The problem

The team at nutritional dog food company tails.com were concerned by the rising rate of dog obesity in the UK; dogs all over the country were being fed the wrong food, and their health was suffering as a result. They knew they had to do something, and so decided to collaborate with bestselling author Annabel Karmel to create a recipe book you’d be hard pressed to find elsewhere: a recipe book for dogs and their owners!

tails.com approached whitefox with their plan to create a recipe book packed full of photos and delicious treats. With the goal of publishing in time for Christmas 2019 (when it’s not just dogs who are overeating), whitefox had a timeline of just three months to go from proofread to publication. As a team of dog lovers, we didn’t have to think twice…

The solution

The whitefox team met with tails and Thinking Hat PR to discuss the project in more detail. With the hope of filling a hardback book with images of dogs enjoying the tails.com recipes, the first step was putting time in doggy diaries to have a photoshoot. The whitefox editorial team conferred with an expert recipe tester and canine specialist to develop each nutritional meal separately. A four-day photoshoot was arranged with the tails.com team, The Happy Dog Cookbook authors Sean McCormack and Annabel Karmel, and the dogs. Getting the dogs to sit still for their photos was difficult, but with whitefox’s project management team and trusted experts, the shoot turned out amazingly!

Once the photoshoot was complete, whitefox’s editorial team got started on creating a beautifully designed book with a specialist index, all ready to be packed, printed, distributed and sold to dog lovers worldwide.

The result

With the support of whitefox’s extensive publishing network, the tails.com team were able to accomplish their goal of publishing an entirely bespoke recipe book filled with carefully-tested dog recipes, beautifully shot photographs and nutritional tips to ensure every dog owner has the resources and information to keep their dog fit and healthy. All that, in just three months!

The Happy Dog Cookbook received attention from notable dog lovers all over the country, including Sophie Stanbury, Luke Arthur Wells and Adela King, and was featured in The Times, Forbes, the Daily Mail and Metro. Best of all, the tails.com team decided to donate ALL proceeds to a worthy charity: StreetVetUK.

‘Working with whitefox on the book was really great; they couldn’t have been more helpful and supportive. With their guidance and expertise, the book has been a roaring success, raising much-needed funds for the wonderful charity StreetVet, helping pets and people experiencing homelessness with free, accessible veterinary care. I couldn’t recommend whitefox more highly as publishers’ – Sean McCormack, Head Vet at tails.com