Otis was turned in stray to the animal shelter on October 13, 2019. He was a lot of fun to photograph! He did the cutest back-and-forth head tilting as I made panting noises to attact his attention. (Watch the video!) Just after taking his adoption photos, his owner called the shelter looking for him and he was reunited on October 18, 2019. 

Cider was turned in stray to the animal shelter on October 14, 2019. This happy, young American Bulldog mix was always wagging his tail! He was rescued by Second Chance Habitat on October 19, 2019! His rescue was sponsored by a donation from Becky! 

Price was picked up stray by an animal control officer on October 14, 2019. This handsome blue-nosed American Pitbull Terrier was reunited with his owner on October 17, 2019!

Cobain was a senior Siberian Husky dog surrendered by his owner to the animal shelter on October 14, 2019. Even though he was 11-years-old, this handsome boy had no trouble getting re-homed and was adopted two days after intake! 

Ryder was a cute little Foxhound and Coonhound mixed breed dog that was surrendered to the animal shelter by his owner on October 10, 2019. He had is dog rescue photo session on October 15 and was rescued by Paws Onward, Inc. the following day! His rescue was sponsored by pledges from Eileen, Anne and Jason. 

"Baby" was a quiet and cuddly pitbull mix breed dog that was picked up by an animal control officer on October 7, 2019 and his owner was notified that he was in doggy jail . By October 15, his owner still hadn't come to claim him, so Baby went outside with me for some adoption photos and video. On the last day of his 10-day hold, his owner came to the shelter and bailed him out. 

Calli was a sweet and submissive Dalmatian mix girl surrendered to the animal control shelter on October 3, 2019. Her owner said she had puppies 10 weeks ago, but she still had a whole bunch of milk going on! She got her pet rescue photo session the following day and was put out on the shelter's adoption websites. It only took one day and she was rescued by Washington Wilkes DAWGS Rescue! 

Brownie was picked up by an animal control officer on September 27, 2019. Surely, this sweet little guy wearing a green harness had an owner out there somewhere, right? But even with his pictures posted on several lost-and-found websites, Brownie sat in the shelter for five days without an owner coming forward. So it was time to get some good photos posted and make a push for his rescue. 

It was a bit hard to get bashful Brownie to look at the camera. But eventually a few good shots were captured. But the video showing his tail wagging 100 miles-per-hour is what really sold him. By the end of the day that his video was posted, Brownie left the shelter with a foster from Walton Animal Guild! Anne and Jason sponsored his rescue by pledging donations to the rescue that saved him. 

Poor “Bree” was left chained up outdoors with a broken shelter and dirty water. An animal control officer gave her some food, water and left a notice at the house. When no owner contacted the officer, she was impounded and brought to the shelter. Only after a few days did her owner call and claim someone was supposed to be looking after her while he was out of town.
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Bree proved to be a sweet and affectionate girl. Her happy face and wagging tail showed through on her pet adoption photographs. She was rescued by Puppy Mutts Rescue on October 10, 2019! Monica, Nancy, Lorraine, Eileen, Alice, Becky, Jason and Anne all made donations to the rescue toward her heartworm treatment and care. 

A friend texted a photo and wrote, “What kind of snake is this?” That’s actually a pretty common occurrence for me, and no doubt other snake enthusiasts. But this photo threw me off. It had the keeled scales and body shape of a typical brown snake, but the colors were way off! (See the last two photos) I told him I was on my way.
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Once I had the snake in hand, I have to admit I was a tad disappointed. It wasn’t some rare black-and-white color morph, but a normal looking Dekay’s Brown Snake. I guess the white bucket with dry, gray paint threw off his phone camera’s sensor or something. While this Dekay’s was a pretty snake, and a good size for this species, it wasn’t some rare color morph I was hoping for! 

I came across this DOA Ratsnake while running on Barnett Shoals Road. 

Sometimes we’re helping more than just the dogs…

Working in animal shelters for over twenty years, I sometimes get tired of the lame excuses people have for surrendering their pets. “Moving… allergies… new baby… not trained…” I can become cynical and wonder if anyone can keep a pet for its entire life. But every once in a while, there are dogs surrendered for legitimate, and even saddening reasons.

I received a phone call from an older woman with a California caller ID. There was a bit of sorrow in her voice as she explained her situation. She was in town to help her daughter who was hospitalized and undergoing cancer treatment. Because they were gone from the home, and neither had the strength to and time to care for her, sweet “Coriline” needed a new home. She said they had tried rescues and rehoming on their own but had no luck. Their last option was the animal control shelter.

“Coriline” was brought to the animal control shelter on September 25, 2019. Her story touched my heart and so I put her first on my list for adoption photography. She was a bit scared, being away from home, but did pretty well during her photo session. 

Once I had her up on the internet, I emailed all the rescues in my contact list. Thankfully, within two days, Washington-Wilkes DAWGS Rescue came to save this sweet girl. I haven’t been in touch with Coriline’s owner, but I hope she is doing well. And I hope we helped out, even if just in a small way, by finding a new home for Coriline. 

Every year thousands of puppies are surrendered to shelters nation wide. Please be responsible and get your pets spayed and neutered. Even though they are cute and easy to find homes for when this small, many of these puppies are surrendered to shelters as they get bigger. Do your part and "don't litter"!

"Waddle" was a cute Beagle and Labrador mixed breed dog that was picked up stray by an animal control officer on September 11, 2019. He was rescued eight days later by Second Chance Habitat Rescue! He was sponsored by pledged donations to the rescue from Cindy, Adele, Jason, Becky and Anne.