Ssssafe and sound: A baby in his slithering bassinet sits in the coils of a pet snakeWhile the old saying suggests that a dog is man's best friend, these people have taken it one step beyond and included their beloved pets - who look petrified - in family portraits.
The result is an eerie, awkward and, most importantly, hilarious catalogue of images - from the baby with the snake coiled around it to the woman armed with a pink shotgun and baby in the bath with her hairy dog.
These photographs, released by www.awkwardfamilypetphotos.com, celebrate the worst family pet portraits from the website - and they plan to release a paperback book on the subject in the autumn.
In this collection you will find some jaw-dropping and bizarre portraits, including one family who are lying on the floor, heads together, with a snake draped over their necks.
There is the woman who is sitting on a sofa with an obscenely large vegetable - possibly a giant marrow - in right hand and her worried-looking terrier in her left.
Then there is the young boy who is shown making to strangle a dog, and another where a cat looks desperate to escape the clutches of a bearded, pony-tailed, bespectacled man with a dodgy jumper who looks like he is on the set of X Factor.
Look out for the Barbie wannabe who, pretty in pink, has dressed her poor pooch in similar garb. The worries looking dog is bejewelled with a pearl necklace and a frilly dress.
There is also a grinning boy with a cock, and a couple who appear to be having a picnic with a humongous pig, complete with tight-fitting T-shirt.
Another portrait shows a couple who allow six fully-clothed monkeys to clamber about their shoulders as the cameraman clicks that special shot.
You are strongly urged not to take similar shots at home - go to awkwardfamilypetphotos.com for more laughs instead.
Not just for Christmas: These dog lovers enjoy Christmas Day with all the family
The world's biggest cat? Looks like somebody has had a bit too much Purina
Larking around: A couple, their parrot, and a rifle equipped with scope and bayonet. One big happy family.
Farmyard fun: This one goes out to bird lovers everywhere - there's nothing quite like posing in the barn with your favourite rooster
It could have been so different: Joseph, Mary and their pet pooch pose for the camera
Stocking filler: Just what every young woman wants for Christmas - her very own monkey
One for all the family: This clan smile for the camera with their very own family of pooches
Adorable: Nothing pulls at the heartstrings like a little girl cradling her very own pet skunk
Sound asleep: This man dozes as he uses his pet dog as a pillow
Monkeying around: This red monkey resented the hand-me-downs
Transfixed: A man and his cat try to strike the same pose during a photoshootsource:dailymail
