The topic for this week’s blog post was : Why I love dogs. This was not an easy topic to write about because it’s hard to put those feelings into words! But writing a love letter to all the dogs I’ve had seemed more relevant.

This is a love letter to all of my dogs.

Cindy, you were my first love when I was just a schoolgirl, a sweet little fluffy girl that taught me what overwhelming love felt like and offered me unconditional love in return.

I’ll never forget the morning that you were acting very strangely, running back and forth between my bedroom and the back yard outside.  You were obviously trying to communicate something to me but I didn’t know what.  So I headed off to school and left you in the care of Mary, our housekeeper.  On my return from school I found out that you had given birth to 5 puppies!  I remember feeling both joy at seeing these little newborns and sadness that I wasn’t there to be with you as you went through the birth. I felt that I had abandoned you in your time of need.

You were my first soul dog!

How I wish I had some photos of you.

Flash, my big German Shepherd baby!  Thank you for introducing me to the world of dog training! Thank you for proving that one did not need to be harsh and punishing to get a dog to be well behaved.  I remember the trainer telling me that you would never be a good security dog because I was too soft on you!  Those were the years before I had ever heard of positive reinforcement training. Well thanks for proving him wrong. Thanks for teaching me that dogs aim to please those that they love and will always endeavour to do their jobs to the best of their ability!  Disobedience is never intentional, it is simply a lack of understanding and it is our job to help our dogs to understand what we need.

Flash, I will never forget how you loved me so much that when I would return home, you would run to the top of the driveway when you heard my car coming and jump up on the car, your two front paws resting on the window ledge.  I would drive slowly down the driveway while you hopped along on your two hind legs crying with happiness to see me, as if I’d been gone for years!  You did teach me how simply seeing someone you love so much could bring so much joy! And I felt the same for you.

Sprite, what an exceptional little dog you were! With little to no training you were so unbelievably smart and obedient. It must have been the mix of Poodle and Sheltie brains.  I remember you walking alongside me with no leash as if you had many hours of learning to heel.

You were the first family dog we got when I had 2 small babies as well.  You helped me to teach those little kids what it means to be good and kind to animals and to share my love of dogs.  My most difficult memory of you was when you were so ill and I slept downstairs with you, as you preferred to be there, and I did not want you to be alone.  The things we will do for our beloved dogs!

Sprite when you passed away and I thought I could never go through that pain again. But a breeder told me that I while would never forget you, I had place in my heart to love another dog.

And so Joey we brought you home and I learned quickly that I did have place in my heart to love another dog. Joey you showed me how little dogs can have such big personalities - you were indeed a “little person”. Watching you do the “zoomies”made me laugh. You were a gentle soul, one of the sweetest I’ve known.

I remember how you looked like a big black mop when you lay on the floor, all that hair spreading out! Joey, you introduced me to a breed that I quickly fell in love with - the Tibetan Terrier.  And so two more Tibetan Terriers entered my life.

KaRa, my smart little Tibetan Terrier obedience and agility champion. Thank you for the years of training and friendship and partnership we enjoyed together.  From you I learned how important a trusting partnership is for a working dog and her human. You were my sidekick for so many years as we competed and travelled together. When our years of competing ended I had an emptiness in my soul.

Sometimes I can still imagine your furry little body snuggling up against me in bed! 

I remember how you were the boss of the threesome - a typical female!

You are one who I still shed tears over whenever I think of you.  KaRa, you were one of my soul dogs.

And finally Dash, you were my last dog, my love and my Florida travel companion.  You weathered your ACL surgery like a true champion, while seeing you suffer broke my heart! 

Dashy, because of you we spent many years and countless hours driving to Florida because I’d never put you in the bottom of an airplane!

While you did not achieve the same excellence as KaRa, our training time together were wonderful shared moments. 

When KaRa and Joey were no longer with us, you were my soul, my best friend and my faithful love! When they passed away within 6 weeks of each other I felt like the two of us were in mourning together. I leaned on you for strength at that time! I am sure you leaned on me too.

To all my dogs, you brought profound and overwhelming love into my life. You lived life to the fullest, always living in the present. You taught me what it means to live in the moment and enjoy what we have right now, because in a dog’s world, now is all that really exists.  I truly wish I could apply that lesson to my life but as a human, its far easier witnessed than applied!

You all taught me that dogs have an uncanny instinct to recognize when their human is feeling low. You seemed to have a telepathic sense of sadness or illness,  and your unconditional love was so comforting in those times!

When we went for our walks and I watched how you enjoyed every sniff, every new route, every butterfly or squirrel, you taught me the importance of slowing down and enjoying everything that is around me. Is it because of you that I relish being in nature, simply listening to the sounds, spending hours watching the wildlife?

Thank you for being such wise and understanding teachers. You have taught me the meaning of trust and patience and loyalty!

You all gave me something to laugh or smile at! Even in the the lowest moments, you managed to put a smile on my face through your cute and clever antics.

My dogs, you were my best friends, always there for me.

You were always overjoyed to see me, even if I was only away for 5 minutes. It made me feel special and valued.

I am so thankful for the love and companionship of all of you!  I will never forget you.

And so today, all those years later I wish I had more or better photos of you.

Joey, KaRa and Dash - thankfully I do have more photos of you. They are really bad photos! And I’ am in very few of them.  But they always bring me warm memories and longing smiles.

To those of you who stumble on this letter to my dogs, I urge you to at least have one professional dog photo session so that you can document the incredible love that you have for your precious furry friends and the bond that you share! Their lives are all too short.

The photos I have shown are some of the photos of my dogs, before I even dreamed of becoming a professional dog photographer.

If you are in the Toronto or South Florida areas, please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like to discuss a dog and family photography session.

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As part of a blog circle, I collaborate with amazing pet photographers from around the world in weekly posts on set themes.  This week we discussed why we love dogs. Charlotte NC based BARKography by Kim Hollis talks about her very lovable chocolate labrador retriever named Moose

Terri J Photography serves the Greater Toronto area including Richmond Hill, Markham, Etobicoke, Vaughan, Scarborough, Brampton, Thornhill and beyond. Terri specializes in on-location pet photography including  family and couples sessions with your beloved pets.