wherever i can, i’m trying to make room to do up a blog entry here and there, but right now it’s only a dream that i’ll get even a fraction of last fall’s sessions onto the blog.

some of you who follow the scruffy dog facebook page will already have seen a few of these images of Thor and his little sister Indy … and they would have made an appearance in the facebook recaps posted intermittently here on the blog … but since they’re among my favorites from the session, you’re getting a couple of repeats.

Thor is a repeat client from several years ago.  it was so amazing to see this big guy again as he was one of my most memorable sessions early on in scruffy dog history …

and wee little Indy … well, need i say more?  “hey, lady, down here!”

how adorable is this little sweetie?

and those wee, undersized legs work just fine when it comes to keeping up with her big brother …

and how utterly handsome is this big guy?

and this boy can move!

although it’s been my experience that long-haired doxies can be a little on the shy side, i think this little girl actually believes she’s a great dane as well …

we had a lot of fun at one of our favorite locations, and then made our way to the red caboose …

thanks for a lovely session with your two, Jennifer, and sharing them with me.

these two are certainly a couple of my most favorite scruffies …

of course, it’s also your opportunity to meet the scruffy dog sales team … er … the resident scruffies …

… and while here, clients enjoy a specialty coffee from our new SunCafe single pod brewer.  trust me, when we decided to purchase a coffee machine for our studio guests, we did our homework, and are proud to say that SunCafe is 100% Canadian, like everything else about scruffy dog products … and these Kienna pods are earth-friendly and biodegradable vs. all those plastic and foil “cups” that other single-serve machines throw into the environment (recycled or otherwise).

of course, we have cold drinks as well … we’re stocked.

yup, here at SDP we aim to please …

NOTE: we do not allow the sales team to serve hot beverages.

even though all of my rescues have been scruffy, merrick — the rescue coming from the worst circumstances and requiring the most rehabilitation –  simply had to be the inspiration behind the new logo.  with a vision in hand, i approached client Don Straus — dad to the incomparable Memphis — to help me design and work this logo.  yeah, i’ve got a fine arts degree, and in my day i wielded a pretty wicked pencil … but my drawing days are over, and unable to capture merrick in the absolute perfect, air-borne pose by camera, it was up to Don to combine several photos of the goober.  and after many hours and days niggling over every last line in Don’s drawing and then hours and days of searching for and stressing over fonts, the final SDP logo has come to life.

there are a lot of connections and meaning behind the various elements of the new logo besides the drawing of our own goober.

the ball is a no-brainer … balls have been merrick’s doorway to rehabilitation and his method of dealing with any terrifying aspects of the new world around him. it speaks to his amazing recovery, his joy and new freedom, as well as my years of working with dogs in training and rehab.

the extra large shadow is probably a truer representation of just how big this boy really is — in heart, in spirit, and in courage … well, and his big-dog attitude, of course.

the bones (which you will see in the “seal” below) were drawn by me and have been an element of SDP for years now, and certainly speak of the other huge passion in my doggy world, and that is canine health and nutrition, and feeding raw for almost 10 years.

and finally, the font … yes, i know a number of you have already voiced your dismay over the loss of our former “scruffy” font.  the problem is, that the scruffy font didn’t work with the graphics of the new logo.  and to be honest, as a novelist for twenty-some-odd years, a good typewriter font has always struck a chord with me.

i have no doubt that there will be variations of this logo over the next few years, but my little flying boy will remain.  he is now the “seal” and watermark on every photo that will be posted on the blog or facebook … even though I’m not sure Indy entirely approves …

and not sure about young Bosco either …

here’s the actual scruffy dog seal that you will see as part of the new SDP branding:

… used as a watermark or in other occurrences of branding …

i hope you all enjoy this new and much more personal SDP logo … and to celebrate its launch, as promised on the SDP facebook page, we’re going to have a contest!  so if you don’t already follow us on facebook, now might be a good time to start!

