Dog Photography Blog

Meet the Sessions: Digital Dog Session

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Welcome to the meet and greet series of the sessions at About A Dog Photography!

You’ll get to meet each of the sessions – Digital Dog, Short & Sweet, Teenie Weenie, Shitty Weather and Puppy Series – and learn what makes each session unique. 

The first in the series is the Digital Dog Session!

What is the Digital Dog Session?

Featuring the longest amount of photography time (up to an hour and half) the Digital Dog Session is a causal paced, fun and long enough for ample portraits of your dog (or multiple dogs) plus family portraits without feeling like we are chaotically trying to squash them into the session. 

The session goes like this: 

  • We meet at the picked location (you get to pick where we go! Can’t choose? We can sort it out together!)
  • I meet your dog / dogs, giving him or her the appropriate amount of time and space to take me in. 
  • Then we stroll! It may seem like I’m distracted as we walk – I’m actually scanning for the best places to ask your dog to “pose” in. 
  • We pause, ask for a sit, a lay, a stand in place and look at the lady making mega goofy sounds. 
  • Lots of treats, then we meander to the next spot – a clutch of grass, a wondering fence, a pathway of brick, piles of leaves, peeling paint on old barns, or any other point of color, light, texture that catches my eye and will make for EPIC portraits. 
  • This process repeats for the duration of the session. Low key, fun and chill as we stroll. 
  • Around the hour mark your dog might want to snuggle in for the evening – totally ok and normal! If your dog is showing that he or she is done with all the “posing”, walking, sniffing and action shots, then we will end your session and head back to the car. 
  • We depart ways – me to start curating your gallery, you and your dog to head home and snooze the evening away. 

In regards to “posing” –  it will always be an ask. Do you think your dog will sit/stand here? Put their feet up? Lay on the lumpy bumpy ground? If the answer is yes or probably then we will direct your dog to what we would like them to do. If it results in a stand vs or a lay vs stand, no worries we will work with it! We will ask once or twice and if we get a nope from your dog, we’ll adapt and carry on.

The aim is FUN! If the ask doesn’t mean fun for your dog, we won’t push them. 

What kind of images will be captured during your session?

Headshots

– Shoulders and up of your dog’s head (classic like any portrait you have had done in your school days).

Full body portraits

– Portraits with your dog’s full body, in a sit, lay or stand. 

Action shots

– Your dog walking with you away and towards me, your dog running away and towards me (if you can hit me with a ball you get bonus points haha!), swimming, shaking off, carrying a stick – all ways your dog is in motion!

Details

– Whiskers, toes, noses, eyes, ears, tails, butt swirls, all the details that make your dog who they are!

Your bond

– From family portraits to your hand on their head, your hand and their paws, your dog at your feet and any other ways we can capture the bond you share with your dog. 

What makes this a DIGITAL dog session? My dog isn’t a robot or techy dog!

The session is called Digital Dog due to the fact that the session INCLUDES digital images! In fact there are 5 digital images included in the Digital Dog Session! (Plus… you get a percentage off of any a la cart pieces of artwork you want to create – from acrylic blocks to canvases to prints on epic paper and more!)

The digital images included in your session are GINORMOUS! They can be used in any way you see fit, aside from selling them or saying you created it. Want your dog as a screensaver? Holiday cards? A blanket? Socks? Go for it! 

Some other things you might be wondering:

Do we have to stick to one location?

Not at all! We can incorporate two locations into Digital Dog Session, though keep in mind the farther apart they are the shorter time we will have to stroll as drive time will eat up session time. 

Can we do the session in our backyard?

We sure can! If we do, please pick up poo and assorted random dismembered toys around your yard. Fences will become part of the backdrop as well (which means if you don’t love your chain link you may want to consider a different location than your yard). Your own yard is a great place for a session with older dogs who are less mobile or really young puppies. 

Why can’t we do pictures in the middle of the day?

