Today we are very excited to let you know about Hot Paws – a unique product that gives you not only a priceless keepsake, but also a fun experience with your dog. This one-of-a-kind art kit allows you to make a paw impression of your dog at home which will then be cast in glass!
In fact, we love it so much that it just had to earn a spot in our latest gift guide for dog lovers!
Hot Paws – DIY Paw Print Kit for Dogs (or Cats)
You may have seen other paw print keepsakes on the market using ink or even clay. The problem? Ink is messy and clay will crack and crumble over time! Hot Paws on the other hand leaves you with a glass keepsake that is 3D, tough and long lasting.
About Hot Sand
Hot Sand is a glass studio on the Jersey shore which offers all sorts of glassblowing workshops and walk-in activities. For over a decade now, they have been making paw impressions for their in-person clients and wanted to come up with a way for pet lovers all around the country to get one of these priceless keepsakes.
That is why they have developed Hot Paws – a convenient kit allowing customers to make these impressions at home, before sending them back to the studio to be cast in glass!
Save 10% with our exclusive code “mydoglikes”
How Does the Process Work?
A few days after placing your order for a Hot Paws molding kit, you will receive a small package in the mail. Inside you will find a tin, lump of pliable clay-like material, pre-paid shipping label, and detailed instructions.
Creating your mold is easy and only takes a few minutes…
Step 1: Preparing the Molding Material
First, grab the lump out of the tin and form it into a smooth round ball. The material is completely non-toxic so you need not worry about it’s safety around you or your pet.
Next, flip over the bottom of your Hot Paws tin and set your ball on the top.
Now, you will want to flatten out your ball to form a disc. You can conveniently use the top lid of the canister to get a nice even surface.
Note the small raised rim around the edge of the tin – this shows you the maximum diameter that your disk can be while still fitting back into the container. Make sure that you do not extend past this point when you are pressing out your disc!
Step 2: Making the Paw Impression
Now that you have your disc all ready to go, it is time to cast your dogs paw print. Depending on your dog this may be easier standing up or lying down. We chose to make the impression as Harley was lying down so we could take our time with it and knew he would be less likely to move.
All you need to do is take one of their Paws and press it firmly into the molding material. Do not press too hard or you will flatten out the disc so much that it won’t fit back into the container! Keep your eye on that raised rim to make sure your size is on target.
One of the best things about Hot Paws is that if you mess it up on the first try it’s no big deal! Simply roll it back into a ball and flatten once again and it’s ready to make a new impression. (Harley’s paw is so large that we ended up doing it 3 times to make sure it fit nicely within the bounds of the tin!)
Step 3: Sending Back the Mold
Once you are happy with your impression, it is ready to be sent back to Hot Sand for casting. For your convenience they have included a prepaid shipping label, and an informational card inside. Just fill out your return address, place your tin in the package, and drop it in the mail!
Want the Casting Sent Back to a Different Address?
No problem, just include that info on the card inside the envelope and Hot Sand will send it to them directly. What an awesome idea for someone away at college missing their beloved pup! You can also order more than 1 glass casting in case you want one at your home as well!
Step 4: Wait Patiently (If you can!)
Admittedly this is the toughest part of the entire process! After you place your Hot Paws back in the mail it will take a few weeks to make its way back to you. In the mean time, Hot Sand is busy making a mold from your impression and filling it with molten glass! You can even request that your impression be sent back to you in case you ever want to order another one!
Taking a Look at the Final Product
Your Hot Paws will arrive in the same tin, packed carefully with foam on both sides. The glass is smooth on one side, with a 3D impression on the reverse. As you can see above, our Hot Paws came out great. The impression is so detailed that you can even feel the texture of the paw pads!
The final product has a nice weight to it and is very durable as well. While not completely clear, it is see through, and has really cool optical properties. It has been sitting on my desk for a couple of weeks and I just love looking at it and touching it!
Why MyDogLikes Hot Paws Pet Footprint Casting
Most importantly, this is a keepsake that we will cherish forever. Being able to run your fingers along a 3D print of your dogs paw is a personal experience that I know will mean a lot when Harley is no longer with us. 🙁
The process itself could not be easier and was actually pretty fun. We loved that the kit includes everything you need and the price includes all 3 shipping transports as well.
Hot Paws is a really unique product that would make an amazing gift for any dog lover!
