This is my West Highlands White Terrier or Westie, Tiki the wonder model dressed up as a clown. You may have seen this popular image of a circus clown dog in the Halloween section at your local card store as its been licensed by a major greeting card image and has been distributed across the country. Last time I saw it was in Target.
The costume was sourced at a local charity gift shop. Its a vintage handmade baby costume which fit perfectly. Baby clothes with modifications, specifically for a tail, can be great dog clothes although you often have to open them up more to get them on. And its hard to figure out exactly what size you need when you are in the store and don’t have your dog with you to try them on! Good thing is your local thrift store usually has kids clothes for only a few bucks.
New costumes for dogs probably fit better for longer wearing, perhaps for actually walking around on Halloween when you are trick or treating but they usually are made of cheaper material. This home made clown costume was perfect for this photo shoot because of its more worn and mat finish. No shiny material to create hot spots.
Tiki has gladly modeled for me for the series of images that became the book “The Quotable Westie” (available on Amaazon) and enjoys working for treats. Now anytime I pull out my studios lights and soft-boxes he immediately comes hanging around just in case its his turn to model.