We could…. if you want hard dark shadows, overly bright whites, crispy contrast and possible squinting dogs (people for sure squint in middle of the day light!). Backgrounds can be overly bright, and shade can be dappled, just not the ideal for stunning portraits of your dog. 

 

Instead if you want the dreamiest, warm, happy light then the timeframe of two hours before sunset is when the light will be the best. (It’s called golden hour due to this lovely golden light!). I favor evening golden hour as the light wanes into sunset vs the golden hour of the morning due to the color of the light and geez that sunrise can be EARLY!!!

Though…. depending on what we want to achieve we may have to consider different times of the day.

Looking to head to the lake, get a still stunning reflection and some lifting fog? Then we are going to need to be at the lake at sunrise (lakes in MN are typically calmest in the morning). The same rule applies for frost, dew and morning fog. If we want to experience it, we will need to arrive at sunrise. For sunrise golden hour will have 2 hours after the sun rises for the best light.

Wanting to do epic hiking through the woods and forests for your session? We will need to bump our time earlier in the evening especially the deeper we go inward. Trees tend to block a fair amount of light the deeper we go into the depths. 

And if you have the power to… order us up a cloudy day that breaks at sunset into puffy clouds that a bathed in stunning colors… shucks I can’t order that up either!

Does my dog need to be leashed? 

Yes! If we are somewhere other than your yard and your house, your dog will need to be leashed during the session. Leashes will always be edited out of your final images so your dog will look like an off leash superstar!

When is the best time to do a Digital Dog Session?

Today! Tomorrow!!! Anytime! The current time is always a great time to do a Digital Dog Session. If you want to wait, you have multiple seasons to consider. 

  • Winter: crisp white snow, powdery snow for faces and kicking up with action. Can be cold for some dogs. 
  • Later winter / early spring: browns, possibly snow, mud. Brown landscapes have loads of texture or we head to urban areas.
  • Spring: mud to spring greens, comfortable temps that aren’t too hot (great for smoosh faced dogs). 
  • Summer: greens, flowers, great temps though can be hot. Beaches & lakes are warm & inviting. Don’t forget bugs!
  • Fall: cooler temps & fall leaf colors (until early/mid October)
  • Late fall/early winter pre snow: brown landscape full of textures, cool temps, earlier golden hour

I can create stunning images of your dog no matter the season and amount of mud and browns that may be available. 

How do I book a Digital Dog Session?

Head to the online booking to see the available dates from April to November! Book your session online! This is the fastest way to book!

Texting or calling is the second fastest way to book a session – 320.428.0135 – while emailing () can be slower for response times. Skip sending pigeons – Blue will either chase or eat them… 

Let’s capture your dog with playful, vibrant and classic images in a Digital Dog Session!

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Dog Friendly Pizza for National Pizza Day!

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February 9th is National Pizza Day! What better way to celebrate than with a pizza pie as big as the SKY! 

Though, pizza isn’t the best food for dogs to have (a snack of a bit of crust here and there is ok!) so we need to create a dog friendly pizza!

The ingredients for the crust:

  • Oat flour
  • Yeast
  • Eggs
  • Baking powder
  • Olive Oil

ALL of which are ok for dogs to eat! BUT… DO NOT feed you dog any of the raw, uncooked dough! The raw yeast creates carbon dioxide when it rises – which is not good in a dog’s tummy! 

Now for toppings:

  • Pizza sauce – no, but tomatoes yes (see below)
  • Onions – TOXIC to dogs 
  • Pepperoni – too much sodium, AVOID! 
  • Sausage – the unseasoned kind a little in moderation, can be quite salty otherwise!
  • Olives – yes, good for dogs!
  • Mushrooms – yes, dogs can eat, store bought only!
  • Bacon – skip, too salty and too fatty!
  • Canadian Bacon – skip, too salty!
  • Ham – also skip as it is too salty
  • Green Pepper – good for dogs!
  • Cheese – yes! 

Skip the pizza sauce as most contain added sugars, salt, and different spices. Instead you can use ripe tomatoes, tomato puree or crushed tomatoes as long as they don’t contain any additional spices. Avoid tomato sauce as it typically contains onion powder and garlic powder – both are BAD for dogs!

