IP Law Daily, TRADEMARK—TTAB: ‘The Traveling Pawtographers’ is merely descriptive of pet photography services, TTAB rules, (Aug 15, 2025)

By Steven Melendez

Citing numerous internet examples, a TTAB panel found the name simply described a mobile pet photography service.

A Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) panel affirmed an examining attorney's decision to deny registration of the mark THE TRAVELING PAWTOGRAPHERS for a "pet portrait photography services" on the grounds that it was "merely descriptive" of the services offered (In re Joan H Walker Photography LLC, No. 97743111 (T.T.A.B. Aug. 13, 2025)).

Joan H Walker Photography LLC had sought to register the mark THE TRAVELING PAWTOGRAPHERS for a "pet portrait photography services," but the examining attorney refused registration on the grounds that the mark was "merely descriptive of the identified services," according to the ruling. The photography company then appealed and requested reconsideration, which the examining attorney denied.

Mere descriptiveness. In general, descriptive marks can't be registered to prevent the owner from limiting competition in the market and to protect the public from "harassing infringement suits" when using the descriptive terminology for their own products or services, according to the ruling. Whether a mark is merely descriptive is based upon "evidence of public perception" and the "commercial impression of a mark as a whole, viewed through the eyes of a consumer," according to the ruling.

And evidence that a mark is descriptive can come from sources like dictionaries, news media, and other online and offline publications, as well as the trademark applicant's own materials and usage.

The "pawtographers" mark. The examining attorney argued that "traveling" has a well-known meaning of "going to different places instead of staying in one place," and "pawtographers" is used in the photography industry to refer to pet photography, giving the combined mark a clear, readily understood descriptive meaning.

To back up that claim, the examining attorney provided screenshots of third-party websites, news articles, and social media pages using the term "pawtography" or "pawtographer" to refer to pet photography, as well as an interview with Joan Walker, the manager of the photography company that bears her name, referring to herself as "chief pawtographer" of the business.

The examining attorney also provided evidence of pet photographers using the term "traveling" to describe their business, and the TTAB panel noted that some of the "pawtography" websites also advertised that the photographer could travel where needed to take pictures. The panel found that the evidence supports the assertions that "pawtographer" and "traveling" both have readily understood, descriptive meanings.

Still, the photography company argued that the mark is merely "suggestive, not descriptive" since "pawtographer" is a whimsical play on words, rather than a "recognized word in the English language," and "traveling" doesn't describe an actual "aspect of the pet photography services."

But the fact that "pawtographer" or "pawtography" don't appear in a dictionary isn't controlling, the TTAB panel found, citing precedents around terms like "e-ticket" and "rose milk." And the fact that "pawtographer" is "creative or whimsical or a portmanteau" doesn’t make it non-descriptive, according to the ruling.

"The terms 'pawtographer' and 'pawtography' may have begun as a suggestive play on words, but these terms have been adopted by a number of third parties in the field, thereby eroding their distinctiveness into mere descriptiveness," according to the ruling. "The evidence discussed above demonstrates that a consumer who knows that the services are 'pet portrait photography services' will immediately understand that the word 'pawtographer' refers to a pet photographer."

And the fact that "pawtography" and "pawtographer" are also used in other businesses' names "suggests that there is competitive need for use by others in this industry," according to the ruling.

Similarly, the term "traveling" clearly indicates to consumers that the photographers—or "pawtographers"—will travel to take pictures of people's pets, according to the ruling.

The Case is Serial No. 97743111.

Judge: Stanley, L.

Attorneys: Glenn K. Robbins II (Spencer Fane LLP) for Joan H. Walker Photography LLC. Patty Evanko for the USPTO.

Companies: Joan H. Walker Photography LLC

Cases: Trademark USPTO