Best Shot Monday: Zodiac

I finally got back into the shelter last week after about four months out just due to a variety of things - lots of work travel, some family travel, dealing with a very cranky knee.  So it was a little slow going getting back into the swing of things photographing the dogs. This guy made it easy though!  He's a Border Collie / Lab mix named Zodiac. Super friendly and playful and quite the ham for the camera! 

Our shelter in Tallahassee is going through quite a sizeable renovation, and losing access to 50 dog kennels during this first phase of the renovation. Shelter staff did an amazing job getting dogs out to foster and pushing hard for adoptions so that the loss of those kennels wouldn't be quite as challenging. It's always still challenging as there is unfortunately never a loss of dogs needing sheltering, but it's been really great seeing all staff, volunteers and the city come together to work through these times. It'll all be worth it when the renovation is complete! As I write this, Zodiac has already been adopted!

Best Shot Monday: Persimmon

Meet sweet Persimmon. Among lots of favorites, she holds my number one spot at the shelter right now. Her life before the shelter was (to put it lightly) rough. She came to the shelter in October, and it was clear she was accustomed to not knowing when her next meal was coming. She was mostly hairless, after years of flea infestations and allergies to fleas had taken their toll. She had clearly birthed more puppies than seems reasonable. She was just thrilled to get a blanket and a cot and meals and water every day. As the days went on, she started to learn that people were to be trusted, and we started to see her affectionate side. After 8 years, she was finally getting all the love she needed. The stress of kennel life started to get to her, and to ease her frustration, she made her way into a foster home where she learned what it’s like to have a home and someone who cares for her. Her former foster mom says she is "Always happy and prances around" and she "Loves getting petted, taking naps, and doesn’t mind clothes or baths." Don't let her age fool you - this eight year old, 62 pound girl has a LOT of life left in her, and enjoys a good long walk along with good long naps. I took the top photo on April 18, and the bottom one on January 14, when we first met. She needs her forever and has been waiting for a while for it. Are you her hero? ⁣If you are, I want visiting privileges. She's available for adoption through the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center.

Best Shot Monday: Commander Rex and Peanut

Good Lordy, Happy New Year! I can't believe it's been six months since I've checked in here! My brain has been pretty scattered for a bit with everything I'm juggling.  I'm hoping the new year will help me reset! Trying to get back into the swing of things with a regular schedule. We'll see how I do! 

I've still been volunteering at the shelter as a photographer, so at least that's been my constant!  I had the pleasure of meeting these two week before last. Commander Rex, above, and Peanut, below, came into the shelter together as owner surrenders when their owner lost his home and chose to bring them in. This happens more than people may realize, and it's so important to remember that shelter pets end up in the shelter for so many reasons. The shelter is not just full of stray animals.  These two are amazing, and thankfully they both got adopted quickly and will do fine in separate homes, but sometimes it takes a bit longer, particularly for older dogs like these two. There are so many amazing animals in your local shelter. Please considering adopting! And if you can't adopt, there are so many ways to help ... volunteer, foster, donate, help educate! 

Best Shot Monday: Meet Pluto!

Okay, friends, yes, I often fall in love with the shelter dogs I photograph, but this fella ... this fella is truly something special. Pluto came into the shelter with his best pal Patches as an owner surrender when his human's landlord would no longer allow large dogs at the property. He had spent 10 years with the same owner, and now suddenly here he was at a large, noisy shelter.

When I first met him, he and Patches had just come in, and Pluto was listed as staff only. He needed a photo, so I asked the shelter manager if I could take him out. She looked at me for a minute thinking about it, and then said she thought he might come out with me. She said he was just a grumpy old man ... a big strong, grumpy old man.