If you give your dog ripe tomatoes as a treat, avoid giving any of the leaves, stem and an unripe or green tomatoes as these are toxic to dogs! (Tomatoes are in the nightshade family as are eggplant, potatoes and peppers!). 

While processed meats typically found on pizza are out, unseasoned cooked meats like chicken, turkey, beef and steak are totally ok! You can also add tuna, salmon, shrimp or crab! Ample options for a robust pup friendly pizza! Make a simple cheese or cheese + meat pizza or go for a fully loaded dog friendly supreme pizza! 

Onward to the recipe!

Dog Friendly Pizza

Celebrate National Pizza Day (February 9th) with a pizza for your dog!

For the crust:

  • 2-3 cups oat flour
  • 2 tbsp warm water
  • 1 pkg instant yeast
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1-2 tbsp olive oil

For the sauce:

  • unseasoned tomato puree or crushed tomatoes

For the toppings, add as many as you desire!

  • cheese – cheddar or mozzarella
  • meat – chicken, turkey, beef, steak, pork
  • seafood – shrimp, crab, fish, salmon
  • veggies – green peppers, olives, mushrooms

Making the pizza crust:

  1. Add flour to bowl.

  2. Activate the yeast per the packet instructions.

  3. Once activated add the yeast to the flour.

  4. Add eggs, baking powder and salt.

  5. Use spatula to combine, knead for 2 minutes or until dough is formed. The ideal consistency of the dough should be soft and slightly tacky.

  6. ** Add more water if needed (oat flour does tend to soak up moisture).

  7. ** Add more flour if needed, dough should be soft and slightly tacky.

  8. Cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest for 20-30 minutes.

  9. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

  10. Dust rolling surface with oat flour. Divide dough in half and roll out dough to desired shape and size.

  11. Transfer to pan for cooking. You can use a pan, pizza stone or cast iron pan.

  12. Brush with olive oil, let rest again before adding toppings.

  13. ** If you'd like, you can blink bake the crust without toppings for 5 minutes.

Add the toppings:

  1. The ideal is to NOT overload the crust otherwise it will become soggy!

  2. Smear on some sauce (this will be dependent on the size of your pizza – more for a larger pie, less for a smaller pie). Add the toppings of your dog's liking.

  3. Put into the oven and cook for 10 minutes, or until the cheese begins to brown and get crispy.

  4. ** Cooking time might be longer depending on the size and depth of your pizza. Start at 10 minutes and check. The ideal is melty cheese that is browning.

Let cool to room temp, cut into slices or squares and give to your dog!

We opted for a cast iron pan for cooking to make a delightful single serve pizza for Blue.

Rub the cast iron skillet with olive oil being sure to coat the sides and bottom. Press the dough to cover the bottom of the skillets. Bake until cheese is melted and is golden brown (we landed at 20 minutes). 

Main Course
Dog
dog friendly pizza, dog pizza, pizza for dogs

I totally forgot to put olive oil on the crust before the ingredients, whoops!

The crust didn’t really brown and had a dense, cracker like consistency. Not sure if it was a boo boo on my end with the yeast or if that’s what an oat flour is going to produce. 

The dough def needed more water – the 2 tablespoons didn’t go very far, nor did the 2 eggs for moisture. I think I added roughly 3/4 cup of water (using a dry measuring cup… bwhahahaha!) to get the dough to the proper consistency as noted in the recipe. 

I made a 2nd pizza that was for me. It required more time (25 minutes for cheese starting to brown). It didn’t rest as long as Blue’s pizza and when I un-panned it the crust was rather soggy and smelt a little like a wet dog treat. I ate the cheesy toppings and tossed the crust. (This was also a heavier loaded pizza than the one for Blue which could have also made a difference.)

I’ll stick to regular flour for my crust haha!

Blue was quite excited to eat a piece of pizza all of his own!

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Dogs can’t see red! Plus 5 facts about red you didn’t know!