Want to Try out Hot Paws for Yourself?
Save 10% using code “mydoglikes”
well it two king a pom and princess for they are my service dogs
they are under 10 lb king about 7 princess 4
This would be for our puppy Buster, he is our baby, this will be his first Christmas.
My dog colby! He’s been with me by my side for 8 years, would love to win so I could remember him once hes passed away.
This would be for my bichon.
My macey is a 12 year old shitz-poo that still acts like a puppy! When I take her for walks people always ask me how old she is and when I tell them they don’t believe me they think she’s much younger than she is! She is my world! <3
I would make the mold of my shih tzu Ginger!! She is my baby!
i would love a little shih tzu paw print from my little girl!
Well I have three Shetland sheep dogs the one that is most attached to me her name is Fiona. They all want to follow me everywhere I go but if Fiona cannot be with me she cries. Fiona, MacKinsey & Nikki are sisters from the same litter and are seven years old.
It would be for my Chihuahua Biscuit he is the apple of my eye. He is such a loving little guy.
I would love to have a paw print keepsake of Shasta while he is still with us!
My daughter would love this for her older dog , and would make a great keepsake for her.
I would just love this for my teacup yorkie 🙂
I would do our new kitten’s paw… And then probably buy another one to do Dexter 🙂
I would put Lin Lyn , my shih tzu’s paw on it.
this is adorable!! would love to have one of my little girl!
Layla is my quirky funny lil girl whom I adore and keeps me smiling
I would use my Chihuahua’s paw on it. She is 9 years old and a total sweetheart.
My Rotty pup, Missy!
I’d like to get this for my neighbor’s 13 yr old Brittney Spaniel, Lilly. She just had a big seizure last night and they thought they were going to lose her, but she survived so far today. I know my neighbor will be heartbroken to lose her sweet girl and this would be a lovely keepsake for her.
This would be awesome to make a paw print of my dog Nala. She is a German Shepherd.
My little furbaby is a Boston Terrier named Angel. She will be 11 on Dec. 15. And I would love to have her paw print in glass. It would be a beautiful keepsake of her.
I would make the imprint of my Dog Rina. Got her from a rescue back in 2010. She was already over 2 years old and had been returned to the rescue group. She was there for 2 years and nobody wanted her so I took her home.
Although I love my own pet dearly, i would gift this to my friend who has a 16 year old golden.
We lost three furbabies over the past 20 months – my deaf hound girl, Ran, in April of last year (from an autoimmune disorder), my senior cat, Koneko, in February (from old age), and my senior Coonhound girl, Suki, exactly one year after losing Ran. I got clay pawprints of both Koneko and Suki, but am so sad that I didn’t think to get one from Ran. I know I can’t go back and get hers now, but I would love a pawprint of each of my current furbabies – especially Kyoko, who is the oldest of the three Coonhounds I have, and who is the most bonded to me (she was also very bonded to Ran, so she’s usually sitting by me while the boys hang out on the couch in the living room). I wish I had one of these for every furbaby I’ve lost over the years.
That is really cool. I would love to get them for our Holly and Beavis they are both seniors now.
I have a shepherd that has develop a tumor in her abdomen and they not sure long she will be around and I would like to win this before she does so we can have keepsake of her. She will be six yrs old until may so she is being taken from us at such an early age. Her name is Duchess and we have 2 other dogs that 6 yrs in December.
I would make the imprint of our lab Tucker. And this is awesome, my son would love to have this for his dog. This would make an awesome Christmas tree ornament.
I’d love paw prints of my sibling ChiWeenies
This is for my golden retriever that’s got big paws and a big personality.
I would want this for my 7 year old Golden Retriever LaMancha.
It would be of my furbaby, Daisy. She was a rescue pup that I adopted when she was a/b 11 wks old and she’s 10 years old now. Love her to pieces!!
We have 3 beloved pups so it would be hard to chose. I think I would have to pick Mickey, our 3 year old rat terrier because we got him first. He’s our baby.
they had something like this at petsmart this past summer. i took my oldest gal. they gave me 2 for my 2 younger girls. it is just hard to get a really good paw print though. the nails have to be trimmed just right and press them in hard to get a good print. so i would do one on any of my 3 gals.
YoYo my little Min-Pin and best Buddy
This would be for my dog baby, Pookie. He is a 15 year old Chihuahua, and the best dog ever!