 

Y'all, he was perfect with me! Clearly housetrained, the only time he pulled on his leash was when we were walking out to the play yard. As soon as his paws hit grass, he squatted. Had to go, man! Then he walked over to the other side of the yard for his #2, and once he was finished, he came trotting back over to me with this, "Okay, business done! I'm all yours now!" look on his sweet, severely cropped ears, adorable Pittie grin face, and we played and just hung out for a while and took some glamour shots. He was the perfect gentleman when I walked him back to his kennel.

 

I spend time with him every week, and he's consistently just the best dog ever. He does love to fetch, but sort of in slow motion ... he is 10 years old and 70 pounds after all. And he thinks he's a lap dog. Some context for that first shot: I was sitting on the ground and gave him space to sit between my legs. But that wasn't good enough. He had to sit ON me, not next to me. Anytime I scooted back to give him a little more room, he just scooted that big ole Pittie butt right back with me and got back in my lap. He was sitting in my lap with me leaning as far back as I could to catch this shot. That photo is not cropped and I shoot at the shelter with a 35mm prime lens, so yes, he was RIGHT THERE in my face.

 

Pluto has lived with cats and other dogs (Patches). He's probably a little too big for a home with small children. He knows commands like come, sit and stay, and is a happy boy who is eager to please. He's just a super sweet boy who wants to get out of the shelter and go back to being the lap dog he believes he's meant to be. I've included a couple videos here too. Pluto is available for adoption through the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. Adoptions are still by appointment only so make an appointment to meet him today! Patches is equally lovely and is currently in a foster home. I post most of my shelter shots over on my shelter Instagram, so follow me there if you'd love to see more!

Best Shot Monday: Brownie

Volunteering at an animal shelter can at times be a little sad and stressful; there would be nothing better than to see all those kennels empty because all those animals are in happy homes. But most times, for me at least, the shelter can be a very healing place. Nothing like a little loving on some pups to help your heart. I made it into the shelter for a bit one morning the week after my best friend died to do just that - spend a little time loving on some shelter pups to help sew my heart back up. 

This little gal, Brownie, was the only one I had a chance to photograph before it started raining that day, but she was the sweetest thing. She had some scarring from an embedded collar which you can just barely see in this photo, but she was just so full of love and affection. She reminded me about resilience. That's the thing about shelter dogs. For so many of them who come in as strays, we don't know their back story. For some who come in as owner surrenders or cruelty confiscations, we know some of their back story. But either way, who knows what they've really been through? Brownie had an embedded collar - frankly, to me it looks like it was a rope - so clearly she was not well cared for, yet she was still so clearly giving and seeking love to and from me. She was bouncing back, ready to jump back into life with a new family. There's a lesson in that for all of us, don't you think? Certainly was for me. Brownie is currently hanging out in a foster home waiting for her forever family. She's available for adoption through the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center.  The shelter is currently open for adoptions by appointment!

Best Shot Monday: Sharing a Little Magic

Meet Magic!  I was so happy to see this fella get adopted this weekend. He's about 75 pounds of awesome.  Sometimes larger dogs like this, particularly, shall we say, enthusiastic, large dogs like this, wait a while to get adopted. Thankfully, Magic didn't have to wait as long as others. Can you imagine being cooped up in a kennel for nearly 24 hours a day? Next time you are considering adding a four-legged pal to your family, please considering adopting from your local shelter! Shelter pets truly do know they are rescued and return that love in spades! Magic was adopted from the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. 

For those of you new to my blog, thanks for stopping in! Yes, I am a multi-media artist, and my artisan jewelry, mixed media art journaling and handmade books are primarily what you'll find here, but I've also been a photographer for about 35 years, and for the past 10 years or so, have been training my lens on spotlighting shelter animals, usually on Mondays! 

Best Shot Monday: Sweetness

Gosh, can't believe it's been a full four weeks since I've checked in here! Working through all this virus stuff really has me pretty discombobulated! I've been having a very hard time focusing through all this. Anyone else? Between working from home some days, going in to the office others, juggling all the work changes this has brought forth, and helping my girls navigate it all, these past six months have been quite the doozy. How are you managing? 