first up, some feet … a few people thought these were vizsla feet, which makes me realize that although we’ve shot hundreds upon hundreds of dogs, we haven’t had a vizsla client in the past couple of years!  but these particular feet belong to big, Rhodesian Ridgeback James …

James is a repeat client, so some of you might remember him from his shoot last year …

then there was my girl matea.  people are always asking me what kind of dog she is; if you want to learn more about this gorgeous girl of mine you can find her fuller story here.  she had to visit the vet this past week with the intention of having a tumor removed from her hind leg/foot.  however, as suspected, it was infected, so we have to give her time for the infection to go down before we have it removed at the beginning of February.

merrick gave his own opinion in regards to the computer issues we went through here at SDP headquarters … a complete overhaul and upgrades of all the studio software.  what an ordeal …

and little Indy and her big brother Thor.

here’s a shot of my boy from earlier this summer when fellow photographer, Brian Douglas, and were checking out some possible locations …

and while on the subject of resident scruffy merrick, here’s a little video clip of this boy overcoming his fears of the new LG laundry machines.  these new appliances (along with some other new appliances in the house), with all of their new beeps and trills and songs, had taken the goober to a level of anxiety that caused him to shut down.  in spite of turning off all of the alarms and indicators on every appliance, the damage had been done … if we so much as opened the laundry room door, this boy would fly upstairs and not come down again.

so, the other day, when he seemed to be in a more daring mood, actually stepping into the laundry room briefly before trying to take off again, i decided to do a little work with him.  it was a major step in the right direction. (and let me qualify, i do not endorse putting pets in your dryer! this was a much-needed exercise to help a formerly abused dog conquer his fears.)

what an amazing boy this goober is.  we’ve all learned so much from him and his rehabilitation.

also on the facebook page, we shared a before-and-after, which a lot of SDP facebook followers seem to love.  here is monster boy, Thor…

this was Thor’s second shoot with SDP.  he was one of our clients very early on in SDP’s history.  we find him with a few more white whiskers, but with the same awesome spirit, joy for life, and … well … same flappy jowls and drool.

i just love these two together … big Thor and his wee little sister Indy …

and finally, another shot of the goober … this one taken with the Nikon V1 … a new addition to the SDP lineup of cameras.  although not intended for client sessions, it’s a fun little camera to carry in one’s purse.

hope you all have a great weekend!

for those of you who follow the scruffy dog facebook page, you’ll have already met Rosie, Ebony and Champ.

first up: little Rosie …  as someone whose own life has been touched with a senior jack russell, i might be just a little biased … but i love this girl.  even before arriving, i was told that this 12-year-old madam doesn’t always do well with new people coming into her house and can get a little nippy.  all i can think is that Janice has been inviting the wrong guests over for coffee.    handling the situation the way it should be handled, working with the dog’s energy, working at her timing, and generally letting her choose the pace, this amazing little girl was posing within minutes and pawing at me for attention.

then there’s four-year-old Champ …

this stunning tripod hails from death row in a shelter in Kentucky.

and then there is the lovely 10-year-old Ebony …

both Ebby and Rosie were adopted from the Kitchener-Waterloo Humane society.  and like my former old man Morley — adopted at 9 yrs of age and almost making it to 17 — little Rosie was adopted at 6 years and is going strong. gotta love those JRTs.

but at 10 years of age Ebby is no slouch either!

i had a lot of fun with these three on the beach in spite of the heavily overcast conditions …

and what can i say about Janice’s boots?  as soon as she grabbed them at the house, i already knew they were going to feature in a few shots.  i think i might need to find me a pair of those!

but even before we got the beach, we had some fun in the field.  and one of the main reasons that November is one of my favorite months to shoot in is the long grasses.  and of course, any shoot is extra special when the model brings her own mascara and eye-liner.   good girl, Rosie.

and that eye-liner didn’t even smudge or fade during our session … even with all the running!

and just because he’s a tripod, don’t underestimate Champ’s athleticism!

