 Just a beautiful hike around Matheson Lake with some of my retired sleddie buddies, their humans, and an 8-pound shih-tzu/yorkie on loan from my parents. Shrek and Chichi were partners in crime, actually, they were more like partners in fun, because they had SO MUCH FUN together! These two were hilarious - crashing through the underbrush, running along the paths, rolling in... well, stuff... and dipping down to the water's edge to rehydrate - probably travelling about 10x farther than the rest of us. For those of us who stuck to the path, Sonny Boy kept a good pace up front and Pique stayed in the middle to make sure little Miss Coco was coming along and bringing up the rear. And of course there were a couple stops along the way to take in the beautiful view, have a drink (from an unused poop bag) and some treats before moving on. When we got back to the car, Shrek and Chichi were ready to do it again, until the treat bag came out... and then they realized their priorities! Even the littlest Coco got in there with the big dogs, and then made a new friend with Barb... and I almost made off with a new friend myself, in Shrek... until his parents called him out of my car... ah, well... maybe next time Shrekkie! Thanks gang for having us along! Sleddie roll call: ChiChi, Shrek, Pique + Sonny Sleddie friends: Wee Coco  [PART SEVEN of a series chronicling the re-homing of Whistler sled tour dogs.] I don't know how many parts there will be to this story really. I've been asked many times but my answer is always the same... "until I'm done". There are only three dogs left who need homes, but they are with incredibly caring foster families right now, so we'll see what happens. But in the meantime, I will go with this feeling inside me, the one that is compelling me to continue to photograph these dogs and share their stories of the next chapters in their lives... wherever it may lead. It was March 21, 2012 when I photographed my first retired sled dogs at the Victoria SPCA. Now, more than two years and thousands of photos later I am still at it as they continue to inspire me. And I still get that feeling of calm when I'm around them - no matter if it's one dog or 20... or 43, like when I was up at their kennels in Whistler last September. Just watching them run, interact, or get snuggles is a beautiful thing so I will continue to photograph them as long as they (and their humans) will let me. Which leads me to today. Me and my little Mr C went along with Chichi + Lola, Grey Grey, Question + Daffy and their people for a walk/hike/adventure in East Sooke. As per usual Chichi ran... and ran... and ran... and even had us all searching for her for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably more like five minutes. Turns out she was waiting for us at the car - so thanks Question & Daffy for finding her! There was mud, there were other dogs, there was sunshine and time for a pit stop with some snuggles and treats in the forest. It was a pretty magical afternoon... until me and the Mister had to leave them and they all wandered away with their tails held high to go meet up with some more dog friends. And then the little Mr C, who had spent the walk trundling along at a snail's pace, decided to let loose and show me he can (almost) run as fast as the big dogs! Until next time my furry friends... Sleddie roll call: ChiChi, Grey, Question + Daffy Sleddie friends: Lola + Mr Coco |
Archives
July 2024
Categories
|
RSS Feed