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a very special special for you ~ {Ontario pet photographer}

8 September 2011 – 4:37 pm

i’m so far behind in blogging these days. there are a lot of client shoots lately that haven’t even hit the blog. even now my time is severely limited as we launch into our busiest fall season yet with so many shoots on the books we’re going to have to devise some kind of new dance for the weather gods for their cooperation to see us through this extremely tight schedule.

but one item we simply have to share with all of you blog followers is a very special special just for you scruffy dog clients, fans and followers, wherever you may be.

a few of you have already noticed and inquired about matea’s new collar … or rather, ID holder.

this collar is made by Amy of Karma Collars in California.  when looking for a custom-made leather collar for my girl, i did extensive searches and poured over numerous sites.  there are a lot of great collar-designers out there, but always i kept coming back to Amy’s designs.  her workmanship … er … workwomanship? is second to none.  what can i say? as a perfectionist myself, we tend to truly admire one another.

and reading Amy’s “about us” page on the Karma site was like listening to the echo of scruffy dog across the breadth of this continent … devoted dog people doing good for dogs … we were singing the same song.  i couldn’t think of a better person to make this very special collar for my extremely special girl.

now, it might seem like a simple enough collar, but it is exquisite in its simplicity, and the workmanship and quality is impossible to describe … with its sturdy leather, soft pigskin lining, and beautiful brass studs.  when matea is out  hunting and hiking, she wears her biothane collar from gundosupply.com … although Karma collars are darn sturdy and can take mud and water and just about anything else your dog can throw at it.  but what i was after for my girl was something more akin to jewelry …

… something lightweight and slip-on, to wear around the house and carry her identification.

and if you’re wondering about matea’s tag, this is a custom tag by Tessa of Make Your Dog Smile on Etsy.

the true Karma collar, however, is even more exquisite and far more elaborate than what i had Amy create for my girl …

but wait!  i haven’t mentioned the special part!  you’re probably wondering about the special special, huh?  well, Amy of Karma Collars has agreed to offer all scruffy dog clients and followers a 10% discount on their orders … her biggest discount ever!  yes, that’s how special it is.

and if you don’t think that’s special, yeah baby, it gets even specialer!   scruffy dog is sweetening the deal because, frankly, we’re all about good karma.  we love Amy so much and believe so much in her work and what she does, that we want great photos of her collars.  so for anyone who orders through this scruffy dog special, you will receive a free mini-shoot with scruffy dog!  of course, you’ll have to come to us for that, but we believe in Karma collars so much that we want to see your dog wearing their own design, and then provide Amy with some awesome photos of it.

but this offer is for a limited time only.  you have two weeks, people.  of course, for your mini-shoot we might be pushing you into late November or even December as our fall schedule is over-booked at this point, but we’ll do what we can.

so check out all the amazing work over at the Karma Collars website and use the discount code: SCRUFFYDOG10 for your 10% off.   you’ve got until September 23rd to place your order.

now’s your chance to join the Karma Collars family and the scruffy dog family … what are you waiting for?

By illona | Also posted in products and promos | Tagged , , , , | Comments (3)

if you read only one dog book this year… ~ {Ontario pet photographer}

21 June 2011 – 1:40 pm

i know it’s been a while since i posted a “things we love!” blog entry … sorry ’bout that.  just too much happenin’ in these parts … and i knew that i wanted to write about this book as the next “things we love” blog entry.  plus, well, i had to finish reading the book first, and frankly, i had to tackle the ending in small doses.

but trust me, if there’s only one dog book you read this year, let it be Steve Duno’s, last dog on the hill …

as you’d expect, i have quite a library of dog books.  but as a published novelist for two decades, i confess i can be a harsher critic than many.  i’ve got some high standards, both when it comes to writing, and when it comes to those i feel even have the authority to be writing books about dogs.  needless to say, there are countless books on dogs in print, and out of those, many that — i believe — should never have met a printing press.  admittedly, those are the ones that find their way — rather unceremoniously — on a quick trip via the blue bins to the curb in front of our house.  “What? You don’t take them to a used book store? Donate them to the library?” sadly, no.   i’m not about to waste someone else’s time with such tripe.