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Did you know that dogs can’t see red? It’s true!

Dogs are dichromatic, meaning they only have two kinds of cones in their eyes (humans are trichromatic which means 3 kinds of cones!).  The red cone is missing from dogs’ eyes which means they can’t see the color red, but instead they see grays or dark browns. 

The red cone is missing meaning that dogs can’t see red, nor tell it apart from green. Instead they can see in blue and yellow tones as well as muddy browns, blacks and greys. Though, in their red color trade off dogs gained a broader peripheral vision and ability to see better in the dark than humans. 

Crazy that dogs can’t see red! 

Here are 5 facts about red you didn’t know!

  • Due to its long wavelength, red is one of the most visible colors (second only to yellow) in the color spectrum!
  • Red was the first color humans fabricated, reproduced and turned into different shades! 
  • The Middle Ages held red in religious significance – the blood of Christ & the fires of hell. 
  • Red amplifies feelings of attraction, passion, romance and can increase heart rate. 
  • In comparison with other colors, red provokes the most potent emotions – from power and dominance to anger to excitement, passion and love. 

 

And speaking of love, we are a week from Valentines Day! Ah Valentine’s Day! The holiday celebrating all things love, desire and passion.

The holiday harks from ancient pagan lineage – either as the festival Februalis or Lupercalia – and was a day of sacrifice, passion and drawing partners for the year to come (hoping they would result in marriage). Evolution was pushed by the Church in the early days (though not fully adapted), then as trends and civilization evolved further change arrived for Valentine’s Day. Letters sent to loved ones were one of the first traditions, evolving into Valentine’s cards of ornateness (and de-evolving into mass produced hand out to classmates cards.)

The second tradition was giving a gift to a person you loved and adored, along with the Valentine’s card. Now there are bunches of flowers, stuffed animals of ginormous proportions, prepackaged cards and candies of every heart shaped variety! All in various shades of … RED!

We had a friend stop by – Wendell! He’s Blue’s friend, smaller, floofy and very sweet! He was eager to pose as long as there were snacks (though sitting next to things was weird haha!).

Isn’t he MEGA cute???? Thanks Wendell for helping out with the red backdrop!

And… did you know these epic backdrop images are set up… in my garage? Heck yes! The little heater gets turned on, the trio of lights setup and the backdrop gaff taped to the floor and viola! 

Below are more images featuring the red backdrop! Check out those EPIC Blue catching treats images!

So even though this red backdrop is rather bold to us, dogs like Blue and Wendell, aren’t able to see the vibrant red like we do! 

Dogs can’t see red! Plus 5 facts about red you didn’t know! Read More »

What are toe beans? How do they relate to paw shape of different breeds?

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Toe beans, originally coined for those jelly bean shaped toe pads of cats, are also seen on dogs, though within a greater variety of size. From tiny Chihuahua toes to monster St. Bernard paws with equally as large toes pads, those are the toe beans in the dog world!  The real name for toe beans is digital pads. No not digital as in computer & technology, but in reference to each digit of a dog’s toe. 

Toe beans typically come in sets of 4 per paw! Toe beans don’t directly relate to paw shape, though they are a part of it! Before we talk about paw shape, let’s start with this: 

If you were to compare a human hand and a dog’s front foot you’d find loads of similarities in the bones and structure. (Where the image below was found).

WHOAH! Wrist bones, assorted finger bones and… thumbs! See that funky little “thumb” bone on the dog’s foot? That’s a dew claw! Thoughts are dew claws are the remnants of prehistoric evolutionary thumbs! Quite nifty!

Even though our hand structures and dog paw structures are similar, we differ in how we walk upon the ground. Humans are plantigrades, meaning we walk with our toes and metatarsals flat on the ground. We share this trait with some primates, bears, skunks, raccoons, weasels, badgers, otters, red pandas, mice, rats, porcupines, rabbits, hedgehogs, hyraxes, kangaroos, opossums, loons & grebes. (Most early primitive mammals were plantigrade, digitigrade and unguligrade modes of movement evolved later.)

