Gifts for Dog Moms and Dog Dads

The gift that beats every other dog gift

Dog moms and dog dads already own the toys, the treats and the mug with a paw print on it. What they do not have is a portrait of their actual dog, made from a photo you already have on your phone, hanging where they will see it every day. That is the gift that gets a reaction, and it is the one we make.

A portrait works like this. You upload a photo of their dog (a screenshot from their social media is usually too compressed, so ask a family member for the original, or send one you took yourself). You choose a style and a backdrop, and we create the artwork and send you a free digital proof. Nothing prints until you approve it, so you see the gift before they do. Then it is printed museum-grade on archival paper, framed in real wood, and shipped ready to wrap.

If you cannot get a good photo without giving the surprise away, two of these need none at all. The Dog Mom Mug and the Dog Dad Mug print the dog's name and nothing else, so all you have to know is what they are called.

Ways to give it

A framed portrait is the gift itself: the row above shows the styles that read most clearly as a present, on light and warm backdrops. The Modern and Line Art portraits are the safest choices when you do not know the recipient's taste, because they go with any room. The Painted portrait is the one for people who love art. The Day Jobs, which puts the dog in a profession from astronaut to chef, is the one for people who love a joke told with a straight face.

A hoodie with their dog on it is the gift they will actually wear. Our hoodies are heavyweight and made to order in eight colours, with the dog printed or embroidered on the chest from the same photo, and the same free proof before anything is stitched or printed.

A sweatshirt is the hoodie without the hood, which for a lot of people is the version they reach for more often. The crewnecks are heavyweight and made to order in eight colours, with the dog printed or embroidered across the chest from the same photo. They run a touch small, so between sizes take the larger one.

A t-shirt is the same idea for the months nobody wants fleece. The t-shirts are garment-dyed and come in nine colours, cut relaxed and boxy rather than fitted, printed or embroidered from the same photo. All three run S to 2XL, and all three sit in apparel.

A mug is the one that gets picked up every morning rather than worn out of the house. Two kinds. The Dog Mom Mug and the Dog Dad Mug say whose dog it is in large clean caps, their name above the word, and need no photo at all. The rest of the mugs carry the dog around the outside in the same styles as the wall art, with their name above the portrait. All of them come in 11 and 15 ounce and are dishwasher and microwave safe.

A gift card, from $25 to $200, hands the whole choice to them: the photo, the style, the size. It arrives by email, it never expires, and they still get the free proof. It is the right answer when you cannot get a good photo of the dog without giving the surprise away. The gift card is here.

Getting the photo without spoiling the surprise

You need one sharp, front-facing photo in good light, close enough to fill the frame with the dog's head and chest. The easiest route is to take it yourself the next time you see the dog: crouch to eye level, use daylight, and take ten so one is sharp. If you are working from photos the owner took, ask for the original file rather than a screenshot. Our photo guidelines show good and bad examples, and if you are not sure, upload what you have; a real person checks every photo before artwork is made and will tell you if a better one is needed.

What arrives

A framed portrait arrives printed museum-grade on archival paper, in a real wood frame, ready to hang, with the dog exactly as you approved it in the proof. An unframed print arrives rolled and ready for a frame of their own. A digital file arrives by email as a print-ready file and the borderless artwork, which suits someone who prints their own or lives far away. A hoodie, a sweatshirt or a t-shirt arrives folded, with the dog on the chest as stitched or printed from the same proof, and a mug arrives boxed, either with the dog around one side and their name above it or with their name alone across the front if you chose the Dog Mom or Dog Dad one.

For which occasions

Birthdays, the dog's gotcha day, a housewarming, a new job, a thank you, and the holidays. Our gift page covers the occasions in more detail, and if you are choosing for a cat person instead, our cat portraits page has the same styles on cats.

Sizes and timing

Portraits come in 8x10, 12x16 and 18x24 inches, framed in black, white, wood or dark wood, as an unframed print, or as a digital file. The proof usually arrives within a day of ordering; once you approve it the portrait goes into production and ships, and our shipping policy has the current delivery estimates. If a date is tight, the gift card is instant.

Common questions

Will the recipient see the proof?

No. The proof goes to whoever places the order, so you approve the artwork and the recipient sees only the finished portrait.

What if I choose the wrong style?

The proof exists for this. If it does not feel right when you see it, tell us and we will make it right before anything prints.

Can I add the dog's name?

Yes. Every style offers the name as an option, placed where it suits that style, and you can leave it off. The Dog Mom and Dog Dad mugs are the exception in both directions: the name is the whole design there, so it is not optional and there is no photo to add it to.

Can I have a portrait shipped straight to them?

Yes. Enter their address at checkout and yours as the billing address. The proof still comes to you.