A day at Dogtember

In September, we joined Tug-E-Nuff at Saltdean Lido for Dogtember, where around 750 dogs took to the pool one sunny Sunday. We were there to capture Tug-E-Nuff toys in action, which sounds like a pretty straightforward brief until you factor in hundreds of dogs, a swimming pool and the general level of tail-wagging excitement involved.

Saltdean is a gorgeous 1930s lido that opens its doors to dogs and their owners every September. For a few weekends, the pool becomes a giant dog party, with swimming, retrieving, splashing and dogs having what can only be described as the time of their lives. It's quite a setting for a day's filming, and considerably more entertaining than your average studio shoot.

Toys, trainers and a lot of splashing

We had Tug-E-Nuff's BOB and Aero-Tug floating toys with us, plus some of the brand's brilliant partner dog trainers, helping owners get the most out of them.

Some dogs needed absolutely no invitation to get in the water. Others took a bit more persuading. And then there were the moments when a nervous dog suddenly found its confidence and went for it. Watching Shadow take the leap was a particular highlight, complete with some very enthusiastic cheering from the sidelines.

Of course, when you're filming dogs, you can have a plan, but the dogs haven't necessarily read it. They're not especially interested in hitting their marks or giving you the perfect take. They're there to have fun, chase toys and get on with being dogs. Which, as it turns out, makes for some pretty brilliant footage.

And while there was plenty of action, it was just as much fun watching the owners. With the trainers on hand, people were learning how to get their dogs interested in a toy, when to encourage them and when to let them work things out for themselves. You could see the difference when a dog found a game it really loved.

It's all about the play

At Nobull, we work with Tug-E-Nuff on its marketing, so we know the story behind the toys. But it's one thing to talk about the importance of play and quite another to watch it unfold in front of you, with hundreds of dogs providing the evidence.

Tug-E-Nuff began with founder Teresa trying to find a toy that would motivate her dog, Indy. When she couldn't find what she needed, she made her own. That simple idea grew into a business built around helping dogs and their people connect through play.

You could see that idea all over the pool. Yes, the toys were doing their job, but the best bits were the interactions around them: the dog that couldn't wait for another retrieve, the owner discovering a new favourite game, or the nervous swimmer who suddenly decided the water wasn't so scary after all.

It's also a good reminder that play doesn't have to be complicated. Sometimes it's about finding the one thing that gets your dog's attention and joining in. And sometimes it's about being prepared to get very wet in the process..!

Getting out from behind the screen

A big part of our job at Nobull is creating content that brings a brand to life, and days like this are a brilliant part of that process. We get to spend time with the team, see the products being used properly and capture the little moments that you simply couldn't recreate in a product shoot.

There's no shortage of content opportunities when you've got hundreds of dogs in a pool. But what makes a day like Dogtember particularly good is that there's a real story behind all the action. You're not just filming a toy being thrown into water; you're seeing why the toy matters to the person using it and the dog chasing it.

And, selfishly, it's also a rather lovely way to spend a working day. There was plenty of laughter, a lot of splashing and more than a few dogs who seemed determined to share the contents of the pool with anyone standing nearby.

One for the memory bank

A huge thank you to Jules and the Saltdean team, the Tug-E-Nuff partner trainers and everyone else who made our day. We came away with some great footage, plenty of memories and a few more reasons to love working in the pet industry.

It's not every day I get to spend a Sunday watching hundreds of dogs having the time of their lives in a swimming pool. And it's certainly not every day that getting soaked is a perfectly reasonable part of my job.

Dogtember takes place at Saltdean Lido each September.

Find out more: Saltdean Lido  Tug-E-Nuff

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