… or his abilities to search out a vole in the long grass.

like a lot of scruffy dog clients, Janice had fallen in love with the tunnel-of-trees location.  she had visions of this location featuring in a large canvas, and the first image in this blog entry is just one of the big canvases Janice has ordered at a 24×51  dimension.  i can’t wait to see it.

even though i have photographed Ebony in the past, and Champ was new to the family and still learning a lot of commands, and Rosie was an admitted nipper, it was Ebby who posed the biggest challenge in this session.  this girl always looks sad.  coupled with slight camera-shyness, it’s almost impossible to get Ebby’s ears up.  but we did!

thank you, Janice, for sharing your three awesome scruffies with me … more than that, thank you for adopting!

their first session took place here on scruffy dog territory … so this time i headed into Toronto to shoot James on his own turf … a.k.a. Squirrel Central.

with squirrels running amok in his park, it became a matter of positioning myself accordingly to the squirrels.

and here’s just a little slideshow of James’ sessions …

thanks for being such a model, James.  i hope you enjoy your gallery Justyna.

Harley and Nahla were back for a second shoot.  you can see their summer shoot here.  these two niblets reside in California, so watching them deal with the snow was fun … and doesn’t Nahla look like a little winter princess?

this was a Starter session added on to Harley and Nahla’s summer Standard.  because of the cold, these little guys lasted about 25 minutes, but we got a ton of gorgeous photos from these two.  they really knew how to strike a pose.  maybe they’ve lived in Hollywood too long?

and with the coming of the new year, it was time for resident mcscruffy matea to “hand over the reins” for the 52 Weeks for Dogs project on flickr.  merrick is this year’s model.

i shared another photo of the spectacular Indy, whose photoshoot from the fall is still in the post-work stages … a girl can’t get any privacy!

and then gorgeous old man Dante, whose shoot also is in the post stage …

and this shot i thought was funny … imagining Dante yelling at someone out of frame.

then the resident merrick mcscruffy … this shot was taken with a new point-and-shoot … my purse camera.  along with some new appliances that beep a lot, merrick turned his back to the new Nikon down in the studio as he’d just had it with all the beeping!

this mcscruffy is far more comfortable with the big cameras …

and we asked facebook followers what was their pet’s favorite new toy received over the holidays …

then there was baby Harlow, another client whose shoot is still in the post stages. how cute is she?

and then … more Yorkies!  these two are Darla and Enzo … catching a few rays …

and you don’t need a doorbell if you share your life with a Yorkie!

and a little fun in the autumn leaves …

Enzo did well with a little fence-post posing at the end of our shoot while the moon came up …

i hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s facebook recap.  if you’d like to see more of these kinds of client sneak-peeks and SDP photos even sooner, join the scruffy dog facebook page and follow the fun as it happens!  see you there!

and it seems lately that i don’t even have time for regular blog entries, but i swear, we’ll get back to those soon!  you just might be enjoying the fall colours in February, that’s all.

in the meantime, here is a sampling of the images you may have missed on the scruffy dog facebook page.  as always, if you’re wanting the latest and greatest that SDP has to offer, including daily photos, news, and chat, you’ll want to follow the SDP facebook page by “liking” it.

first up, here’s a little belated holiday cheer … merrick goobernuts mcscruffy showing off not only his elf hat, but also his newest trick!  now, i assure you, i’m not into teaching my dogs “tricks”, but rather more useful tasks like picking up around the house and getting their dinner blankets out each evening. but merrick loves the challenge of any kind of learning so …

next up, we have young Rico …

and, since a lot of the SDP followers are aspiring photographers, i often share a little post-work sampling.  this is adorable Gus’s before-and-after …

and then Gus himself … the boy of many expressions …

and sweet baby Maggie, the Portugese Water Dog and born model …

then we had young Henry … retriever in training …

and Bisou and Scout … two sweethearts who came from Toronto to take advantage of our locations here …

our girl matea had to have some dental work … two root canals.  since one was an upper canine, we opted for root canal instead of extraction of the dead tooth since a root canal is less invasive and requires no real healing time.  however, at ten years of age, the anesthetic took her down hard.  next up, she needs a button tumor removed, but with this tough girl, we’re hoping it can be done with only local.

