PHOTOS: Ridiculously adorable sweater-clad ponies shill for Scotland tourism

(Image credit: Facebook.com/VisitScotland)

last updated 8 January 2015

If you were in charge of your country's tourism initiative, how would you encourage foreigners to visit? Last year, America began actively reaching out to tourists with a feel-good media blitz that included videos of Roseanne Cash singing with an incredibly diverse band of musicians. Reviews of the campaign were largely positive, however, in hindsight, the ads were missing one crucial element: Animals in sweaters. That's the pure-genius approach being employed by the Scottish tourism board in its Year of Natural Scotland 2013 campaign. The initiative finds a pair of adorably squat, shaggy Shetland ponies named Fivia and Vitamin outfitted in the country's classic knitwear. Naturally, the photos have gone viral. Shetland ponies wearing Shetland winter woolies? Scotland, here I come. Behold:

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Lauren Hansen produces The Weekâ€™s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.