Dog Christmas Ornaments by Breed: A Small Gift with a Long Life

There are Christmas decorations you buy because they are beautiful that year, and there are the ones that become part of the family story. Dog ornaments have a wonderful habit of joining the second group.

A dog ornament can begin as a small present and return every December carrying more memories with it.

The tree becomes a family archive

A breed decoration can mark the year a puppy arrived, the dog the children grew up with, or simply the animal currently asleep under the branches looking suspiciously interested in the presents.

Over time, several dog ornaments can become a collection in their own right — different breeds, coat colours and years all sharing the same tree.

Breed detail makes the decoration personal

The pleasure is in recognising your kind of dog. A Saint Bernard, French Bulldog and Great Dane have such different outlines and personalities that the breed itself carries the design.

Where coat colours vary, choosing one close to the actual dog adds another layer — the same thinking behind our wall art by coat colour.

Choose pieces for the Christmases ahead

Portraiture, silhouettes and heritage-style illustration sit beautifully beside glass baubles, children's decorations, ribbons and family pieces collected over many years.

The more personal the tree becomes, the better the stories behind it.

An unusually easy present

Ornaments are small, postable and full of meaning. They work for friends, relatives, dog walkers and the person at work whose dog's name everybody somehow knows.

Add a handwritten note if the decoration marks a particular dog or year and keep the note with the ornament when Christmas is packed away.

Years later, both may have become part of the family's favourite Christmas box.