[1] Initially known as Artlist Collection: The Dog, the franchise began as collection of calendars and postcards of dogs photographed with a fisheye lens.

[1] Afterwards, the franchise became so popular that new animals such as cats, pigs, rabbits, ducks, hamsters, and birds were added to the collection.

[4] Select locations featured dog adoption events.

[6] In 2003, the series introduced its first video game, The Dog Master, which was released exclusively in Japan and developed by Visit.

[9] In 2016, they were featured as themes for the Japanese Nintendo 3DS home menu.