I’d love to have one of Mr. N. He’s a Yorkie mix with tiny paws.
This would be for my almost 4 year old Cocker Spaniel,Beauregard.This is the one thing I would really like to have and it is one of my biggest regrets in not having done one for my Riley.
I’d be using this for my Chocolate Lab. She’s almost 13 now and sadly I don’t know how much time we have left together and this would be perfect so we will always remember her when she’s gone.
Our dog, Joey, is the absolute best dog. We’re not quite sure how old he is, he is a rescue, but we think he’s 6 or 7. He was severely mistreated and had sooo many problems, physical and mental. But now he’s happy, safe, and very trusting. It took a while but he settled into our lives to the extent that we don’t know who rescued who, we can’t imagine our lives without him. I can truthfully say that he is the best dog we ever had.
I would love to have a cast of my Moka. She has been such a special dog & taken me places I never dreamed I could go.
I have an 11 year old American Cocker Spaniel named Coco Chanel Bella. She is the first dog I have ever had and she is the best. She has such a great personality and loves to give kisses. She is my baby girl.
All our dogs are gone now, so I would do a kitty print of my 20-year-old cat, Jessie. I’d love that. Thanks for the giveaway.
I actually like it for all 3 of my dogs, but probably my 1 year old GSP
I would love love love a glass paw print of my 12 year old grand-dog, Caesar (an Old English Bulldog) who is absolutely THE BEST pup in the whole wide world!!! We hope to have him with us for many more years (paws crossed) and except for recent hearing loss, he’s in great health. We are truly blessed…
Your review was fabulous! My Dakota is a nine year old Shetland Sheepdog and I would just cherish this!
I have 2 dogs and I’d probably choose which one at the last minute. Miri is a 113lb shepard and her paw might just be too big to do it right. She’s my husband’s baby and madison is a 8 lb Yorkie who has to spend every minute she can touching me, on my lap, being held or curled up next to me while I sleep.
I have two sweet girls I would love a precious keepsake of their paws what a beautiful way to keep them with you for years to come.
My 4 year old Boxer Izzy!
my little boy apollo would be perfect for this. he is a rescue that we have had for about two years. i love keepsakes like this.
Mine would be for my precious “Little Cubbie.” He’s 5 years old & got him as a rescue YorkiePoo at 8 months old. He will be my last little doggie. I think he will outlive me unless there is a major breakthrough
I would love one on my Emmie who is getting up in years,this
could be a great gift for me.
I need this for my dog, because he is the only child I will ever have!
Wow, Glass Paw Prints! I would love to have Fritzel’s paw print in glass so I will last a very long time. Fritzel is an 8yr old Golden Lab mix, extremely handsome of course. I’ve had him for 7 yrs now. Fritzel is my Service (hearing) Dog, always working hard, devoted, loving, gentle soul. I would love to win this & make a keepsake box for him. Thank you.
i am a huge fan of glass works. This a really unique idea and I would love to own it.
Isn’t it cool!? We haven’t seen anything else like it on the market and it really makes a special piece.
I would get a glass print of my 10 year old Great Dane mix.
What a cool gift! I’d love to have one of my dear sweet Sam’s paw. ღ
I would use the pawprint of my goldendoodle named Miles.
I’d love to do this for my cats. I wonder how many paw prints I could get on one mold 😉
You might be able to do a few! Harley has a really large paw!
I would love a keepsake of my doxie Belle’s paw.
Id make a paw print of my baby Rosie!
I would love the pawprint of my emotional support dog Bailey. If I don’t win I will just have to buy one.
I think it might be Delilah. I did do a plaster cast of one of Sampson’s paws a number of years ago, so I’d have to cast Delilah.
Luna is my special dog because she has so much personality! She is the most expressive dog I’ve ever had and loves to eat. I think I’d also have to get a second one for Ralph though too!
I would like to make a paw print of Fang, my 14-year old Westie.
This would be great for my Boston, Junebug. He is 11 years old and is my best friend. I would love to have his print forever.
I would love this for my dog Dora. She is 12 and i know she isn’t going to live forever. I cherish every day i have with her and would love something like this so that i forever can have her footprint.
My dog is Duke and he just turned 2!
I would love to get one for my Dog Charlie who is 100lbs and a big suck who is great with the kids but very lazy!
