The Winzum Turner & Walker Pet Portrait Giveaway

In all the humdrum of modern life on Earth it can be sometimes easy to forget that we share our planet with the wonderful animal kingdom. Deep in the city in particular, evidence of a world outside our human one can be hard to come by, although our profound love of pets can definitely help remedy this.

Whether it is a dog, cat, goldfish, snake or ferret, there is just nothing like having an animal companion there to negotiate life with. In the UK alone it is estimated that 59% of households have pets, which equates to a whooping 17 million of our furry friends. The lessons you can learn from caring for a pet are numerous too, teaching compassion, humility and all-round kind-heartedness.

It’s about time we gave something back to the millions of UK pets, don’t you think? This is where Turner & Walker come in, the leading providers of bespoke pet portraits in the country. Ever wondered what your dog would look like as a regal gentleman? Or if your cat somehow became the Queen of England? Turner & Walker are here to turn our dreams into hilarious and touching reality.

As the UK’s leading pet portrait studio Turner & Walker have already delivered thousands of expertly designed canvas prints, giving households across the country the perfect way to celebrate their furry family members. Using a combination of pet illustration magic from founder Lucy Lou and digital graphic design techniques, the company have been quickly gaining fans over the last few years.

Being ahead of the curve is an important part of the Winzum ethos, as you might have seen from our recent Bitcoin voucher competition, so we thought we would run a super-exciting Turner & Walker Pet Portrait giveaway for you lot.

In the UK we own more pets than ever before, and they are also more important due to the lockdown-heavy last year or so. Is there a better way to celebrate your pet than honouring them with a professionally canvas printed custom portrait? Enter the Winzum Turner & Walker Pet Portrait giveaway for your chance to do exactly that. As always with our competitions it could not be easier to enter, and this time it's with a twist.

To be entered into this draw simply upload a photo of your beloved pet to one of our social posts linked in the images below. Please tell us your pets name, their age, breed and why you love them so much

Those are the basics out of the way with the Winzum Turner & Walker Pet Portrait giveaway. Keep reading to get your gnashers stuck into a deeper look at who Turner & Walker are, as well as a broader discussion on the wonderful world of pets.

Who are Turner & Walker?

Artists Andrew Turner and Lucy Walker founded Tuner & Walker a few years ago, intent on using their art skills to shine a light on one of their biggest passions – pets. With several years experience in the fields of art, design and illustration the pair were perfectly poised to start something special, and so Turner & Walker was born.

A striking quality of Turner & Walker pet portraits is how amazingly anthropomorphic they are. The design team is genuinely unmatched in this, and it is one of the main reasons behind the pet portrait studio’s remarkable level of success over the last couple of years.

Take the Sherlock design, for example, modelled on the infamous Sherlock Holmes. The design team have managed to blend pet facial features seamlessly into the classic image of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective, and the result is impressive, cute and downright hilarious all at once.

No wonder they have been met with critical acclaim at some of the nation’s premier pet fairs such as Crufts. This is no gimmick – Turner & Walker pet portraits are of genuine quality. In fact, if Sherlock Holmes himself was to be drawn by the Turner & Walker design team we think he would be very happy indeed.

And don’t just take it from us either, take a look at a handful of the scintillating reviews left by happy customers:

1. “Turner & Walker corrected an error I had made without any hesitation. Not only am I (and my partner) extremely happy with the double portrait of our dogs, but it was refreshing to deal with a company who know the value of customer satisfaction. Excellent product, excellent service, excellent communication. What more can I say!”

2. “Well where shall I start.... Turner & Walker were fabulous from start to finish, the customer service and design are top notch. Lucy was so helpful in helping me to decide which photo would be suitable for the pet portrait and I was overjoyed when I received my final print. The design and quality are second to none, it was a very special Christmas gift for my partner. Thank you Turner & Walker, I will definitely be using you again. You really do have a very special service.”

3. “Just received our absolutely stunning pet portrait in the post and are overwhelmed by the high quality of the product. Lucy was fantastic at responding to enquiries and we will be highly recommending this business to family and friends. Thank you to Lucy and the team.”

There are plenty more where those came from too! By now you must see how great Turner & Walker are at delivering an incredibly unique product. Winzum are giving you a chance to win a custom portrait of your choice for free, so what are you waiting for?

To be entered into this draw simply upload a photo of your beloved pet to one of our social posts linked in the images below. Please tell us your pets name, their age, breed and why you love them so much

Let’s be honest: Is there anything better than a pet?

A huge reason behind the success that Turner & Walker have enjoyed recently is their impeccable approach to design and customer service, but above even that is the fact that pets are genuinely some of the best things in the world. These animal companions bring people so much joy, and also often admirably serve as genuine day-to-day life support. Just think about the 5000+ guide dogs for the blind in the UK, for example, or the heart-warming story of “Doctor Peyo”, the French hospital support horse comforting cancer victims and other seriously unwell patients.

In the UK the two most popular household pets are dogs and cats, so no surprise there. This is just scratching the surface of how many furry friends are around at the moment though, as rabbits, hamsters and fish are all very popular too. And that’s before we get onto the more niche household pets – did you know there are more than 800,000 domestic reptiles in the UK?

There is absolutely no doubt that we are a nation of pet lovers, which is why companies like Turner & Walker have had so much success with their pet portraits. Aside from giving us a sense of companionship these animals are also very important for our mental wellbeing. Dogs, for example, are incredibly emotionally intelligent, and sometimes our canine friends can be all we need to work through a difficult emotional situation.

