Happy Birthday Moose

Happy Birthday Moose!! His actual birthday was yesterday so I took a few pics of him then but the weather is so beautiful again today, I grabbed my camera and took Moose outside for another photo session today too. Days like today make me long for a nice fenced yard. I'd love to let him roam around so I could really get some decent shots of him. As you can tell from his expression most of the time, he becomes bored very easily when I'm trying to do his portrait. I would like to get some full body shots of him but the leash I have is only so long (about 25 feet maybe) and him being out of reach is not a good thing so I learned today. Our neighbors behind us were out with their dog and their yard isn't fenced either. Moose saw the dog and wanted to go say hi so he took off. I got a hold of the end of the leash with one hand (my camera was in the other hand.) He was dragging me through the yard so I had to put the camera down and grab the leash with 2 hands. I finally got him to stop after he'd made it all the way to their driveway. Crazy dog!! My lower back will be feeling this little escapade of his for a few days I'm sure!

These are the shots I got of him today. I really want to improve my photography skills so I am trying to practice a lot!

Pet sitting in great Charlotte NC weather

I've been doing a lot of pet sitting lately and the weather has been so great, I've had my camera along. I really wish I could work one on one with another photographer familiar with pet photography (hint hint Deb if you ever read this!! :) ) I also could stand to take a class on Photoshop. My Photoshop skills are very limited although youtube is a great resource for helping me figure it out. I've been pet sitting with Fozzy lately and I've struggled to get a decent picture of her. Her canine brothers Ollie and Sunny provide ample opportunities for photos (see previous posts) but for some reason I've not been able to get a good one of her. She prefers to be inside vs outside so I guess that is the main reason. When I've been taking pics of the dogs, we've been outside mostly. Below is one of the better (perhaps the best) photos of her I've taken.

A couple of weekends ago, I was pet sitting for Rollo. I thought I'd posted this picture before but apparently I hadn't. One of my photography goals is to try and capture clear (non-blurry) action shots. When I look at this picture, immediately Taylor Shift's song "shake it off, shake it off" starts going through my head!

Very recently I was pet sitting for Lola, Howie and Otis. Otis is the old guy of the group and while he was still somewhat spry, his family wanted to bring in a companion for Lola. Enter Howie. He is all puppy. Here are a few things Howie did that made me laugh: practically tipping over when he hikes his leg to pee and racing around the den chasing a cat toy. The way he runs through the grass is pretty funny too. He hops. He was very entertaining!

Spring is almost here

Spring is almost here and that means I'm bringing the camera out every chance I get. Here is a sample:

Elliott's Birthday Party

Yesterday afternoon I went to Elliott's birthday party. I had the pleasure of celebrating with one of my clients Laurie, and her dogs Elliott and Topsy. Elliott turns 14 tomorrow so Laurie hosted a birthday party at TCBY. Laurie and Elliott hold a special place in my heart. Buddy my black lab pictured at the top of this page was fostered by Laurie so he lived with Laurie and Elliott before I adopted him (this was pre-Topsy.) I am forever grateful to them for opening up their hearts to this sweet boy. I love you Ellie! Happy Burfday!!

Ollie, Sunny and Fozzy

Recently, I had the pleasure of pet sitting with Ollie, Sunny and Fozzy. They have a huge backyard for playing and it is great for taking pictures. With the colder weather, I've not been taking a lot of outdoor photos but when Sunny's mom asked if I could take a few photos of the dogs for her, I gladly obliged. Ollie and Sunny are always good for a game of chase and some wrestling. They could be part of WWF and if they start chasing each other, get out of the way! Fozzy even got in on the game of chase which was pretty funny! Sunny is easy to photograph. Ollie and Fozzy create more of a challenge. Ollie is always on high alert outside, he is a hound after all. If he spies a squirrel, he is off to the races. I'd love to capture a photo of him galloping through the yard but all of my attempts were blurry. I did take a picture of all 3 dogs chasing each other. It is blurry of all 3 of them but because Fozzy was playing too, I just can't make myself delete it. Even though it is blurry, it still makes me smile. They are funny dogs!

Wanda and Max

I had the pleasure of filling in for my pet sitter while she took some time off over the holidays so I got to see Wanda and Max. I've pet sat for them before but it has been awhile and it was great to spend some time with them. Wanda is a great little walker (even with her short legs, I had a hard time keeping up with her!) and Max loves his outdoor time too. I was really surprised one morning when it was raining pretty hard but Max still wanted to go outside. He seemed to like being out in the rain more than Wanda and me! Max may have a learned a thing or two from Wanda: he comes when he is called. All I had to say was "Max" or "kitty kitty" and he'd come back to the door, ready to come inside.

One of my favorite things about doing these visits was my greeting from Wanda. When I walked up to her house, I could see her through the windows in the door and she was always in a full body wag... that is quite the greeting and it made my day every time I got to see it. Being privileged to have a job that brings me such gifts as the full body wag is just awesome!!

Happy New Year Wanda and Max!

PS I am going to give a shout out to CCP Web Design. If you like the new look for my website and blog, it was done by CCP Web Design and that is Wanda and Max 's mom.