The seasonal shopping centre Santa visit has been given a modern makeover. Hundreds of families across the country have put their pets in the frame this year.
At Hornsby Westfield in Sydney's northwest, around 40 dogs of all shapes and sizes were leaping at the chance to get in the picture as the centre hosted a pets-only session on Thursday evening.
It's not only dogs, says the centre's Santa.
"Somebody's bringing in his pet python, an albino Burmese python, eight-feet long," he says. "I've had guinea pigs, I've had a chicken, cats and dogs, and hamsters and ferrets.
"I love the pets because we don't have to make them smile, and they're very well behaved, even better behaved than some of the children, I might add."
Photographer Tammy Caffyn is happy to have the extended responsibility of photographing animals this year.
"It's actually quite easy," she says. "Generally we get them in the first six images."
Over 60 per cent of Australian households have a pet, according IBISWorld research, and while that number is in decline, owners are spending more on each pet in 2013 compared to previous years.
Up to three quarters of a billion dollars each year is spent on petcare and accessories.
Phillip Brain, a medicine specialist at the Small Animal Specialist Hospital in Sydney, says people are increasingly seeing their companion animals as part of the family.
He warns that pet owners should draw the line at including animals in the food side of the festivities.
"In terms of food, the main indulgence is when people give pork crackling, fatty turkey, that type of thing.
"It means we see a lot of animals get pancreatitis, which is a really nasty disease, the fat in the food tends to trigger the pancreas to become over-active, and it secretes digestive enzymes.
"That can lead to a really nasty life-threatening disease."
Chocolate, raisins, grapes and nuts should also be avoided, he adds.
Santa photos don't always go to plan: Click the video below to see the outtakes from this story.
