Hill 1
How are Dogs Portrayed in Commercial Advertising?
Tara Hill
ECI 435, Dr. Lee
Historical Inquiry Paper
October 12, 2010
Hill 2
In today’s world, advertising is no doubt a big part of American culture as it is literally
found almost everywhere one looks. Many companies use dogs as the central figures in their
advertisements. This begs the question: how are dogs portrayed in American culture,
specifically in commercial advertising? What messages are advertisers trying to get across to
their audience by using dogs? From analyzing some of the most popular dogs made famous in
American culture, it is apparent that commercial advertisers have a specific purpose when using
dogs in their advertisements. One can assume that these advertisers believe that using dogs will
be beneficial when trying to persuade their targeted audience to buy their products, ideals, or
services. In today’s society, dogs are known as the ultimate companion animal and are usually
considered part of our families. Advertisers know this and take advantage of the notion of dogs
as “man’s best friend.” Therefore, advertisers do indeed portray dogs in this positive light in
hopes that consumers will more readily buy their products and/or services.
One company, known for using dogs in their advertising and television commercials, is
Cottonelle, a toilet paper, bath tissue, and dispersal wipes brand.1 The mascot of this popular
brand is no other than a cute Labrador Retriever puppy. It is common knowledge that puppies
grow remarkably fast, so of course, the brand must use more than one puppy for its television
commercials. Thus, several Labrador Retriever puppies get to make their big television debuts.
Commercial advertisers frequently look to increase consumption of their products or services
through branding. This entails the repetition of an image or product name in an attempt to get
consumers to associate related qualities with the brand.2 Cottonelle uses this tactic by using the
puppy as an image along with the brand name. Most consumers recognize or know of the brand
Cottonelle’s official website, accessed October 3, 2010, http://www.cottonelle.com/.
The Cottonelle brand is produced by Kimberly Clark.
2
“Advertising,” from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, last modified October 11, 2010,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advertising.
1
Hill 3
right away solely because it is associated with a cute puppy. Not only does the puppy appear on
the toilet paper packaging itself, but it stars in the brand’s television commercials. After
analyzing the Cottonelle puppy in several of the company’s signature commercials, it is evident
that the puppy is being portrayed in a “cute, cuddly, don’t you want to hold me” type of way.
For instance, in a commercial advertisement for Cottonelle Ultra toilet paper, the puppy is rolling
around on his back on top of the toilet paper. The message for consumers is that the toilet paper
is soft and strong.3 The slogan of Cottonelle is “Be kind to your behind” and the puppy is trying
to portray that message. On the official Cottonelle website, there is a message regarding their
signature puppy mascot that reads, “This little puppy is on a big mission: to get people
everywhere to be kind to their behinds. Watch him work his cute and cuddly charms to spread
the word in these TV commercials.”4 Therefore, the message from the advertiser is clear: this
loveable little puppy wants us to choose soft toilet paper for our well being. The puppy is even
given a signature voice, which tells the viewer that the puppy is a male. Perhaps giving the
puppy a humanlike characteristic makes the viewers relate to the puppy even more, believing
that they need to indulge in Cottonelle’s soft toilet paper.
In another commercial, which also advertises Cottonelle Ultra toilet paper, the puppy is
being pampered and receiving the ultimate treatment. He is shown riding in a nice car, going to
the spa and having his nails filed, being massaged, getting his fur trimmed, and sitting in a hot
tub filled with rose petals.5 This life of luxury is being compared to the soft toilet paper. The
puppy is shown doing things that only some humans are privileged to do. Therefore, it is safe to
say that this commercial is definitely illustrating the puppy in a positive light.
“Cottonelle Commercial,” YouTube, accessed October 3, 2010, http://youtu.be/nHD7GB1efW0.
“A pup with a plan,” Cottonelle Puppy TV Ads. Accessed October 3, 2010, http://www.cottonelle.com/ads.aspx.
5
“Cottonelle Commercial Puppy Gets Pampered,” YouTube, accessed October 3, 2010,
http://youtu.be/WM6jWIpWtLI.