but once in a while, a genuinely solid piece of writing about dogs comes out … a story worth telling, written by someone who not only knows how to write, but has also learned a thing or two about dogs, and as such has some authority to speak about what he writes.  Steve Duno’s story of his first dog Lou, and how this rescued mutt altered his life, is truly “unforgettable”.   … beautifully written, never maudlin, perhaps a little embellished in places, but overall, a book that will remain the forerunner of all the “dog story” books on my shelf, as it will be difficult — if not impossible — to top.

if you’ve ever had that wonder dog, ever loved a dog so deeply you thought your life would end when theirs did, this is a book for you.  whole paragraphs and single phrases are not only moving, but also touch you to the core …

” … because together, with this dog, things meant more.”

“Better to bear an unending line of sweet, tail-wagging idiots than to bury you again,” Duno writes to Lou after his passing.  “Pity the dogs who follow a legend.  I’m done searcing for your doppelganger.”

and as my girl Matea — my own wonder-dog and hero, and a dog i’m pretty sure Duno would be impressed with and no doubt see some similarities to his incredible boy — as she steps into her senior years, coping with spondylosis, Duno’s convictions and experience ring loudly for me.  “Work is life. You stop working, you’re dead.” … and i realize i have to do more with my wonder-dog, even though her body can’t run and fly and jump and leap and hunt the way she used to.

so, thank you, Mr. Duno, for an unforgettable story, for some beautiful writing, and for the cry.  i hope your heart has been touched as deeply by a new dog, just in a different way.  as someone who has gone through the deep losses of a couple of very special dogs already, i can say that they are all legends in their own way, they all touch our hearts just in very different ways … we just have to be open to it.  or maybe i’ve just been really lucky in dogs.

By illona | Tagged , , , | Comments (7)

thunderstorm relief? ~ {Ontario pet photographer}

23 May 2011 – 1:07 pm

among the many issues that merrick deals with as fallout from the abuse and neglect suffered during his six years as a puppymill stud-dog, fear of loud noises — especially thunderstorms — is just one.  he shakes and scrambles, and is desperate to get onto my lap or as close as possible to me … and if the thunderstorm is at night, that means climbing all over my face.  if he can’t do that, he frantically crawls under the bed, then back up to my face.

my old man morley wasn’t quite as bad, but also suffered through thunderstorms and fireworks.  i never coddle dogs through their fears, but have always worked to build their confidence.  still, at 2 a.m., it’s not always convenience to play a game of fetch.

over the years, i’ve tried homeopathics, herbs, flower essences, Rescue Remedy, all kinds of remedies … you name, it’s probably still rattling around in the fridge or the bottom of the dogs’ drawer.  all useless for both morley and, now, merrick as well.

so when i received the most recent newsletter from Chris of Creature Comfort Pet Emporium in St. Jacobs announcing that they were carrying the Thundershirt and that there was a 30-day money-back guarantee, i thought: “what the heck?”

it certainly wasn’t the first time i’d heard of the Thundershirt.  it’s been around for a while, and based on reviews and what i’ve read about it, i’ve recommended it to many dog owners who have written me in the past.  why haven’t i tried it myself?  well, because i guess i needed to hear that “money-back guarantee”.  it’s not like i’ve got money to throw away, not after i’ve already thrown away so much on all the other so-called proven remedies that never worked.

when i spoke to Chris on the phone, she said out of all the Thundershirts they’ve sold in the past six months that they’ve been carrying them, they’ve had only one return.  so, off we went.

the premise behind the Thundershirt is that with the constant, hugging pressure of the shirt’s velcro-system, the dog’s nervous system calms.  from the Thundshirt’s website:

