Happy dogs are the best kind of dog!
This week's pet blog theme is 'happy'. Happy dogs are always the best kind of dog. If they are happy, then they are better friends to us humans, less destructive and a whole lot more fun! Why is it that dogs almost always seem happy when we come home from where ever we have been? They seem happy just to see you walking up to the door - the happy starts to take over as they wait for you to unlock and open the door. There is nothing like being greeted by your happy dog(s)!
What makes them happy? Is it because they feel secure? They know that they are safe? Or maybe it's as simple as they live 'in the now'. They don't think about what happened 5 minutes ago and they are not worried about what might happen in 5 minutes - it's all about what is happening now.
Did they just get my leash?
Did they just say the word "walk"? (do you have to spell that word when you are talking to someone other than your dogs?)
Did they just say the word "ride"? (oh boy, the tails start wagging, they start trying to herd us up like cows to get to that door - oh and which car are we taking? Do we go to the front door? or the garage?)
Did they just say "snack"? which is anything other than the normal dry dog kibble (dog treats, carrots, beans, strawberry, banana, apple, cheese, the list goes on).
Well, just about any of these things will make our dogs go into a 'happy mode' of trying to figure out exactly what is going to happen next. Each word invokes different actions with our dogs - and I'm sure the same is true for any dog owner.
Dogs playing and running
Audrey (available for adoption from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue, Tampa, Florida) enjoys running in the back yard of her foster home.
Audrey got the prize, her ball that was just thrown for her to run and catch.
Jimbo playing at the dog park in his younger years.
A big pit bull smile
Chubbs, a red nose pitbull, giving a big smile for the camera. Chubbs and his sister, Sadie, lost their owner and are now looking for a new home - but in the mean time - they love attention and were wonderful in posing for the camera.
Exploring with us - hiking
In North Carolina at Mingo Falls near Cherokee, we decided to hike to the waterfall. When we got there, I noticed there were a lot of stairs (I knew there was some, but this was a good number of stairs). Little Ollie has short legs and wasn't sure about this idea at all - her preference is solid ground and she just about said "NO" .....our idea of her walking up the stair railing didn't work - but we took a quick photograph with her smiling.
This was more of what the dogs were thinking....water, flatter terrain, yes this is good hiking.
Abby plus water = Happy
Of all the dogs that I have owned (and that's only a few), Abby loves the water. Our first vacation trip with Abby to the Fort Payne, Alabama area. This is when we found out Abby had a love for water (something she can't do in fresh water here at home because of alligators).
Happy is having a good (safe) pond to hang out in during the hot summer months.
A comfortable place to sleep = happy
Whether it's a hard day of hiking in North Carolina or a lazy day at home - having a good comfy place to sleep always seems to make our dogs happy.
So there you have it - the happy dogs that are either in our lives now or have been in our lives at some time. But most of all, I think happy dogs are dogs that are with people that care about them, the dogs care about the humans and feel comfortable with.
Blogging with Pet Photographers
This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible). This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world. Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way. Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme. For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Pawtraits by Nicole, photographing pets for their people in and around Las Vegas, Nevada.
Interested in a Pet Photography Session?
If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida). We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.