3
4
Hill 4
Another dog that has been made famous in America is Paddington, the Golden Retriever
in Bush’s Baked Beans commercials. In the commercials, Paddington is known as “Duke.” The
dog’s owner in the commercials is a man named Jay Bush, who is the actual president of Bush’s
Baked Beans. Jay Bush’s own dog, Duffy “Duke” was originally supposed to star in the
commercials with him, but the dog was just too camera shy and the family said they would miss
their beloved family pet too much when he was on the road. Therefore, they found Paddington, a
trained dog, to portray Duke in the commercials. Duke even travels along with Jay Bush to
events so they can meet their loyal fans.6 Like the puppy in the Cottonelle commercials, Duke is
given human-like characteristics. In each commercial, the male dog speaks in a deep voice and
is even shown at times conversing with humans. The dog’s signature line is “Roll that beautiful
bean footage.” In the commercials, the owner begs Duke to keep the “secret family recipe”
because Duke is always threatening to sell it. The loveable Golden Retriever is definitely
portrayed as “man’s best friend” in these commercials because he is the only “person” that Jay
has shared the recipe with except for his family members.7 The dog is undoubtedly given the
spotlight in the commercials, plus a humorous character and funny personality that catch the
viewer’s attention right away.8 In addition, Golden Retrievers are often viewed as the “perfect”
American family dog. Therefore, this specific breed of dog makes the character of Duke even
more likeable since many families own one. To reiterate, using a dog as the primary focus in
selling a product goes back to the way dogs are portrayed in American culture: as part of our
families and sometimes even our best friends.
“Jay & Duke-History of Duke,” Bush Brothers & Company, accessed October 1, 2010,
http://www.bushbeans.com/jaynduke/duke.php.
7
“Jay & Duke and Now Cousin Drew- Our Ads,” Bush Brothers & Company, accessed October 1, 2010,
http://www.bushbeans.com/jaynduke/ads.php.
8
“Funniest Baked Beans Commercial Yet (2007),” YouTube, accessed October 1, 2010,
http://youtu.be/9wJe5sQRrvY.
6
Hill 5
A type of commercial that is somewhat different from the last two is an animal cruelty
commercial from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also known as
the ASPCA. In this commercial, Sarah McLachlan is the spokesperson and her purpose is to
inform viewers about the problem of animal cruelty and how it negatively affects animals’
health. The commercial begins with a series of pictures of wounded and injured animals, most of
which are dogs. The images of these dogs are heart breaking and have a powerful and emotional
effect on viewers. Dogs are shown in cages, peering out at the camera with big, sad eyes. Soon
after, a dog is seen limping and struggling to get off of his blanket on the floor. Sarah
McLachlan is then pictured sitting on the couch with a Golden Retriever by her side. She is
petting the dog as she speaks about the seriousness of animal abuse and how we, the audience,
can help by making a monthly donation.
At one point in the ASPCA commercial, the camera switches screenshots to a dog that is
missing an ear and then to a shot where a man is carrying a dog with a broken leg. The dogs in
the commercial are portrayed as helpless, innocent creatures that rely solely on humans for their
care and well being. The way the dogs are shown in the clip depicts that they are desperately in
need of our compassion and help. Also, these dogs are represented as creatures that deserve
nothing less than love and a good home. Another prominent message is seen through how the
Golden Retriever is sitting on the couch; the dog sits at the same level as Sarah McLachlan. This
image gives off the idea that even though dogs are animals, they should be treated with the same
love and respect that humans are entitled to. Similar to the last two commercials discussed, these
dogs are given the stereotypical “man’s best friend” characteristic. This is especially obvious
when an animal caretaker kisses a neglected looking Chihuahua on the head. This commercial
boldly suggests that dogs are animals worth fighting for and spending our hard earned money on.