One source of consistency for me has been going to the shelter. I'm so grateful I've been able to keep this up through all this. While our procedures for volunteering have changed to adapt to state and local requirements, I'm still able to go in once a week, which has been a blessing. A good two or three hours with the shelter pups always lifts my spirits. And so many of these pups have been through so much, and yet can still throw out smiling happy faces like this one. Meet Sweetness. She is so aptly named! This gal is so sweet and loves nothing more than good snuggles and belly rubs. She's awkwardly playful, super goofy, about one year old and 36 pounds, and, as of this writing, available for adoption from the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. 

Support your local shelter!  Adopt. Volunteer. Foster. Donate. Educate. 

Best Shot Monday: Red

I think it goes without saying that my girls and Red here really took to each other! They tried to convince me that we needed to adopt him because he matched their hair.  :-) It's truly amazing what a little time at the shelter does. My girls are usually grumpy about having to go each week (let's face it, they are teenagers, during the summer, and we have a 10am shift so we can beat the heat...), but as soon as we get there and do our thing, their tune changes dramatically. Volunteering is good for the soul, and for us, volunteering with these pups is extra good for the soul! Sweet Red was adopted last week, but he has lots of friends still waiting at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center!

Best Shot Monday: More Manger!

My daughter and I spent some more time with Manger this past week. He's finally starting to feel more comfortable and realizing that we humans can be great!  I captured this cute series of burst shots. Adopt a shelter pet for love like this! Manger is available for adoption from the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center.

Best Shot Monday: Meet Manger

Meet Manger. This sweet fella really captured my heart this past week. He came into the shelter as an owner surrender, and he's pretty beat up. He's super shy and timid at this point, so I just sat in his kennel with him for a while to win his trust. After about 20 minutes of sitting with him, much of it with his head tucked in my arm between gently taking treats from me, he agreed to come out with me. He is such a sweet love and will need a patient adopter to work slowly with him to help him learn how much we humans can love him. He's available for adoption through the City of Tallahassee - Animal Service Center. The shelter is currently open for adoptions by appointment. ⁣

There are so many homeless animals out there that need families. Next time you are considering adding a new furry friend, please consider visiting your local animal shelter instead of buying a pet from a pet store or a breeder. Rescued animals know they've been rescued, and they'll return the love tenfold. Support your local animal shelter! Volunteer. Adopt. Foster. Educate. Donate...⁣

Best Shot Monday: Meet Grisham

Meet Grisham. Grisham is the type of dog that so often gets overlooked in a shelter. He's big and black, and he's a little hyper in his kennel. But this guy really is pretty awesome. Just look at that face!!! Once we got him out of his kennel, he was actually pretty good on his leash and settled right down. He loves to play fetch and he takes treats very gently. The cutest thing is that he prances like a deer when he runs! So cute! Grisham is available for adoption at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. Our shelter is slowly opening back up to full business capacity!

Best Shot Monday: Ozzy

I hope you are doing well in these super trying times! Around here, we are grateful we're able to get into the shelter to volunteer. It brings at least that little bit of normalcy to our week. The shelter has done a great job managing all this with the volunteers in a very safe way ... we are limited in the number of volunteers allowed per skill level per shift and assigned to a "team" so that we are only interacting with the same group of people, and even at that, keeping our social distancing and wearing masks when around others. This past week started the temperature taking and a list of questions before we could begin our shift, so even more precautions in place.

Ozzy here is one of the adorable new faces we got to meet this week. Doesn't he have the sweetest face? And such gorgeous eyes. His markings are really unique as well and one of them forms a sweet little heart on his side. So cute! He's available for adoption at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. They are doing adoptions by appointment! Thanks for stopping in today!

