"I spend $12k-a-year pampering my pooch - treating him to designer outfits, organic food and grooming"
- 4 months ago
A woman spends $12k-a-year on her pampered pooch by treating him to designer outfits, organic food and regular grooming.
Christine Hsu Lu, 32, constantly spoils her Yorkshire Terrier, Ducky, with treats, new outfits and a custom made cake for his birthday.
The dog mum makes and customises outfits for Ducky - dressing him up in famous artists such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Harry Styles and BTS.
Ducky is also gifted clothes from designer brands such as Louis Vuiton and Gucci - costing up to $3,000
Christine says she spends $1,000 a month on Ducky - taking him to the groomers every three weeks, buying him fresh food from The Farmer's Dog - which includes fresh raw meat and veg - and treating him to new clothes.
Christine - who has received some backlash for over-pampering her dog - believes that all dogs should be treated to "the best of your ability."
The digital marketing agency owner from Omaha, Nebraska, said: "I always want to treat my dogs.
"They are the most important things to me.
"When I first started working I realised I could give my dog the life I always wanted to.
"I already had outfits lined up for him before I got him.
"He's always been a natural and very calm with having an outfit put on. He's always been calm.
"I would say we spend $1,000 a month on him - we always get fresh food, and we take him to the groomers every three weeks, and then just anything else that we do for him like clothes, treats and accessories.
"I buy a lot of his clothes from clothing boutiques for dogs.
"He's got hundreds of clothing items - maybe even a thousand. He has a lot of stuff.
"I just cleaned out some of it but I think he's got a whole closet full of stuff. It's not too bad with the extra washing!"
Christine decided to get Ducky in 2013 after moving out from her parents in Nebraska to California.
She said: "I saw Ducky and I knew he was going to be my dog.
"The name Ducky is inspired by The Land Before Time series and ironically his favourite toy is a duck!"
Christine launched Ducky's Instagram and TikTok pages soon after - and he now has 140k followers.
She said: "He has a lot of designer bits and I think they're all gifted - he's very lucky.
"Our first thing was sent from Forever 21 about seven years ago."
When it comes to festivities, Christine ramps up the treatment - putting on a birthday spread for Ducky with his very own banner, suit and cake - spending approximately $300.
She said: "I should have a budget but I don't.
"For his birthdays I always get a custom cake made and then I pick out a theme that I want to do for his birthday.
"I take him to In-N-Out to get a Pup Patty and then Starbucks to get a Puppacino.
"I don't get him a lot of gifts because we have a plethora of toys.
"For Christmas, we took the dogs to see all the lights and then we had a dinner together - I also made them a dog hot pot." two other dogs
As well as his many designer and boutique-bought outfits, Ducky also enjoys wearing outfits homemade by Christine.
She said: "I don't sew, I gather things that I think can make the outfit.
"I source all the bits and then put it together - we made the shirt from Stranger Things that way.
"It takes a while to make and I want it to really represent whoever I'm trying to recreate but it can take days."
Christine added that she has no regrets in showering Ducky with gifts and affection.
She said: "Some people are just like 'he's a dog, not a baby'.
"But I think a dog should be treated to the very best of your capability.
"They deserve it, they are the best.
"No matter what happened in their previous life, they just want to be loved.
"They'll never disappoint you."
Christine Hsu Lu, 32, constantly spoils her Yorkshire Terrier, Ducky, with treats, new outfits and a custom made cake for his birthday.
The dog mum makes and customises outfits for Ducky - dressing him up in famous artists such as Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Harry Styles and BTS.
Ducky is also gifted clothes from designer brands such as Louis Vuiton and Gucci - costing up to $3,000
Christine says she spends $1,000 a month on Ducky - taking him to the groomers every three weeks, buying him fresh food from The Farmer's Dog - which includes fresh raw meat and veg - and treating him to new clothes.
Christine - who has received some backlash for over-pampering her dog - believes that all dogs should be treated to "the best of your ability."
The digital marketing agency owner from Omaha, Nebraska, said: "I always want to treat my dogs.
"They are the most important things to me.
"When I first started working I realised I could give my dog the life I always wanted to.
"I already had outfits lined up for him before I got him.
"He's always been a natural and very calm with having an outfit put on. He's always been calm.
"I would say we spend $1,000 a month on him - we always get fresh food, and we take him to the groomers every three weeks, and then just anything else that we do for him like clothes, treats and accessories.
"I buy a lot of his clothes from clothing boutiques for dogs.
"He's got hundreds of clothing items - maybe even a thousand. He has a lot of stuff.
"I just cleaned out some of it but I think he's got a whole closet full of stuff. It's not too bad with the extra washing!"
Christine decided to get Ducky in 2013 after moving out from her parents in Nebraska to California.
She said: "I saw Ducky and I knew he was going to be my dog.
"The name Ducky is inspired by The Land Before Time series and ironically his favourite toy is a duck!"
Christine launched Ducky's Instagram and TikTok pages soon after - and he now has 140k followers.
She said: "He has a lot of designer bits and I think they're all gifted - he's very lucky.
"Our first thing was sent from Forever 21 about seven years ago."
When it comes to festivities, Christine ramps up the treatment - putting on a birthday spread for Ducky with his very own banner, suit and cake - spending approximately $300.
She said: "I should have a budget but I don't.
"For his birthdays I always get a custom cake made and then I pick out a theme that I want to do for his birthday.
"I take him to In-N-Out to get a Pup Patty and then Starbucks to get a Puppacino.
"I don't get him a lot of gifts because we have a plethora of toys.
"For Christmas, we took the dogs to see all the lights and then we had a dinner together - I also made them a dog hot pot." two other dogs
As well as his many designer and boutique-bought outfits, Ducky also enjoys wearing outfits homemade by Christine.
She said: "I don't sew, I gather things that I think can make the outfit.
"I source all the bits and then put it together - we made the shirt from Stranger Things that way.
"It takes a while to make and I want it to really represent whoever I'm trying to recreate but it can take days."
Christine added that she has no regrets in showering Ducky with gifts and affection.
She said: "Some people are just like 'he's a dog, not a baby'.
"But I think a dog should be treated to the very best of your capability.
"They deserve it, they are the best.
"No matter what happened in their previous life, they just want to be loved.
"They'll never disappoint you."