Category: General Stuff

Happy New Year!

That’s it, our Christmas break is over, and we’re back in the shop – so Happy New Year to you all. As we start a brand new decade, we wonder what it has in store for us all.

Hopefully, it will be a peaceful time, where we all prosper and take care of the planet and each other. Well we can at least hope!

Mel is busy sorting out a few framing jobs, Tom is putting together a few ideas for pet photography sessions and Fidget is asleep in his basket.

We are making a few changes in the shop, that should come to fruition over the next week or so.

We will be having a bit more space put aside to show off the “Brilliant Bygones” collection of ephemera. So expect to see some weird and wonderful framed (and unframed) pieces from times gone by to be on the wall very soon.

We are having to call it a day with the crafting supplies; the opening of The Range in Paignton recently has really killed off what little demand there seemed to be for it at the prices we have to charge to remain profitable. It seems that Torbay Council would rather allow the building of out of town shopping with free parking, than support the local town centres.

Do come in and say “hello” if you are passing, or even better, bring us some work!

Our Christmas Card Sessions

By now everyone should have had their Christmas cards, so it is safe to show you some of the cards we produced before Christmas. We had a great response to this promotion and will definitely be doing it again this year.

A selection of the cards we produced last year

Final Shoot of 2019

Our final shoot of 2019 was of Dexter and Riley. Two Border Terrier brothers who couldn’t have been more different when performing in front of the camera. Dexter was quiet and demure, while Riley was really up for it and in your face. Great fun and as always it was a pleasure to get to work with them.

… And So into 2020

As we move into the new year, we are looking forward to working with lots more lovely dogs, and hopefully we’ll get to work with some other pets as well. Would love to get the chance to work with some of the more exotic pets – snakes and lizards maybe.

We had quite a few gift vouchers go out as gifts for Christmas, so we are expecting to see those coming in as booking soon.

Our gift vouchers have no expiry date, so if you received one as a gift, don’t panic! You can always wait until the warmer weather comes around again and go for an outdoor, on-location shoot if you wish; or maybe even a snow scene, if we get any of the white stuff over the winter.

One slight change we are making with our products for 2020, if you purchase a piece of wall art or an album we will now provide you with a USB memory stick of social media ready images as a gift. So now you will be able to share your images with your friends and family at no extra cost.

Why not take a look at the lovely reviews our customers are leaving us at Trustpilot? Then, if you are ready to join the list of happy customers, use the link below to start the process of getting your pets photographed and creating a memory that will last a lifetime.

A Christmas Message from Shooting The Dog

It’s nearly here again! We’ve had a pretty busy year here at Shooting The Dog, and, as we never like to stagnate, a year of more changes to the business.

We have changed the way we do things: moved the studio out to the front of shop, introduced our in-person viewing sessions and changed suppliers for many of our products. All in order to provide the best service and highest quality products we can, while trying to keep things reasonably affordable for our clients.

This year hasn’t been the easiest, the high street seems to be getting quieter every year. Our running costs keep getting higher, and suppliers prices are rising all the time. So making a profit, while not charging ridiculous amounts, is a challenge to say the least. But we persevere, and hopefully we can keep going through 2020.

One more session to go

I have one more session booked in before Christmas, two border terriers, so that should be fun. Then we will take a short break over Christmas and the New Year – although if someone is in a rush for a pet portrait I am sure I can fit them in. Just contact us here and we’ll get back to you.

A quick recap

As we are getting towards the end of the year, I thought I would have a quick look back at all the wonderful dogs I have had the pleasure and privilege to work with during the year. So below is a selection of some of the stars of 2019. Many thanks to everyone who has used our services over the last 12 months. Especially the pet owners who have allowed me to get away with playing with your pets and making out that I am working.

I really love what I do and can only continue to get away with it your help.

I’m sure I have missed some out, and apologies if I have. Every dog I photographed this year has been brilliant, some of them have been challenging, but everyone of them is a star in my eyes.

Time to wrap it up

That’s it for our 2019 Christmas message. Except to say to you all, have a very happy Christmas, and I wish you all a successful and peaceful New Year.

Thank you to everyone who has had their pet photographed, or a picture framed, or even just popped in to buy a postcard. You all keep us up and running and for that we are very grateful.

A Review of October

It doesn’t seem to have stopped raining since the beginning of October; okay we have had a couple of sunny days, but not many. And wind – it’s been so windy just lately. Not a good combination for photography, at least not my sort of photography. Who wants a portrait of a windswept, muddy, wet, bedraggled dog?

Still the studio work continues, and we have had a fairly good take up on the Christmas Card mini-sessions, which have been great fun.

We have also been messing about with “silly” pet portraits during October – just trying out some ideas really. This is the sort of thing ..

Very silly stuff, but a lot of fun.

A Fidget Update

Fidget seems to be coping with the tablet change over quite well. He was originally taking 45mg of Epiphen in the mornings, and 60mg in the evening. He has cut down to 30mg morning and evening, without any adverse effects, and is due to drop the morning dosage to 15mg next week. So fingers crossed it doesn’t kick of the seizures again.

In the meantime, he is enjoying frequent visits to the beach and the park, where he is running about like a puppy again – which is brilliant to see. You don’t realise what effect these drugs have on your dogs until your “get them back” again!

… and on into November

There is still time to book your pet in for a pet portrait and get your wall art or albums in time for Christmas – but don’t leave it too late ! Just contact us and we’ll arrange everything for you, and at your convenience.

Our Shooting The Dog pet photography gift vouchers are now available to buy directly from the website. You can do that here.

Our Christmas Card Mini-Sessions are available until the end of November, so don’t miss out – book today!

Oh, and if you are beginning to think about what to get your pet for Christmas, check out our friends at Ruffle Snuffle Mats – they make loads of exciting things to enrich the life of your pet.

The last few months have been a bit stressful. My dog, Fidget, suffers from epilepsy. He has been taking epiphen to control it for the last three years. Unfortunately, these drugs have now started to impact his liver function. So we need to slowly move him off the epiphen and onto something else.

Changing the tablets

We started to reduce the dosage, but apparently went a bit too far. Fidget then had 28 seizures over three days. Which considering he hadn’t had a seizure for two months was concerning. We upped the dosage slightly and fortunately the seizures stopped.

But after a few days he started shaking and tremouring, and generally became lethargic and very wobbly on his back legs.

Time to reduce the dosage again!

Now we are getting the balance right, and he is seeming much better. Next dose reduction is next week, so we are hoping we don’t kick off any more seizures.