Best Shot Monday: The Many Faces of Ella

Oh, the many faces of Ella. The Daily Dose of Awesomeness and I have fallen hard for this girl over the past two weeks. She's a mess, really. Horribly cropped ears, super snaggle tooth, bad hips (but she gets around just fine, thank you) ... but the sweetest, most lovely personality ever. We would have taken her home in a second if I thought we could handle three dogs (and two cats) right now, but there is just too much going on in our lives to add another to our pack. Someone out there will be very lucky to add this sweet girl to their family.

She's about 8 years old and would be the perfect couch companion. All she wants to do is sit next to you and enjoy all the pets and snuggles. She's available for adoption at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center. They are open for adoptions by appointment. Go to their website to complete an application and bring Ella home! I want visiting privileges.

When You Lose a Friend ...

Frankie ... I photographed Frankie for the second time this past Wednesday. And I loved him just as much as I loved him the first time I photographed him about a month ago. Yesterday, though, he breathed his last breath, so today my heart is a little shattered. This is by far the hardest part of volunteering at an animal shelter. Yes, the senior dogs that show up break my heart. The ones that show obvious signs of abuse break my heart. But this. Falling in love with a dog and then learning that he didn't make it out breaks my heart the most. Sometimes things just happen, and they can't be overcome.  

Frankie came into the shelter as a stray at nearly 90 pounds, quite a bit over weight.  Up until yesterday, he'd been with us for about six weeks and was slimming down. He was in play group, but the past two days in play group, things did not go well. Frankie got in a tussle in play group on Wednesday, but staff and volunteers were able to break it up and thought it was an isolated incident. I actually walked him and took this photograph after play group that day.  He came back out in play group yesterday, and unfortunately, the previous day turned out to not be an isolated incident.  He got into another tussle and things worsened. Because of his behavior, shelter staff decided the best course of action was to humanely euthanize him. Having seen what he was capable of in the right - or wrong - circumstances, they could not risk adopting him out to the public. I did not see this happen since I don't volunteer with play group, but I can imagine that it was a scary and traumatic thing to witness.  

I know that part of the gig of being a shelter volunteer means accepting that this happens sometimes, but accepting it certainly doesn't make it any easier (and for the record, it happens at private humane societies, too, not just municipal shelters). The Frankie I knew was sweet and friendly with his people, and he surely did steal my heart. He was my favorite kind of land manatee. He was goofy and loved belly rubs. When he was tired on his walk, he'd just plop down, usually on my feet. And he was gentle and affectionate with me. It's not my place to second guess the shelter staff's decisions, particularly since I was not there to witness the incidents, and I know theirs is a very difficult job. I appreciate that they took the time to reach out to me personally and let me know. But I could not let this week pass without recognizing Frankie here. He lived ... and he loved ... and he was loved ... and he mattered. Run free, sweet Frankie. See you at the Rainbow Bridge, for I most certainly loved you in this life. ⁣

Support your local animal shelter. They need you. The animals need you. I'll keep doing what I do and work harder for Frankie. 

Best Shot Monday - Sweet Grizzled Faces

Well, hello there!  Short of a Happy New Year post, looks like I took the whole month off from posting!  Let's get back to work for February!  For my Best Shot Monday this week, I wanted to share these two sweet grizzled faces.  MJ, above, and Celeste, below, are both about ten years old and both ended up in the shelter when their previous owners moved. (We won't even get started on how you really can move with a dog...)  Both are super sweet, well-manned seniors. Senior pets are super stars!  They are normally already house-trained, they won't chew up your shoes, and all they want to do is hang out and chill with you. They are the perfect companions. MJ and Celeste are both currently available for adoption at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center, but I'm betting there are some awesome seniors at your local shelter as well. Adopt a senior!

Happy New Year Best Shot Monday!

Happy New Year! We've been home in Jacksonville for the Christmas break, so we're enjoying all the things we love to do at "Home Home," as we call it. One of those is going to the shelter here to photograph the shelter pups, and I had helpers this week!

