The Best Way Your Pet Can Become A Professional Model

Training Your Pet

Training needs to include basic pet commands. There are a number of highly intelligent dog breeds that are super trained and can carry out all kinds of commands, but the basics required are – ‘sit’ ‘lie down’ ‘get up’ ‘come’ ‘jump.’

Dogs can be trained to lick their lips or bark on command, work with cats, toys, and props.

Many cats being picked by clients are noticeably quite young, trained kittens, just 4-5 months old, and where they still retain their visual ‘cuteness’ but there are no age barriers where older pets may be needed for certain work.

Training Your Pet To Pose For The Camera

Getting your pet to pose, looking at the camera can be tough at first, but training your pet to look at something that holds their attention just below, at the side, or just above the camera is a great way to start training them. A toy, a treat, or anything that your pet loves.

If your pet loses interest quickly, then try another training trick where you train your pet to look at you, at your command. Use a definite word, phrase, or body gesture and then respond quickly providing them with a treat. Repeat this action until you can lengthen the time before you provide the treat, long enough for a camera to point and flash.

You’ll find that training them this way repetitively usually works where they will very quickly respond. Choose your words, expressions gestures carefully for each trick that you may introduce into their repertoire. The more tricks pets can perform, the more likely they’ll be hired for work.

Choose tricks carefully, research some original moves, that other pets haven’t been filmed using.

Pet Film Shoots

Owners need to be prepared for long days when attending with their pets. Early starts in the morning and not always city centre locations, so owning transport is a must.

You may have to drive your pet to a rural, out-of-the-way location so it’s important they are used to travelling and trained to travel in vehicles from a young age.

There can be long delays between preparing, grooming, and filming, and pets need to be calm and rested during these breaks. You need to be attentive and care for them during the breaks.

Pets can be asked to travel abroad and would need to undertake all relevant jabs and paperwork to fulfill that business commitment.

Social Media Influencers

Some of the more popular pet models may not have huge Instagram or Twitter account following, although accounts with 5,000-10,000 followers are the most frequently being signed up. These accounts are still popular and can picked on by top modelling agencies.

Smaller account followings have a particularly good visitor rate interaction – whereas the medium and larger size pet Influencers, with followings over 1 million, lose some of the closeness of the one-to-one social engagement between advertisers and customers, but provide celebrity style endorsements where hiring these pet models cost considerably more.

Pay Rates For Pet Modelling

Agencies are reserved about how much pets can get paid for their work. Pay generally depends on your pets’ abilities and the length of the day or days spent working. There’s not a guaranteed ‘pet modelling pay scale’.

It’s important to post pictures when the pet has worked with celebrities as this greatly enhances followings and pay rates.

Business Insurance

Even the calmest of pets can suddenly act out of character so it’s important to use business insurance for any eventuality or mishap that may occur whilst under a modelling contract.

Your pet would be classed as a working pet and will require cover such as Pet Public Liability insurance in case your pet injures someone or damages property and you may be held liable.

There are several pet companies that offer fully comprehensive business pet insurance including international travel, if needed, or can be ‘bolted on’ at a later stage. You can read more about business pet insurance in our Pet Check Specialist Pet Business Liability Insurance feature.