Hill 6
One can imply that this commercial also sends out the message that people who neglect and
abuse animals are horrible, cruel people. Thus, it is obvious that the commercial regards dogs as
important animals that deserve to be treated with love, care, and respect.9
Some popular commercials, that many would recall seeing, are the K9 Advantix flea
treatment commercials. In one of the brand’s commercials, a Labrador Retriever puppy (that
always wears a blue bandana with the K9 Advantix logo) is shown singing in a little boy’s voice:
“Hello mother, hello father…fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, really bother!” In the commercial, the
puppy is portrayed as a kid at camp, writing to his parents about the package they sent, which
contains the flea treatment.10 The song the puppy sings at the beginning is extremely catchy and
cute. Since the puppy is presented as a “child” that was sent off to a summer camp, one can
assume that this dog, like many others described before, is given human-like characteristics to
grab the viewer’s attention and interest. One other observation is that the K9 Advantix mascot is
very similar to the Cottonelle mascot since both dogs are Labrador Retriever puppies that speak
in a male voice. In addition, the dogs are both shown as cute, playful puppies with wagging tails
that stem from their happiness over the products being advertised.
In another K9 Advantix commercial, the signature Labrador Retriever puppy is shown
along with four other dogs. The main message in this commercial is “I always want more.” The
main Labrador Retriever puppy is shown carrying a huge bone, a brown Labrador Retriever is
holding a frisbee in his mouth, a shaggy haired dog is getting a belly rub, a Great Dane is talking
a walk with his owner, and a Bull Mastiff is taking up most of the bed while sleeping with his
caretaker. Each dog wants something more: a bigger bone, more fetches, more belly rubs, more
“Sarah McLachlan SPCA Commercial,” YouTube, accessed October 2, 2010, http://youtu.be/IO9d2PpP7tQ.
This source is applicable for the entire discussion/analysis of the ASPCA commercial.
10
“K9 Advantix- Hello Mother! Hello Father!,” YouTube, accessed October 3, 2010,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SygLtvh90vQ&feature=related .
9
Hill 7
walks, and more space on the bed. Also, four of the dogs in the commercial are given a voice to
communicate what they want more of. An interesting observation is that three out of the four
voices are male. At the conclusion of the commercial, the speaker says that it is impossible to
give your dog more of everything but that protection is something you should never give your
pets less of. This is when the flea treatment is advertised.11 In this commercial, the dogs are
being treated well by their owners, some would even say spoiled. Therefore, the commercial is
portraying that dogs should be loved, played with, and taken care of. Also, the dog shown taking
up the whole bed depicts just how attached we can get with our pets. This commercial, like the
others, accurately showcases how dogs are portrayed in America.
After analyzing numerous commercials that place dogs in the spotlight, it is evident that
commercial advertisers typically portray dogs as the perfect American family pet, which is the
popular opinion of most Americans today. Although dogs are represented differently in each
commercial, they are still all being shown in a positive light. Also, Labrador Retrievers and
Golden Retrievers are known as two of the most popular breeds in the United States and sure
enough, most of the commercials that were analyzed showed at least one of these breeds.
Advertisers take advantage of breed popularity and thus show these types of dogs in their
commercials so that Americans can relate. Americans can also relate to these commercials
because many have a dog that they consider their family member. Interestingly enough, most of
the dogs in the commercials analyzed have male voices, thus implying that perhaps American
families prefer male over female dogs. In today’s society, the male sex is usually considered to
be dominant over the female sex, and this assumption carries over into the dog commercials. It is
obvious that there are many similar patterns in these different commercials when it comes to
“K9 Advantix More,” Bayer Healthcare- Animal Health Division, accessed October 2, 2010,
http://www.bayerdvm.com/Resources/Docs/video_player.cfm?video=FINAL_K01387_K9%20AdvantixMore_30se
c.mov.
11
Hill 8
using dogs as the main subjects. Whether the advertiser’s purpose for using dogs in commercials
is to sell a product or to advocate against animal cruelty, one thing is for certain: dogs are known
as our loyal companions and best friends, and that is how most commercial advertisers choose to
portray them.
Hill 9
Selected Bibliography
The items listed here are other sources that were used but not directly referenced in notes.
Mark Ramirez, “Top dogs of pop culture.” Dog-Owned Life (blog). Times Union, December 23,
2009, http://blog.timesunion.com/mydogbandit/top-dogs-of-pop-culture/3892/.
Wikipedia. “List of Dogs- Commercials.” Last modified October 10, 2010. Accessed October
2, 2010. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dogs#Commercials.