A New Blog

If you're subscribed to this blog via RSS, you'll want to head over to http://www.fidojournalism.com/blog to see my new blog and update your feed. I will no longer be posting to this one. The new blog features BIIIIIIIG images, so be sure to check it out.

Thanks for reading!

Stephen

Lolly

Lolly is an incredibly sweet black lab with a very loving family. I wanted to take her home with me, but I didn't think they'd appreciate that.

Lolly enjoying the nice weather...


By far, the coolest dog collar I've ever seen...


Lolly has beautiful eyes!


After a little play time she was pooped!


Still pooped!


Shelley, Sam and Lolly (peeking her nose through)...

Stella

Stella was one of my toughest subjects yet... a sweet but hyperkinetic Chihuahua (and jet black to boot)! Honestly I was a little worried at first as she bounced around the room at warp speed. I wasn't sure what kinds of images I was going to get. Eventually, all the humans (except me) had to leave the room for her to settle down, but that she did, and we got some nice shots.

Stella with her friend the giraffe...


Some more window-light portraits...






Outside for a "walk"... the life of an urban dog...

Houseguest

Last night we dog-sat for our neighbor's greyhound Cleo. She had no problems making herself at home.

And the Winner is...

The winner of the "Unconditional Love" contest is Katie Kutch, who sumbitted this heartfelt entry. The competition was stiff, but this story of unconditional love really stood out. Congratulations Katie!

Thank you to everyone who submitted a story.



Murphie was not what people referred to as a good dog. She had some slight behavioral issues, a proclivity for barking and the highest vertical leap I have ever seen. One of her many talents, was that of a master counter surfer. If it was there, she could get to it and eat it in a matter of seconds. I have never seen two paws and a snout work so quick. She could get to anything, no matter how far. She would eat steaks in one bite, swallow sandwiches without chewing and would devour anything in a matter of seconds. And I mean anything. We would watch her out in the backyard, pain in her eyes as she attempted to pass entire paper towels and panties, all swallowed whole. We took turns pulling partially chewed items from her bottom. It happened in the yard, it happened on the street during the evening walk, it happened in the basement as she literally backed up to my mom and went to the bathroom right in her face. It could be quite an embarrassment, more for the person privileged enough to draw the object from her‐ but to Murphie, it was all worth it.

We owned the dog no one liked. All of our friends and extended family members really couldn’t stand her. They didn’t understand why she would jump on them, why she would lick incessantly, why she would bark and why she just couldn’t “be calm”. But the truth was, she was a dog who loved people. She would wait for her family every night to get home, she would sit on our feet and she would lay on our magazines and newspapers while we were trying to read. She was happiest when she could be with people.

Two years ago, Murphie was diagnosed with PLA, a kidney disease that is common to Wheaten Terriers. Her body could no longer process protein in the body and she was therefore unable to eat the meats, cheeses and eggs she loved so much. The prognosis was not good, but we knew we had to do everything we could. We changed her diet to prescription food, much to her displeasure. We started her on a medicine for her kidneys, a protein supplement, a multivitamin and a baby aspirin‐ twice daily and all taken without peanut butter. Since her kidneys were no longer functioning properly, we would take her out close to 15 times per night. This past winter, her condition rapidly deteriorated and she was no longer eating or drinking. We began to give her daily IV’s of medicines so we could keep her hydrated. For that hour each evening, she would lay helplessly in the bathtub while she was given her nightly dose of fluids to keep her comfortable. In the end, we knew there was nothing we could do to cure her or to bring her back to her old terrier self. Murphie passed away on New Year’s Eve, eleven years to the day we brought her home.

For a dog, and more importantly a member of our family, who had provided us so much over the years, I cannot imagine doing anything different for her. To us, she was worth every single minute and every single penny we had, to give her as much unconditional love as she had given us. This April, my husband and I will welcome our first puppy in to our home. Otter McGee will join the ranks of spoiled terriers before him and I know will provide us with as much enjoyment, entertainment and love as Murphie did.

Shadow

There's something about this image that I love.



P.S. - Don't forget to enter the "Unconditional Love" contest!!!

