Five Tips To Prepare Your Dogs For Portraits!

When I say the word “family” and think of my own, I ALWAYS see my husband, my kids, and of course, my dogs. I know that families that have pets feel the same way about their furry members of their family, which is why I encourage them to bring the WHOLE family to sessions.

Many families are hesitant to bring their dogs to the session for fear that they might not behave. But don’t fret! I’ve come up with a few tips for you to prepare your dogs (and yourself) for a successful family session that INCLUDES them.

1. If possible, spend a few minutes working with your dog during the week before the session. The two commands I will use during the session will be “sit” and “stay.”

2. When you’re training your dogs, use treats—and then bring those treats with you to the session. Dogs do very well with repetition, and the familiar treat will remind them what they have been practicing.3. Keep your dogs hungry. Try to feed them a little less on the morning of the session. This works in conjunction with training with treats, because being a little hungry will make your pet work harder to earn treats while being photographed.
4. Get to the session early. This gives your dogs a chance to settle into the environment and get used to it before you expect them to start paying attention.5. Keep your expectations low. Dogs sense your stress and will react to that! If you accept whatever behavior they bring to the session, it will be better for everyone and keep the whole family as stress-free as possible.

You want your whole family to be documented so that you can look back on ALL the ones that you love. Hopefully, these tips and tricks will give you the confidence you need to go ahead and bring your dogs to your session!

-Nicki