I would make a paw print of my senior dog Ace who is so special.
One of the coolest ideas I’ve ever seen for a paw print!!! Would love, love, love one of my very special grand-dog, Caesar…a 12 year old Old English Bulldog. Did I say dog? He thinks he’s a human!!!
So great! My girl Ripley is my bestie, I’d love to make a keepsake like this to have forever.
My beautiful lab and best friend I’d love a keepsake of her paw print.
I have 2 dogs -a poodle and a lab.
I have to do this, especially because I’m collecting art portraits of my pets – but I didn’t consider glass
Our best buddy, Golden. She’s really got a white face now so this would be a great honor for her!
I would love to get a paw print made from my dog Baine.
Would love a paw print of our dog krypto
Would love to try this with my cat!
I *love* this. I think this is the most unique gift idea I’ve seen in a while. Would love this for both my dogs, but especially Shiloh, my heart dog.
I love this for preserving a memory of our furbaby family member. Pennie is going on 4 years of age and is a rescue Chihuahua. She has such a great love for people and animals. She tries to please everyone and is a part of everything we do everyday. She never leaves my side except when the grandsons are here , then it’s playtime. Pennie is definitely not the stereotypical chihuahua. She’s like a yellow lab in a chihuahua body. We love her more everyday and deserves to be honored with lots of love and this is a wonderful way to show her how much she is loved.
Artie is our special dog that we adopted 4 years ago. He is always up for an adventure and comforts my wife when she has a migraine.
I have to have this glass paw print of Gator, my wonderful Red Australian Cattle Dog, who traveled 660 miles from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Chicago. He was rescued from horrible abuse, and I witnessed him transforming from fear to the beautiful, fun loving and affectionate sweet boy that I love more than anything. I didn’t rescue him, Gator truly rescued me and I will always be grateful for the honor of having him in my life. The special bond between us will always be in our hearts, forever grateful that fate found a way for us to be together. I love you Gator…
Wow, that is such a touching story! So glad that the two of you found one-another!
This is so awesome! I remember having wax hand sculpture in the past and always wonder if we will ever get anything similar for my dog.
Has anyone used this for other animals like goats and/or birds? Or is it better suited for animals with paws?
FYI – In this article it states “You can even request that your impression be sent back to you in case you ever want to order another one!”.
On the website http://www.HotSandap.com it shows this information as of 11/25/2018:
“Can I have my foam impression back? I’d really like to keep it.
No, as they are consumed in the manufacturing process. However, we recommend you take a picture of it for memories before packing it in to send it to us.”
The information from Kevin might be outdated possibly it is about 8 months later?? I did try using the link for the 10% discount by using the “mydoglikes” code when ordering the Hot Paws kit but, it didn’t seem to work for me when I pressed the link I was directed to an unsecure site. I don’t feel comfortable entering any of my payment info through but that could just be because I’m using Google Chrome on an android device and may be different in another browser?? If anyone knows how to use the “mydoglikes” for the 10% off ordering of a Hot Paws kit, I’d love any tips or suggestions to what I might be doing wrong please.
I do love this idea and article and thank Kevin for his time and hard work. I will definitely be investing in at least 1 kit for my current dog. With my last dog, all I got is a paw print in a giant round piece of plaster of Paris and it’s far from centered and has been dried for years and I never got the chance to write his name in it before drying. I’ve tried using a small engraving tool (the only other writing instrument I could think of would be a Sharpie and think it would look worse) on the back side to write his name but with my bad handwriting I haven’t done it on the front yet or added his birthdate and date he passed away. It’s so fragile it’s been wrapped in his blanket stored in a drawer all these years. He’s been gone 4 years today and I’d like to put it in a nice wooden shadow box with his collar, tags and photos someday but haven’t figured out how to mount it securely yet. Great article and website all in all and if anyone has any tips on how to get the 10% off a Hot Paw kit please share how thank you!
Hi Jill, thanks for the heads up about not being able to receive the mold material back – not sure if that changed since we wrote the article or if we misunderstood!
The coupon code is still active and although their website displays as not secure, if you continue onto the checkout you will be directed to Squarespace for the actual transaction and payment information which is secure. I will contact the company however and recommend that they get a security certificate for their own site as not to scare anybody off!
Please let us know what you think of Hot Paws once you get your glass casting back!