The English painter William Weekes mainly painted animals, dogs in particular. Genre pieces in which animals play the leading role are also frequent in his oeuvre. He placed the animals in humorous situations, almost turning them into personalities. These performances were very well received in his time. Weekes exhibited regularly at exhibitions of the prestigious Royal Academy in London, an institution of which his father, the successful sculptor Henry Weekes (1807-1877), had been a respected member.