Dog walk on their fingertips and toes, which means they are digitigrades! Joined with them as digitgrades are birds, cats, big cats, hyenas, mongoose, wild dogs, coyotes, wolves, and foxes. (There are semi-digitgrades too! Pigs, peccaries, hippopotamus, elephants and capybara are all semi-digitgrade!)

Additionally, dog feet come in 3 main shapes – hare feet, cat feet and webbed feet. 

Hare foot paws have extended 2nd and 3rd digits making the foot longer (similar shape to the feet of a rabbit or hare). Typically thought to be an advantage in running and speed, it also may be an indicator of a similar ancestor of the past, as Chesapeake Bay Retrievers and Bedlington Terriers aren’t heavily noted for their speed and have hare feet noted in their AKC standards!

Cat foot paws are neat round paws with the toe beans nestled snugly together. This gives the toes a high arch and stance similar to the paws of a cat. The shape lends to greater endurance over speed, or so its thought. (Toy dogs don’t strike me as the endurance type… though with short legs they may have needed paws that could match their master’s stride…). To note – there are more breeds with cat foot paws than hare foot paws!

Webbed feet are found in all dogs (webbing refers to the membranes between the toes) though some dogs have much more pronounced webbing, as noted by their AKC standards. Webbed feet lend towards stronger swimming skills as well as digging skills! Note: all dog have webbed feet – some just more than others!

Those three aside, AKC standards also note: neither cat nor hare foot (or halfway between), round or rounded and oval or slightly oval shapes. Round paws are found in 56 different breeds while oval shaped paws are found in 29 different breeds. There are a few breeds with no noted shape of paws (mostly mentioning toes & their arch) and some breeds with some really funky paws. 

Literally cat feet… this is what a cat foot paw on a dog resembles!

Snowshoe hare feet… this is what a hair foot paw shape should look like. 

Before we gander at all the breeds, I have a theory.

Perhaps the natural foot shape, as gained from ancient ancestor dogs and wolves is… a round or slightly oval foot shape. Modern wolves leave prints that are nearly equal as wide as they are long, lending to a round or slightly oval shape. Looking into the ancestry of dogs, the  proto-dog / ancestor wolf prints alongside the child’s footprint in the Chauvet Cave in France are rounded as are the ancient paw prints in the Grotta della Bàsura cave system in Italy. 

African wild dogs, maned wolves, coyotes, foxes, jackals, and hyenas all have rounded or slightly oval feet as well. The Azawakh breed is exceptionally fast and has rounded feet… 

Perhaps in some lineage there was a genetic funk that lent towards long middle toes (this article from 1857 talks about different common greyhound types). Really fast dogs were bred with other fast dogs to create further fast dogs, not always aligned to the greyhound breed in itself. (Remember, many modern breeds were refined to the types and standards in the late 1880s when dog shows became vogue.)

Merely a wild theory. I digress… onward to what you want to know – what breeds have what type of paws?

Breeds with hare foot paws as noted in their AKC breed standard:

    • Tibetan spaniel
    • Chinese crested
    • Italian greyhound
    • Japanese Chin
    • Papillon
    • Borzoi
    • Greyhound
    • Ibizan hound
    • Sloughi (can also be elongated oval)
    • Whippet (more hare than cat, both acceptable)
    • Bedlington terrier
    • Skye Terrier
    • Samoyed

Breeds with cat foot paws (round with arched toes):

    • Bichon
    • Chow
    • Keeshond
    • Lhasa
    • Shiba inu
    • Miniature Pinscher
    • Pomeranian
    • Silky terrier
    • Belgian malinois
    • Belgian sheepdog
    • Belgian tervuren
    • Canaan dog
    • American English Coonhound
    • Bluetick coonhound
    • English Foxhound
    • Harrier
    • Redbone Coonhound
    • Treeing Walker Coonhound
    • Australian terrier
    • Bull terrier
    • Miniature Bull Terrier
    • Miniature Schnauzer
    • Parson Russell Terrier
    • Welsh Terrier
    • Gordon Setter
    • English Cocker spaniel
    • Vizsla
    • Wirehaired Vizsla
    • Akita
    • Cane Corso
    • Doberman pinscher
    • Dogo Argentino
    • German Pinscher
    • Kuvasz
    • Leonberger
    • Standard Schnauzer
    • Tibetan Mastiff