“As for WHY Thundershirt’s gentle pressure works to calm a dog, experts such as Dr. Temple Grandin believe that pressure has a calming effect on the nervous system. Using pressure to relieve anxiety has been a common practice for years.”

now, i’ll admit … in the store, when we put this on merrick to test for size, he stood stock still, and within seconds found a shelf on which to rest his chin, then remained there, unmoving.  hmm …  calm?  perhaps.  don’t get me wrong, i’m not disputing it works, just how it works.  because you see, once it’s on, it’s like my boy can’t move … or simply refuses to move.

the first time i put it on him at home when some fireworks were going off, he literally flopped over, all four in the air, and remained like that for a good hour.  when i called him, he flailed and thrashed like a turtle, unable to right himself.

i’m not saying that’s a bad thing … just a point to be noted.  and last night, when we finally had a big thunderstorm that sent him scrambling up to my pillow — of course, just when i had found sleep — i put the Thundershirt on him, and it lessened his anxiety by a good 70%.  with each boom, he came farther up towards head of the bed, but only by a foot or two, not all the way to my face.  because the shirt calmed him? or because the shirt restricted his movements?

at this point, i don’t care.  as long as it keeps him still and not responding in his old ways, it’s working, because it’s retraining his body — his mind and his muscles — as to how to respond to such noises.  part way through the night though, i had to take it off of him as i do worry about it being on him too long.

along with the Thundershirt — for those of you in the Waterloo area able to make your purchase through Creature Comfort Pet Emporium — Chris includes a homeopathic remedy …

again, i’m not a big believer in homeopathics as they’ve never worked for me, and after years of using them on the dogs, have never seen results.  however, last night was very interesting.  in the throes of his panic over the thunder, i gave merrick his two pellets, and he immediately gagged them out.  i’ve never had a dog do this, but he actually sniffed out the pellets on the duvet cover and took them himself.  truly fascinating.  as though he knew it was what he needed?

so … the Thundershirt is a keeper in this house … maybe it will work for your thunder-fearful dog as well.  it might be worth a try.


By illona | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (12)

truly unique dog bling ~ things we love ~ {Ontario pet photography}

20 January 2011 – 11:35 am

recently the scruffies received some new bling for their collars, and i just had to share!

these tags are made by Emily from Ador-a-bull Dog Rescue, whose incredible creativity can be viewed in her Etsy shop Smork & Beans.

these custom-made, one-of-a-kind tags can be ordered round or square, and are completely customizable.  from Pirate Emm’s Smork & Beans Etsy site:

so for Matea, my super retrieving girl who helps around the house by fetching things and carrying whatever needs to be carried when our hands are full ..

and for Merrick, well, his tag was all about his favorite thing in the world (besides me, of course) …

thanks for the fab tags, Emily!  and please give a big hug to Quinn for me!

By illona | Tagged , , , | Comments (7)

the blur that is my boy ~ {Ontario exclusive pet photographer}

17 July 2010 – 6:44 am

as part of the very popular and extremely active 52 Weeks for Dogs group that i created on flickr last year, devoted to one-year projects of weekly photos of your dog,  we sometimes present a weekly challenge for members to take part in.  challenges have ranged from depth-of-field, selective focus, b&w treatment, pop culture, and this week: action blur.

as I lay in bed last night, an image suddenly formed in my mind which i felt would answer the challenge perfectly.  all that was left was to figure out how to execute it with all three scruffies.  i shouldn’t have continued setting up the shot beyond the initial click.  the first one nailed it …

action-blur-01

… my lounging girl, a disdainful aslan looking on, and merrick — a constant blur in our world.

enjoy your weekend, everyone!  i hope it’s not a blur!

added note for all you techies: no, there are no special effects or extra photoshopping tricks here. this shot was accomplished through a slow shutter speed and good dog-wranglin’.

By illona | Also posted in about us | Tagged , , , | Comments (6)