The animals · Small Pets
Small Animals, Full-Size Feelings
Rabbits, guinea pigs, ferrets, rats and hamsters. Frequently a child's first animal, and frequently the one that matters most in a household.
Four or five good photographs is enough to tell you whether this will work, what it costs, and how long it takes.
.999
Fine silver, hand-poured, made in the USA
1 of 1
The design is retired after casting. Yours is the only one
2004
Casting solid metal since
Approved
You see and sign off the design before any metal is poured
Small subjects need to be cast larger
A guinea pig cast at life size is a small object with very little presence, and the detail that makes it recognizable ends up too fine to read. These subjects almost always work better cast somewhat larger than life, which feels wrong when described and looks right on a shelf.
There is also a practical difficulty with photographs of small animals: they rarely hold still, and most pictures of them are taken quickly from wherever the person was standing. A few deliberate minutes at floor level produces better reference than years of accumulated snapshots.
What we need
- Side and front photographs, at the animal's own eye level.
- The pose you associate with them.
- Coat type — smooth, rough, long — which changes the surface entirely.
- Ear shape, which is individual and very expressive.
- Any markings, so we can suggest them in finish.
Why we usually cast them larger
A guinea pig at true life size is a small object, and the detail that makes it recognizable — the set of the ears, the shape of the face — ends up too fine to read from a normal viewing distance.
Cast somewhat larger, the same animal has presence on a shelf and the detail carries. It sounds wrong described and it looks right in the room, which is why we raise it before anybody chooses a size.
How we handle it
- 01Recommend a scale that gives the piece presence.
- 02Photograph-driven design, sent for approval.
- 03Resolve coat as form where the fur is long.
- 04Cast in .999 fine silver, hand-poured, one of one.
- 05Retire the design after casting.
Get down to their level to photograph them. Almost every photograph of a small pet is taken from above, which flattens the face and loses exactly the geometry we need — one minute on the floor produces a far better piece.
Said plainly
Where we stop
A very small animal cast at true life size will not carry detail well. If you want life size for a specific reason we will do it and we will tell you what will be lost.
FAQ
Common questions
- Will it be life size?
- Usually slightly larger. True life size leaves too little room for readable detail.
- How should we photograph them?
- At their eye level, not from above. Most small-pet photos are taken from above and flatten the face.
- Can you do long-haired breeds?
- Resolved as form rather than strand by strand.
- Is a small piece cheaper?
- Less metal, so yes to a point. Design work does not scale down with size.
How it works
The Photographs
photos needed custom pet statue commission
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Size & Metal
silver pet statue size weight cost
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Turnaround
how long custom silver statue take
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Memorial Pieces
pet memorial silver statue after loss
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What We Will Not Do
custom statue limits what cannot be done
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Next step
Run it both ways before you decide.
No credit check and no obligation. Tell us what you hold and what the money is for, and if selling is the better answer for your situation you will be told that first.