Chloe's First Mother's Day. The Purple Litter goes Home. A Maine Photographer

Last Saturday, May 3rd, Chloe's puppies went to their forever homes, and I am grateful to the families for letting me be a part of this day.  Three puppies all together, three homes.  If you have been following my blog, you already know that my family decided to keep the third puppy, the newest guardian pup for SnowyPaw's!  Her name is Violet, and she's the latest love of our life.  Yes, Joanne is having a very special Mother's Day too this year!  Happy Mother's Day Chloe!

We have known the families that both Beckett and Jaxson were going to, for a bit now, and I'm grateful to both Rushell at SnowyPaw's and to the individual families who shared their individual stories with me.  This is just another reminder that we all have stuff going on in our lives...we all do...sometimes we are just so unaware.  There is a saying out there, I've been seeing it pop up on facebook quite a bit, it goes something like this...treat everyone with kindness for you have no idea what they may be going through.  Again, I am both grateful and full of admiration to these families.  I am also just a wee bit overjoyed that Chloe's puppies are bringing "Joy to the World" as corny as that may sound.  Here are some photos I took prior to the first pick up at 10 am.

These first two are Chloe and Violet.

This next one is Chloe and Jaxson

And here is Chloe and Beckett.  My husband helped me with these photos.  We wanted to be sure to provide each family with a photo of their new baby and baby's Mommy :)

This next photo is one of Chloe's pups bidding farewell to Edy's litter.  They have shared most of their lives together at this point.  I thought it was a bittersweet goodbye...and worth capturing :)

Next, we have Beckett and Jaxson very much ready to meet their new families!!

And I can't forget my beautiful Mama Chloe, very happy for the visit

 and next is me trying to capture her funny smile.  She looks viscous, but she is so very happy!

This is Violet, taken the moment we brought her home.

Beckett goes home!

10:00 sharp I met the Stack family.  I had been corresponding with Shari for a couple of weeks.  Shari shared that her 4 year old son Liam had picked out the name Beckett.  Shari shared that she has never had a dog before, so Beckett is her first, and she shared that she is not able to have any more children due to medication that she is on after suffering from two strokes after the birth of Liam.  

 More of her story here

I am so grateful to Shari and her family for sharing their story, and so happy to welcome them into Chloe's family!

Jaxson goes home!

1:00 I met the Myrick Family.  Mom Penny and daughter Brittany came to pick up Jaxson.  I had been corresponding with Penny and she too agreed to share her very personal story.  Penny has previously shared her life with 3 other golden retrievers, the last one past away at the age of 11 last June, and Penny and family truly believe their house is just not home without a golden, so they are welcoming Jaxson with open arms.  Penny is currently on medical leave fighting a very personal battle with breast cancer.  She is currently going through chemo and very much looking forward to some puppy cuddles.  Once Jaxson is a bit more mature Penny plans to get him certified as an official therapy dog!  

I am so grateful to the Stack family and the Myrick family for letting me share their very personal stories and photos with you.  I am so grateful for Rushell at Snowypaw's for picking my family to raise Chloe.  My heart is just so full!

Happy Mother's Day Chloe

Happy Mother's Day Rushell

Happy Mother's Day Shari

Happy Mother's Day Penny

and yes...it is a very Happy Mother's Day for Joanne

xoxoxo

A German Shepard Named Loki. A Maine Photographer

A few weeks back I photographed an 11 month old German Shepard named Loki.  Loki was one of my lucky Dog Wash Etc portrait winners...but I'm the lucky one!!  You see Loki was having a play date with one of his cousins, a 3 year old doberman named Maverick.  Out of all the dog portraits I have taken, I had not yet photographed a German Shepard or a doberman.  Both of these dogs were incredibly mellow, well behaved and gorgeous!

Today I contacted Loki's owner to let her know I would be putting photos up on my blog.  She shared some pretty scary info on an illness Loki has been battling.  She felt because I photograph a lot of dogs I could spread the word.  I'm so happy to do this for her, and for all of us dog owners, and I'm so grateful Loki is ok.  Here is what she told me.
" Loki is recovering from a very serious bout of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and Erlichiosis, both caused by tick bites.   It was quite scary and we thought we might lose him but they finally figured out what it was, thank God.  He's lost a bit of weight so it's good you got pictures when you did. I know you deal with a lot of dogs and their owners, so people need to realize that while it's important to vaccinate your dog against Lyme disease, they don't prevent this type.  According to our Vet, the coast of Maine is is a hot spot for this type of tick and lots of dogs are getting sick.  I'm just passing this info along to everyone."

So let's keep a good eye on our pets health and thank you to Loki's owner for sharing.  Now, enjoy these photos of beautiful Loki and Maverick.

PUGS. A Maine Photographer

My next 5 blog posts will go to the dogs!
I've been stock piling my dog photo shoots, so that I can entertain us all during these cold weeks of February!

Those of us with a dog in the family know just how special they are...but I also know only a small percentage of dog owners have their pets professionally photographed.  I understand that for most folks, a profession dog portrait falls into the "nice to have" category as opposed to the "need to have" category. 

That is why I partnered up the The Dog Wash Etc a few years ago.  Every month we give away one free pet photo session for one lucky dog!  Wash your dog at the Dog Wash Etc and enter the monthly drawing to win a free pet photo session. 

Today's post makes me absolutely giddy!  Meet Tucker (8 years old) Gus (6 years old) and Delylah (5 years old princess).  Amanda was our December portrait winner.  I thank Amanda for our January play date at Ferry Beach in Scarborough, just one day after a fresh blanket of snow. I have lived in Maine my whole life, but seeing snow on the beach was brand new to me.  I love walking the beach at any time of year, but I had never been to walk after a snow storm before.  One more comment to add...it was kinda like where's Waldo when they wondered into the dunes!  To all of my pug lovin friends...this post is for you!

Ernie.Maine Dog Photographer

Day 16 of 30 in the 30 day blog challenge.
Meet Ernie.  March's dog portrait winner of my monthly contest at the Dog Wash Etc.
Ernie will be 2 years old in July, and he is a lab mix.  I believe he came from Tennessee, the son of a stray, and one of 8 in a mixed litter of puppies.  Did you know that when a dog is in heat she can be bred by more than one dog...resulting in puppies with different fathers?  It's true! 
I heard this today and just had to Google it!  http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/breedingtie.htm

Can a dam who has mated with more than one stud during a single heat, have pups from both fathers. Yes, when a dam mates with more than one stud, both of the studs can impregnate the female at the same time. Pups from a single litter can have different fathers, as the sperm from both fathers, will swim around, waiting for the eggs to ripen. The sperm from both fathers, will live in the dam for 5 days.

 (When I heard this I couldn't help but think of Jodie Foster in The Accused)(...never mind...)

Anyway, back to Ernie.
Ernie is very high spirited and active.  We became friends instantly...and when I offered him my squeaky toy for keeps he didn't hesitate to take it and run.  Although Ernie is very much a part of his family, there is some concern that they are not a perfect match and that he may not be living to his fullest potential.  Ernie currently lives in a suburban neighborhood with a busy family, but his behavior and mannerisms leave us believing that Ernie wants to be the center of attention and desires a whole lot more room to roam than what he currently has.  Ernie is not even 2 years old yet, he has a lot of living left to do, and his family is giving hard thought to Ernie's best interests and what might be the next biggest adventure for him. 

If you would like more information on Ernie, feel free to drop me a line and I'll pass it along.  Take one look at him and it's obvious he is something special!