and finally, our own mcscruffy in the tunnel of trees, wishing everyone a happy holidays!

stay tuned for more facebook updates … or get them directly from the scruffy dog facebook page!  hope you all have a fabulous, scruffy weekend.

as some of you know, here at scruffy dog headquarters, we’re raw-fed, low-vaccines, and no chemicals unless absolutely required … and that includes topical treatments that may not be needed.  as always, i’d rather treat as needed vs. using a bunch of chemicals as a preventative for something that may never be an issue.  this decision is based on my own experience with my dogs over the years, as well as having researched a lot about the treatments, side effects, and actual cases of reactions.

so, with fleas, i’ve used Advantage maybe once every two or three years.  about six weeks ago, we found a flea on the goober.  for the next hour i was like a monkey picking through his hair, only to find ten more!  and running a flea comb through matea i was shocked to find a couple more of the little buggers, but also a lot of flea poop.

over the weeks, i take time out to search for them on the scruffies, believing i could stave off any impending infestation “manually” … and while the numbers of fleas were no more than two or three a week on merrick and one or two on matea, and even though we ourselves have not been bitten in spite of the goober nestled between us all night every night … last night i’d had it.

so, out came the Advantage, and all three of them were treated (even though Aslan did not appear to be carrying a single flea).   trouble is, matea’s coat is far too thin and after applying the dastardly chemicals, she sat for a couple of minutes waiting for her treat, while we did the other two … and by the time i got back to her, the chemicals — applied to the back of her neck and top of her shoulders — had run all down her back!  and two minutes later, she’s wanting to lick it.

so all last night she wore her Back on Track “blanket”, but it’s not to be worn more than 8 hours … so, today she is sporting a lovely T-shirt …

so pretty …

tomorrow morning i’ll take it off and bathe her back so that there are no more chemicals that she can reach.

of course, no resident-scruffies blog entry would be complete without the goober … so here he is …

hoping you’re having a fabulous first week of the year!

And while our trip out east in the spring was pretty much a wash, and we had to cancel all of our pre-arranged sessions out there, we did manage to capture some memorable and unique shots of the resident scruffies on the beaches to bring home with us.

But the year would be nothing without our amazing clients.  2011 brought us such a huge variety of models, from seniors to puppies, and clients from as far away as California and New York City, as well as commercial clients on a global level.

Business-wise, we have made some big moves as well this year … trademarking the “scruffy dog” name in several countries, and even as I write this we are on the verge of rebranding, so stay tuned for that!

With enormous thanks to our clients and friends, followers and supporters, we were once again nominated and won the “Best Pet Photographer” category in The Toronto Pet Daily‘s Readers’ Choice Awards for the second year running.  This, along with wins in the categories of “Favorite Photographer” and “Favorite Photography Studio” in the Kitchener-Waterloo’s Readers’ Choice Awards, makes 2011 a pretty stellar year all around. And of course, there’s no way this could happen without the incredible support, word-of-mouth, and generosity of all of you.

But when I look back on the year of 2011, it will be marked more by the tongue-lolling, tail-wagging joy in so many of the scruffy faces I met and had the absolute pleasure of photographing.

We would be nowhere without our clients … and to show our appreciation, I have compiled a video of our 2011 clients. With the number of 2011 scruffy clients far exceeding 100, it took everything I had to choose just one photo from each shoot (for those of you with multiple shoots last year, you will find your dog appearing twice in the video). I hope you enjoy this 2011 retrospective!

Enjoy! And thank you for being a part of the scruffy dog family!