Siblings Reunited

You may remember my session last year with Liora and Sabra, the Saluki mixes rescued from Israel. If you haven't read their amazing story, you must read it now! It's okay, I'll wait.

Finished? Wasn't that a great story?

Well there's an even better ending, as it seems that there are even more siblings living in the area! Add Snow and Emmy to the mix. They all got together a few weeks ago and it was amazing to see how similar their mannerisms are. I'm so glad they called me back to document their reunion.

I think this is Snow and Liora, but it's so hard to tell them all apart...


They looooove to roughhouse...








I think this was the only shot I got with all four of them!






This one cracks me up!


How could these NOT be siblings?


Snow was tired from all that playing...


In the middle of a scrum... being a dog photographer is dangerous work!

Playing with Video

Don't worry, I'm not going to give up photography for video, but we got a new video camera for Christmas so I thought I would play. Luckily Cooley and Jingles provide us plenty of funny moments to capture. This is Cooley doing his cat-like routine with a rope toy.

"Unconditional Love" Contest for a Free Session!

Since today is Valentine's Day, I thought it would be fun to have a little contest honoring the love we have for our pets. But there's a little twist. I want to hear your best story of unconditional love. Tell me something that your pet has done that drove you absolutely crazy and, of course, why you love them anyway. You must also send a picture of your pet(s).

Entries are due by March 1. Please email your story, picture and contact information to contest@fidojournalism.com. The winner will be announced on this blog Monday, March 3, and will receive a free Ceasar session ($500 value)*!

We have too many stories to count in our house, but here's a few just to give you some ideas:

When Cooley was a puppy, he used the wood baseboards and door frames in our dining room as his personal chew toys. He destroyed them. Several months later, we thought his wood obsession was licked until one day we came home and found all four corners of our coffee table chomped off.

One night we came home to find a stack of books on our coffee table shredded to bits and our sofa practically overturned. These books were on the table for months without incident.

Just recently, Jingles cut his foot requiring emergency surgery and one of those cones to keep the bandaged area clean and dry. Well the cone didn't deter him from, and we tried everything - bitter spray, duct tape, etc. - to keep him from chewing the bandage and licking the wound. We had to make several unplanned visits to the vet for rebandaging (at $50 a pop).

Then they go and do something like this and remind us why they bring so much joy to our lives:



I think our stories are relatively tame, so I can't wait to hear your best stories!

* - session must take place within 60 miles of Takoma Park, MD on a date I have available.

Oh, Jingles...

So we had a fun night over the weekend. Jingles somehow managed to cut his foot on something in our yard, so we made a trip to the emergency 24-hour vet last Saturday night. He sliced into his foot down to the tendons, necessitating immediate surgery. The doctor said he did well ("he's not a sissy" were his exact words), but seeing a groggy Jingles limp out of the surgery room with a cone on his head at 4am was about the saddest thing I've ever seen.

For people in the Maryland-area, the vet is the Metropolitan Animal Clinic on Nebel St. in Rockville. We were very pleased with the service and care of Jingles.

The vets instructed us to keep him calm over the next few days, which is like telling Britney Spears to act like a sane, rational person. Ain't gonna happen. We've already been back to our vet several times to get him rebandaged, and resorted to duct tape, bitter spray and other things to try and keep the wrap on. When Jingles has his mind set on something, there's really very little that can be done to stop him.

Here's our poor boy...

Brotherly Love

Every once in awhile, Jingles and Cooley are so sweet to each other. It's rare, but it does happen. I snapped this the other night as they were both laying on the couch. I love how Jingles wrapped his legs around Cooley and used him as a pillow.

FidoJournalism Profiled!

FidoJournalism was recently profiled by a journalism grad student for a class project. It was an honor to be asked, and while I don't usually like to talk about myself, it was fun giving someone a behind the scenes look at a shoot and my thought processes. I think Kate did a terrific job expressing in words what I do, and, perhaps more importantly, WHY I do it.

Take a few minutes to read the profile [HTML or PDF] and let me know what you think in the comments.

Happy New Year

Jingles and Cooley wish you a very happy new year! They had a lazy day today, mostly napping and watching football, much like mommy and daddy.