What Do Dogs Think of Christmas? Pedigree Has a Fun Theory

Christmas must be a bewildering time for dogs. The humans are celebrating something. But what?

In a new global holiday campaign from Pedigree, created by Colenso BBDO New Zealand and BBDO New York, a family dog with a health ego has no such confusion. He flatly assumes Christmas is all about him—understandably so, since he was adopted on Christmas "many dinnertimes ago," according to the amusing and well-crafted launch spot. 

Enjoy his misguided account below, directed by Christopher Riggert through production company Finch. 

It's a cute conceit. And while dogs have taken center stage in holiday ads before—"Buster the Boxer" for John Lewis immediately comes to mind—the "Season of Good Dog" idea is perfect for Pedigree, a platform that can be activated each year as pet owners seek to lavish their best friends with at least as much love as the humans in their lives. 

"Dogs hold such a special place in our homes and our lives, and it always felt strange to us that there wasn't a starring role for them in our holiday celebrations," says Dan Wright, executive creative director at Colenso BBDO. "We are so excited to share this work with the world, and give our dogs the celebration they deserve."

"The Pedigree Dentastix brand loves dogs, so why leave them out of the holiday fun?" adds Rafael Blanco, brand manager at Mars Petcare U.S. "Our new 'Season of Good Dog' campaign is an inclusive and joyous way for every dog to get the most out of the holiday season and to create opportunities for closeness between dogs and their owners. We can't wait to celebrate throughout the holiday season." 

The campaign also includes an album of holiday carols for dogs on Spotify, as well as limited-edition Season of Good Dog products, including paw shaped stockings, park- and slipper-scented wrapping paper, tug-of-war poppers, tennis baubles, singing greeting cards, and "MistleSTIX," a version of mistletoe where owners have to treat any dog that sits under it. 

Cesar's matching sweaters for dogs and their owners

Meanwhile, another Mars pet-food brand, Cesar, has launched its own amusing global holiday campaign—this one through AMV BBDO—centered around matching dog-and-owner holiday sweaters. 

Cesar and MediaMonks created a "Doggy Design Studio," where dogs navigated an agility course—with every jump, bark and way translated into design elements for the sweaters. The final designs were manufactured in both human and dog sizes. 

See credits for both campaigns below. 

CREDITS

Agency: Colenso BBDO 
Client: Pedigree
Campaign: Season of Good Dog

Mars Global Petcare       
Global Brand Director MARS Petcare: Dave Griffin
Global Innovation Acceleration Manager: Angela Cameron
Marketing Director MARS Petcare US: Melodie Bolin
Brand Manager – Dentastix: Rafael Blanco
Associate Brand Manager: James Niemann

BBDO
Chief Creative Officer, BBDO Worldwide: David Lubars
Creative Chairman: Nick Worthington
Chief Creative Officer: Levi Slavin      
Executive Creative Director: Daniel Wright  
Creative Group Head: Beth O'Brien    
Creative Group Head: Thomas Darlow
Group Business Director: Ahmad Salim        
Business Director: Nico Ainsworth      
Account Manager: Arameh Bozorgi   
Account Executive: James Baker       
Senior TV Producer: Natasha Gill  
Integrated Producer: Ashlee Harris     
Head of Integrated Production: Scott Chapman    
Senior Planner: Philip De Meulemeester  
ECD - Pedigree Global: Gianfranco Arena
ECD - Pedigree Global: Peter Kain
Senior Account Director - Pedigree Global: Sally Nathans
Agency Producer: Natasha Gill
DOP: Jeremy Rouse

Production Company: Finch
Production Company Executive Producer: Rob Galluzzo
Production Company Producer: Claire Thompson
Director: Christopher Riggert

Sound: Liquid Studio
Sound Design: Craig Matuschka
Music Composition: Peter van der Fluit
Music & Sound Producer: Tamara O’Neill

Post Production: Blackbird
Online Editor: Nicholas Ponzoni

Editor: Stuart Reeves & Bernard Garry, The Editors

CREDITS

Project: Cesar "Twinning"
Client name & job title: Fabio Alings, Cesar Global Brand Director
Creative Agency: AMV BBDO
Creative Director: Alex Grieve & Adrian Rossi
Copywriter: Michael Hughes
Art Director: Dalatando Almeida
Agency Planner: Lola Finney-Neves, Imogen Mead
Agency Account Team: Jonny White, Ella Dolding, Poppy Wilson, Joshua Solana, Nicolas Pignatelli, Emily Frost
Agency Producer: Greg Kates
Production Company: MediaMonks
Director: Tom Rijpert
Production Co. Producer: Andy Hopkinson, Rogier Dorant, Lennart Deen
Post-production Company: The Mill
Photographer: Michiel Spijkers