Basil! A Waggytail Rescue Photo shoot!

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A few weeks ago I headed out to West Harlem to photograph a sweet little rat terrier mix called Basil! He was a little reserved until the tennis ball came out, then he was all go-go-go!

Basil was adopted yesterday to a couple in New Jersey, and I couldn't be happier! I've been photographing dogs in foster care for a few months now and even though I know good photography is important, none of the dogs I'd photographed in-home had been adopted yet. Knowing that my pictures helped Basil catch the eye of his new family makes me feel like I am doing something to help.

Oh! And Waggytail received a grant from a rescue foundation because the head of the group liked one of my pictures of Taz! Good feeling all round :)

The many faces of Chinso

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Let me start this by saying that Chinso is a wonderful dog. Seriously. Everyone who meets him uses the same word to describe him - Adorable.

While his cuteness cannot be understated, his smarts are also very attractive ;) He is fully housebroken, knows and responds to his name, sits on command, and waits patiently for his food until we give the OK.

He loves going out for walks, greets his neighborhood doggy friends with enthusiastic tails wags,  and enjoys a good run at the dog park.

Chinso LOVES his people. He is very affectionate, playful, and a complete cuddle bug. I'm pretty sure there have been about five whole minutes since we started fostering him where he hasn't been sitting on my lap or sleeping at my side. He loves enthusiastically and with his whole doggy heart.

Chinso is available for adoption through Waggytail Rescue NYC.

 All pictures ©CBMarney, please contact me before re-posting any of the pictures posted here.

Foster Photoshoot: Super Taz!

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My boyfriend and I are currently fostering our third rescue dog with Waggytail Rescue, an adorable Italiain Greyhound - Chihuahua mix called Chinso. I've been happily photographing his adorable face for almost three months now, and I thought that maybe I should extended my skills to other foster carers to see if we can get more pups shown in their best light. This is a new venture for me, and while I'm used to photographing fast moving humans, photographing other people's dogs is a new and exciting challenge!

Today I went to Williamsburg to meet Super Taz, a three year old Pug-Pomeranian mix (or maybe bulldog or spaniel or really, who knows?!) who is currently waiting to find his forever home. Taz is a super sweet bundle of energy who loves to give kisses and get belly rubs. I had a hard time getting portrait style shots because he was so enthralled by everything around him that he wasn't so interested in sitting still for the lady with the camera :) But I hope his enthusiastic, playful personality comes through in these portraits and that they catch the eye of someone who can give this happy, smiling little guy the active, loving lifestyle he needs.

Penny

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I've always thought of myself a big dog person having grown up with a Shetland Sheepdog then a collie-German Shepherd mix, and my parents currently having a GIANT German Shepherd. So believe me I was surprised when I so easily fell for our latest little foster, Penny.

During a Skype conversation with my Dad he asked me if she was a cat. The big dog thing, it runs in families. Penny was so very little (about 8lbs I'd guess) that often I'd wake up in the morning and not be able to find her in the living room because she'd curled up into a tiny little ball on the couch or in her crate.

There were a few things Penny loved more above all others. Cuddling next to or on you on the couch was just about her favorite thing.

Then came going on walks so she could bark at EVERYONE within a 100ft radius (oy vey!), and when at all possible dive face first into unmentionable stink piles in the grass. This lead to a lot of baths, and another favorite activity, post-bath towel drying induced insanity.

She would sprint laps around the room, up on the couch and back down then take that toy and kill it, KILL IT DEAD. Flinging it around the room, freezing to figure out where it went then galloping off to pounce on it again. She was a very silly, funny and loveable little monster.

Penny was adopted two weeks ago after spending a month with us. The actual adoption process and final day were a lot easier this time around, probably because I knew what it was going to be like and how after it was done, I'd be OK. Yes it's hard to let them go, but I know she's going to be loved and her new owner is going to help her overcome her barking issues.

I'm sure Penny and R. are going to have a lot of fun!

Barney

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Having Lucy in our apartment has made me think very seriously about getting a dog of our own. I am to my very core a dog person. I'm also a homebody and I think now, with grad school behind me, I'm ready for the kind of lifestyle that owning a dog entails. But the decision is not all mine and A, my boyfriend, has allergies. As much as I want to share our home with a dog, his health needs have to come first. So in a compromise, I signed up to foster dogs, pre-adoption, so we can trial run being dog owners.

This is how Barney came into our lives.

Barney arrived on a Thursday evening as a tiny (13lb), dirty scrap of a pup in a van from the Brooklyn Animal Care and Control shelter. He was freshly neutered and a little shy but so badly wanted to lean in on all the head scratchings you could give.

A few days into his stay with us, Barney's personality began to blossom. He was playful and feisty, loved chasing and throwing his tennis ball around and unfortunately for me revealed himself to have a penchant for shoes.

His chew toy didn't really hold his attention unless one of us was at the other end wiggling it, yet he destroyed two loafers, a pen and a highlighter.

We'd only had Barney for a few nights before an adoption application was submitted. It was bitter sweet. By this point we had both realized that as adorable and affectionate as Barney was, he was not our forever dog. While he was house broken, he would require training for separation anxiety and acclimatizing to other dogs, both things we aren't really experienced in doing.

So Sunday and Monday I spoke with referees, in between mad five minutes of play and sleepy hours of cuddles on the couch. Tuesday we had a meet and greet with his potential adopter.

A few people have told me that they could never foster an animal because giving them away after even a short period of bonding would be too hard. I fully understand this, and until I actually handed him over I wasn't sure that I'd be able to do it myself. But I did. Because even though the day before he left and the last evening at home we had together were fraught with choked back tears, I knew I was doing the right thing for everybody. And now, two days later I am even more convinced. We brought a scared little scrap of life into our home, cleaned him up and showed him love and comfort that he wouldn't have otherwise received in the pound. We vetted a very nice lady to be his new owner, who I am certain will provide him with the structure and love that he needs to become a confident, happy dog. We let him go with no regrets or misgivings.

Thursday, just one short week after we met him, Barney began his new life as Scout.

All images on this site are ©Christina Marney. Please do not copy, re-post or reproduce these images without my prior permission.