and chain and a pin. These pics do not do the jewelry justice. In reality they’re both bright, shiny, sparkly and beautiful.

Whimsical Cat Necklace