Animal company has been clinically proven to boost people’s physical health in various situations too. Amazingly, a 1986 study regarding coronary health problems found that out of 92 people only 3 died out of the 52 who had regular contact with animals, whereas 11 out of the 29 who did not unfortunately succumbed to their health problems.

Pets are also crucial for the older population, especially those that are widowed. It is difficult to overstate the importance of having someone to care for and exercise with. Likewise, the vast majority of people love talking to their pets – they are probably the best listeners in the entire world.

Furthermore, for young families pets can be a really valuable presence around children in particular. Take the example of Marley & Me, the 2008 hit film starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aston. Marley brings the family so much joy, and there are also multiple instances where he is integral in teaching them various lessons in compassion and love.

These are just a few reasons why pets are some of the best things in the world, however in reality we are only scratching the surface of everything these delightful animal companions have to offer. And the best thing? They don’t even know they are doing it!

The long and interesting history of humans and domestic pets

Owning pets is by no means a recent human phenomenon. In fact, there is evidence to suggest that some of our earliest ancestors at least 12,000 years ago had pets. The earliest pet portraits in the world are arguably found on cave inscriptions dating back to this period, however you can rest assured that Turner & Walker’s efforts are a lot more sophisticated.

The evidence for pet ownership really accelerates when you get to the Ancient Egyptian and Ancient Roman eras, as there are surplus evidence of burials for dogs, cats and baboons from the period. This is also where the concept of pet portraits really blew up, with archaeologists regularly finding evidence of sculptures, mosaics and drawings depicting domestic dogs, cats and horses.

In the Middle Ages pets were commonly owned for the purpose of hunting, guarding property, or for things like milk and eggs, however it was only the elite classes that owned domestic animals in the way that we do today. By the 16th century paintings depicting noblemen and their pets were common. Indeed, this is the kind of aesthetic that Turner & Walker are so good at replicating.

The modern craze for pets started in the Victorian era, where the burgeoning middle class meant that more and more people were in the position to own animals like cats and dogs. In the 21st century there are more pets and pet owners than ever before, a trend that doesn’t seem like it will end any time soon.

A few reasons why everybody should have a pet

For pet owners it is probably quite easy to see why these animal companions are such lovely things to have, but what about for everybody else? If we were to list all of the reasons why everybody should have a pet we would be here until the cows come home, but we couldn’t leave you without at least a few.

Deliberating about whether or not to enter the wonderful world of pet ownership? Here are a few reasons why you definitely should:

Companionship: Owning a pet gives you a sense of companionship that is truly difficult to get anywhere else. Sure, friends and family are also great for this, but with a pet you actually have somebody who fully depends on you. They are always willing to be by your side, and the mental and physical benefits of this are numerous.

Education: It really isn’t a cliché to say that you can learn a lot from your pet. Having an animal companion can often be a window into an entirely different world, one where the artificial worries and concerns of modern human life get thrown out of the window. In their place are the simple things – compassion, fun, excitement and empathy. In other words, the really genuinely important stuff. Having a pet can be a constant and lovely reminder of this.

Family: Pets are also fantastic in regard to the concept of family. For those that aren’t yet ready to commit to children household animals are a great alternative, teaching very valuable lessons in how to care for somebody that will fully depend on you. Additionally, the benefits of having a pet around when raising young children are well documented, and can help a family gel together in a wonderful way.

Covid-19, lockdown and the pets boom

Pets have been incredibly important for us humans for tens of thousands of years, although this has been accentuated in the last year due to the global Covid-19 pandemic. Lockdown in the UK, for example, has led to a pets boom, with households buying a staggering 3.2 million pets since the start of the pandemic.

In a fantastic example of how much these animals mean to our general wellbeing, 74% of new pet owners during lockdown have reported a positive affect on their mental health during this tumultuous year. Furthermore, in the case of dogs especially, pet ownership has given the population a very real reason to leave their houses and get some exercise.

It’s not all roses though, and it is important to recognise some of the negatives of the Covid-19 lockdown pets boom too. For example, as puppy sales and puppy prices have skyrocketed it has fuelled aggressive and profiteering breeding, which in turn harms the health of our canine friends. A worrying 5% of the pets bought during lockdown have been returned too, and the RSPCA is warning of a crisis when we all have to return to our normal working lives.

It is essential to mention it for awareness, but the bad stuff pales in comparison to the many positives of lockdown pet ownership. All of their best qualities shine through in times like these, we just hope as many people as possible take pet ownership with the utmost seriousness.

What you could win with the Winzum Turner & Walker Pet Portrait giveaway

Turner & Walker are the undisputed champions of delivering bespoke and perfectly designed pet portraits in the UK, something you only need to look at their website to confirm. Entering our Winzum Turner & Walker Pet Portrait giveway will give you a chance of winning a custom print of your pet, with many different choices available.

Turner & Walker cater for a variety of canvas sizes, so you can find the perfect space in your home and order accordingly. There are also loads of styles to choose from, ranging from Sherlock to Sir Mike, Iron Throne to The Botanist or even The Queen To Be. All of them are top-quality designs, and the way Turner & Walker incorporate your pet into these is both incredibly impressive and absolutely hilarious.

To be entered into this draw simply upload a photo of your beloved pet to one of our social posts linked in the images below. Please tell us your pets name, their age, breed and why you love them so much