Trampoline Inspired Dog Names

While the highlight of the advertising year in the United States is generally highlighted by the clever and creative minds put to work on Super Bowl ads, other countries have their own prime time to catch commercials. In the United Kingdom, chain department store John Lewis has developed a tradition of releasing an annual Christmas commercial. Since 2007, John Lewis has been making fun, touching and clever holiday advertisements that have attained a significant pop culture status. 

Although a few have topped it in terms of popularity before and since, one of the most beloved commercials to date first appeared in 2016 when the company decided to employ some well-done CGI and a sweet-faced Boxer named Buster. In the ad, a young girl is shown jumping on her bed in excitement for Christmas while the family dog, Buster, patiently watches. In the backyard, the girl’s father assembles a trampoline and finishes it with a bow. 

During the night, wild animals from the neighborhood, including foxes, a badger, a squirrel and even a hedgehog, discover the trampoline and jump on it playfully while Buster looks on sadly from the other side of the house’s sliding glass door. 

When morning breaks, the little girl discovers the trampoline and excitedly runs out towards it in slow motion, shortly before Buster overtakes her, dives in and begins jumping himself to the astonishment of both the little girl and her parents. They look on as the company’s holiday slogan, “Gifts that everyone will love” appears and disappears. 

Of course, Buster wasn’t the first dog to find the joys of trampolines. Numerous dogs throughout history have learned the pure fun of just bouncing and the Internet has allowed us to enjoy it vicariously as well, thanks to the home videos of people all over the world, many of whom posted their videos following the advert’s original airing. 

But with it came a bit of controversy. Although bouncing can be a fun and healthy way for dogs to get exercise (and entertainment for that matter), many people allow their dogs on full-size human-oriented trampolines like the one used in the commercial, which, especially without monitoring or netting, can be a dangerous activity. Fortunately, there are several companies that make dog-friendly, low-profile trampolines that limit both bounce and the potential for big or awkward falls (and only have room for one, which on any trampoline is considerably safer than more). So if you’re looking to give your dog a fun new way to exercise, especially when they’re trapped indoors, you now have an additional option — just remember to keep it safe!