Usually my girls volunteer with the cats or behind the scenes at the shelter - whether in Jacksonville or Tallahassee - so it was fun to have their help with the dogs. Sarah is pretty hesitant with big dogs, but clearly Elliott won them both over. I love this series of shots. Such happiness here. From all three of them! May your 2020 be filled with just as much joy.

Best Shot Monday: Toodles!

Meet sweet Toodles. As adorable as she is, she's getting overlooked in the shelter. Can you believe a dog this cute has been waiting for her forever family to find her for more than two months? Outside, she is really a dream. She has great leash manners, sits super sweetly for treats - as demonstrated by this photo! - and she takes her treats very gently.  So why hasn't seen been adopted?  She's just a little over enthusiastic in her kennel, so people are walking right by her. So remember! When you are walking through an animal shelter, don't overlook a dog because she is a little hyper in her kennel.  Depending on the shelter, that dog may only get out of that kennel for 10 to 15 minutes a day, if that. There are dogs in shelters that hardly ever get out for walks. Adopt, don't shop and you'll meet super sweeties like Toodles!  As of this post, Toodles is still available for adoption at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center.   

Best Shot Monday: More Puppy Sweetness

The Daily Dose of Awesomeness and I try to help out Tallahassee Big Dog Rescue with photos at least once a month or so. It's hard to work into our schedules at times because TBDR only does adoption booths every other Saturday. Throw in my work travel schedule and the girls busy marching band and social calendars, and it can be challenging! TBDR is a fully volunteer-run organization, and all their animals are in foster homes. They are a great bunch of people, and their founder DeeAnn Maxfield is a wonderful woman who helped us search for our Molly when she went missing a few weeks back.

Thankfully, we found a recent Saturday that worked. And we photographed a lot of puppies! Several of them got adopted that day, including this little cutie, Zimara. This is one of my favorite ways to photograph small dogs when my girls are helping me. We don't get the best background when we are volunteering with TBDR because their adoption booths are at PetSmart, so we have a little spot behind the store.  And, as you might guess, there have been many people who've said things like "Oh, you have to adopt that one! She matches your daughter's hair!" My girls have also started volunteering at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center with me, so they are working hard on earning their Bright Futures scholarship hours!  

Best Shot Monday: Della and Changing Your Perception of "The Pound"

Meet sweet Della. She is pure love! I spent a little time with her last week and fell in love with her and her sweet little pink stitches around her eyes, so I wanted to tell you a little more about her and what those stitches are for. Some people think of municipal shelters as simply "the pound," and given that, may not realize all that many municipal shelters actually do for the animals in their care. Della had eyelid entropion, an abnormality of the eyelids in which the eyelid rolls inward. This inward rolling often causes the hair on the surface of the eyelid to rub against the cornea resulting in pain, corneal ulcers, perforations, or pigment developing on the cornea which can interfere with vision. Della had this condition on both eyes, poor girl! Can you imagine the pain she was experiencing? But thanks to the awesome vet team at the City of Tallahassee Animal Service Center, she's on the road to recovery and pain-free vision with a fairly simple surgery. Her stitches will come out two weeks post surgery.

So yes, municipal shelters are more than just dog pounds! They have vet teams! And those vet teams perform not only your standard spay and neuter surgeries, but also surgeries like this one to better the lives of the animals in their care...every single day. Della's case is not an isolated one. So the next time you are thinking about adding a new family member to your family, please do consider adopting from your local municipal shelter instead of shopping for that pure bred puppy. Our shelters are chock full of amazing, and amazingly adorable, dogs like Della...who's already home with her family!

Best Shot Monday: Daisy Mae!

Look at this gorgeous gal! Meet Daisy Mae! Super smart gal who obviously had a home and was well loved at some point. We'll never know the backgrounds of many of the dogs that land in shelters, but we can hopefully know their future! This super fetch and return champ was adopted last week shortly after her glamour shot, so my hope is that she's now living her best life! Just another example of the amazing dogs you can find in your local shelter!