An Adorable Puppy Dog Themed Birthday Party

Years ago, when we only had one kiddo, I would spend weeks and weeks and weeks pulling together the ultimate themed party, complete with invites, crafts, games, party favors, and more! (You can see a lot of my favorites HERE.)  In recent years, more kids has meant less time to spend in party prep mode; but that doesn’t mean I don’t still love making our kiddo’s day extra special with a few adorable crafts and fun surprises. We recently pulled together a Puppy Dog themed birthday party for our youngest son. And this black, red, and white “pawty” turned out just too cute not to share! If you’re looking for an easy party theme to pull together, this is a great one!

Why a Puppy Party?

Our youngest guy, who just turned 2, has a diagnosed speech delay. So he doesn’t say much; and of the few things he does say, most aren’t quite intelligible (yet!). But there is one sound he’s made for a while now and is clear as day: “woof woof!”

Our little boy loooooooooooves puppy dogs and eagerly points them out whenever he sees them. So when picking out his 2nd birthday party theme, puppy dogs was an obvious choice. Little did I realize what a fun theme this would turn out to be!

Puppy Dog Themed Birthday Party Ideas

Since he’s still pretty young and hasn’t yet fallen in love with a particular character or show, I jumped at the chance to keep this party really generic (but in a good way!) This not only saves money and time not having to hunt down or buy licensed party decor…but it also provides tons of creative freedom in picking colors, decorations, gifts, and more!

The Inspiration

I based this entire party off the adorable puppy from Cricut’s Create A Critter set (#M3CA9C) in the Cricut Design Space Library. It’s an old, classic Cricut image that I’ve always loved. He’s such a sweet and happy little pup, and (more importantly!) is really easy to cut out and layer together.

I made the same puppy from paper in three sizes: small for the cupcakes, medium for the table decor, and a really-large one for the banner. It was just enough to drive home the “dog birthday party” theme, and our puppy-loving kiddo had fun spotting him (ha!) all over the room!

The Colors

With the cute little Dalmatian as my inspiration, I easily landed on black, white, and red for everything else. Not only are these colors really fun and fresh (and a departure from the usual brown used for puppy parties), but it’s a combination easily found on ready-made balloon garland sets, table cloths, napkins, and more!

In fact, I was super excited to find table cloths, balloons, napkins, straws, and more with the black-and-white paw print and dog bone pattern already on them. I love how graphic and bold they make the whole party table feel and were ultimately what brought the puppy dog theme to life without tons of decorations!

The Banner

A few years ago, I shared my “secret ingredients” for making an adorable, custom DIY party. These are the things that no matter how big or small a celebration we are having, I always include because they provide such a big visual impact. The table centerpieces and balloons are among my party “staples”…and so is some sort of big Happy Birthday banner.

For years and years, I cut banners 100% from cardstock and would then assemble and hang them up with ribbon. But this year, I finally wised up! I purchased an inexpensive white vinyl banner that is large, durable, easy-to-hang, and rolls up for great storage. I then added my own “Let’s Pawty” message in removable vinyl (which was a snap to make all at once thanks to 21 feet of Smart Vinyl and my Cricut Maker 3!)

Not only did this result in an amazing centerpiece to our entire party display, but I can easily peel off the letters and use it again for the next party!

The Balloons

Next to puppies, the other thing our son is absolutely obsessed with is balloons. In fact, I joked that we could pretty much have just balloons and nothing else, and he’d be one content little boy!

I paired this red, black, and white balloon garland with this pack of dog party balloons. I used to be so intimidated by these balloon garlands, but they really are easy to make (especailly when you get this air pump) and provide a huge “WOW” factor for just a few dollars!

Puppy Dog Party Food Ideas

We decided to serve brunch for our birthday party because it was just family, and pancakes and sausage are his favorite things ever. But if you give this party theme a try, here are some cute puppy dog themed party food ideas we considered:

• Hot Dogs – Take this simple BBQ staple up a notch by having a make-your-own Hot Dog Bar. Include lots of fixings, condiments, and toppings so party guests can make their own delicious creations.
• Scooby Snacks
• Puppy Chow – Here’s a great recipe to try!
• Breadstick Bones – These are so clever!
• Bone Sugar Cookies or Rice Krispie Treats – Here are some cookie cutters to use!
• Paw-Shaped Jell-O or Chocolates – Using this cute mold!
• Candy “Bark”
• Fetching Sticks – Pretzel rods!
• “Paw-p-corn”

TIP! Serve snacks and dips into clean, new dog bowls for a fun party twist!

The Cake

Instead of a large birthday cake, we opted for cupcakes: chocolate cake with white frosting is everyone’s favorite but also very on-theme!

I then adapted them to our party by adding pre-mixed red, white, and black sprinkles and paper cake toppers.

I made these cake toppers using Smart Paper Sticker Cardstock with lollipop sticks, just like I showed in this tutorial. They were easily my favorite part of the entire party and are just the right sized memento to pop into our memory boxes for safe keeping!

Shop These Puppy Party Ideas

A Puppy Dog Themed Birthday Party is fun for kids, parents, and guests alike! Here are my favorite “paw-ty” finds!

1- Puppy Dog Table Cloths | 2 – Puppy Dog Tableware  | 3 – Puppy Dog Cupcake Wrappers | 4 – Balloon Garland Kit | 5 – Paw Print Balloons | 6 – Dog Bone Balloons | 7 – Puppy Dog Cellophane Bags | 8 – Dog Treat Bags | 9 – Mixed Sprinkles | 10 – Bone-Shaped Cookie Cutters | 11 – Bone and Paw Molds | 12 – White Vinyl Banner 

These days, I pull our party displays together the night before, after the kids are in bed. They rarely know what the theme will be, but they know Mom will always have something special waiting for them in the morning. So much so that they all run down first thing in the morning to see “what Mommy made this time” (almost like they do on Christmas morning to see what Santa brought!)

Since I’m pulling together everything very quickly, I love relying on simple crafts and inexpensive supplies that make a really big impact. I think I knocked this puppy dog themed birthday party out of the park (if I do say so myself!)…it really might be my favorite one yet!