People love pets, livestock and wildlife so much that it’s no surprise to see a wide range of animals appear in business logos. Since ancient times, humans have associated certain animals with specific traits that people admire and want others to associate with them. As a result, dogs and puppies appear in more than just logos for businesses that specifically sell pet-related products and services like bedding, food, grooming supplies or kennel and training services.
Humans commonly associate dogs and puppies with being active, aggressive, bold, curious, cute, fearless, friendly, happy, loyal, protective and social. The following companies decided to project one or more of these traits by adding a dog to their logo:
The Most Notable Examples
RCA Victor Dog
One of the earliest modern examples of a dog used in a logo originated with a painting called “His Master’s Voice” by British painter Francis Barraud. It featured a white, brown-eared terrier mix named Nipper sitting in front of a gramophone and paying attention to the sounds produced by it.
Originally, Barraud thought to sell the painting to one of the most well-known gramophone manufacturers of the time (Edison-Bell). Yet, a representative of the company’s British branch declined to purchase it. By luck, while attempting to brighten the painting by borrowing a brass rather than black gramophone horn from an Edison-Bell competitor, he managed to sell the painting after agreeing to make some changes.
Since 1899, the image has generated positive worldwide attention to vinyl records, televisions and other products manufactured by Victor and Gramophone Company Ltd. and RCA (Radio Corporation of America). The dog’s features and pose helped these companies become known as providers of excellent, high-quality products associated with boldness, curiosity and happiness.
Mack Trucks Bulldog
A bulldog coupled with the words “Mack Trucks” or “Mack” wasn’t an American invention, even though Jack and Gus Mack of New York founded the Mack Brothers Company in 1900. The British government bought Mack AC model heavy cargo trucks during the First World War.
In 1917, soldiers began calling the model the “bulldog.” They felt that the blunt, nose-like hood design of the truck’s front was similar to a pug-nosed dog and, in combination with the truck’s durable body, matched the country’s mascot of a British bulldog perfectly. At the time, the United Kingdom used the bulldog image in WWI propaganda to promote nationalism and unity. The dog became associated with no-nonsense behavior, a fighting spirit and tenacity.
Eventually, the company trademarked the name and incorporated the dog into the logo. To this day, the Mack bulldog continues to promote traits commonly associated with these ideal traits.
Slush Puppie Puppy
Not every dog selected for a logo started with a real-life example. Will Radcliff of Cincinnati, a peanut salesman, came up with the logo idea with his mother, Thelma, and sister, Phyllis, after visiting a trade show in Chicago in 1970.
While checking out various new beverage machines, he found one unattractively called the Stoelting Slush Machine. Believing that slushy marketing needed help and his family could make this slushy beverage maker sell with a better name and memorable logo, he eventually settled on “Slush Puppie” and the image of a white, floppy-eared cartoon puppy, wearing a blue winter knit hat and a blue shirt with S on it, smiling broadly while licking its lips.
Radcliff founded the Slush Puppie Corporation for less than $1,000. Currently, J & J Snack Foods uses the cute cartoon mascot named Chilly Dog for promoting cold, slushy drinks as something fun and tasty to enjoy year-round.
Radley London Terrier
Another dog people associate with cute, fun products is the Radley London black Scottish terrier. The Radley dog is the company’s mascot and appears on many products. Radley London promotes the dog as representing “British humour and eccentricity.”
Although the business website claims the black Scottie was a part of Radley since the company’s founding in 1998, the logo design didn’t take off on some representations of the plain text Radley London logo until 2001, after increased customer interest following a limited winter release. Fans of the terrier have made it so popular that Radley London often incorporates dog imagery into its marketing. It places balloon dogs in product photos. It even purchased topiary art originally placed outside of the re-launched Radley London location and later taken on a national tour.
Customers love the black terrier so much that many of them complained immediately after the company attempted to change the dog design in 2010. Radley London restored the old design after receiving intense, extensive negative feedback.
Impact Sheep Dog
Many people associate sheep dogs with herding, motivating and protecting innocent sheep. A marine sergeant major named Lance Nutt recognized in 2005, after Hurricane Katrina hit the United States, that members of EMS, law enforcement, fire and rescue operations, military veterans and other first responders and their families failed to receive the help necessary after natural and human-made disasters in a timely or thorough fashion from charities and government agencies.
He and his father founded Sheep Dog Impact Assistance to help make a positive impact on the lives of veterans and other first responders. Their logo of a white and black sheep dog looking forward with intent with a shield in the background and a white medical cross on the dog’s neck represents all the best traits associated with sheep dogs. Their mission is not merely to provide disaster relief. They also help between emergencies with motivational programs and holiday assistance to prevent the mental health and financial crises often experienced by those who serve others.
Law Dog Legal Marketing
This creative agency focuses on digital marketing for attorneys. Law Dog Legal Marketing utilizes a German Shepherd mascot. US law enforcement has utilized Shepherds since the 1950’s. This humorous website’s mascot is dressed as an attorney and helps lawyers understand digital marketing in a playful way.
Interesting Dog-Related Interpretations
No article about companies that use one or more dogs in their logos is complete without discussing the many ways that some businesses have incorporated mythic dog-like animals or the word “dog” in their logo designs. The energy company Eni, for example, uses a mythical, fire-breathing six-legged black dog designed originally by Italian sculptor Luigi Broggini for a 1952 marketing contest to represent various ideas, including Italian cultural unity, company openness and an illuminated forward path.
Black Dog Whisky is a non-image example of the word dog in a logo. The Scottish brand, part of United Spirits Limited, displays a fly-fishing lure with the text rather than a dog. To this day, no one clearly knows why the 1883 brand has the name Black Dog other than the possibility that the person who discovered it named it after the type of lure he often used for salmon fishing. Another company that uses the text this way is the Black Dog Baits Company. Its logo features the company name “Black Dog Bait Co.” in white with two pawprints. The company also uses a real-life black dog, a black Labrador Retriever, in its marketing images.