Breeds with webbed feet (with variable foot shapes noted):

    • Newfoundland (cat feet)
    • Xoloitzcuintli (hare feet)
    • Otterhound
    • Lagotto Romagnolo (slightly rounded)
    • German Wirehair Pointer (round)
    • Chesapeake Bay Retriever (hare feet)
    • Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever (slightly oval)
    • American Water Spaniel
    • Boykin spaniel (round)
    • Field Spaniel (round)
    • Weimaraner
    • Wirehair pointing griffon (round)
    • Chinook (oval)
    • Portuguese water dog (round)

Neither cat or hare foot or halfway between:

    • Pug
    • Chihuahua
    • Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen
    • Pharaoh Hound
    • Brittany

Breeds with round & rounded feet:

    • Boston Terrier
    • Coton de Tuler
    • Dalmatian
    • Finnish spitz
    • Schipperke
    • Affenpinscher
    • Biewer terrier
    • Brussels griffon
    • Maltese
    • Yorkshire terrier
    • Australian cattle dog
    • Beauceron
    • Bouvier des flandres
    • Briard
    • Cardigan welsh corgi
    • Entlebucher Mountain Dog
    • Old English Sheepdog
    • Puli
    • Spanish water dog
    • Azawakh
    • Basset hound
    • Beagle
    • Irish wolfhound
    • Rhodesian Ridgeback
    • Airedale terrier
    • Dandie Dinmont Terrier
    • Smooth fox terrier
    • Wire fox terrier
    • Glen of Imal Terrier
    • Irish Terrier
    • Kerry Blue Terrier
    • Lakeland Terrier
    • Norfolk Terrier
    • Norwich Terrier
    • Scottish Terrier
    • Sealyham Terrier
    • Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
    • West Highland White Terrier
    • German Shorthair Pointer
    • Curly Coated Retriever
    • Golden Retriever
    • Cocker spaniel
    • English Springer Spaniel
    • Sussex spaniel
    • Welsh Springer Spaniel
    • Spinone Italianio
    • Bernese Mountain Dog
    • Black Russian Terrier
    • Boerboel
    • Bullmastiff
    • Great Dane
    • Great Pyrenees
    • Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
    • Mastiff
    • Neapolitan Mastiff
    • Rottweiler

Breeds with oval or slightly oval:

    • American Eskimo
    • Poodle
    • Russian toy
    • Toy fox terrier
    • Australian shepherd
    • Bearded collie
    • Bergamasco
    • Border collie
    • Collie
    • Finnish lapphund
    • Icelandic sheepdog
    • Norwegian buhund
    • Pembroke welsh corgi
    • Polish lowland sheepdog
    • Pyrenean shepherd
    • Shetland sheepdog
    • Swedish Vallhund
    • Basenji
    • Cirneco Dell-Etna
    • Norwegian Elkhound
    • Portuguese Podengo Pequeno
    • American Hairless terrier
    • Rat Terrier
    • Russell Terrier
    • Nederlandse Kooikerhonji
    • Pointer
    • Flat Coated Retriever (oval or round)
    • Anatolian Shepherd dog
    • Siberian Husky

Breeds with no notable foot shapes:

    • Bulldog
    • Shar-pei
    • French bulldog
    • Lowchen (middle toes slightly in advance of outer toes)
    • Havanese
    • Manchester terrier (middle toes slightly longer than others)
    • Pekinese
    • Shih tzu
    • German shepherd dog
    • Afghan hound
    • Black and tan coonhound
    • Bloodhound
    • Plott
    • Saluki (not cat-footed)
    • Scottish deerhound
    • American Staffordshire Terrier
    • Border Terrier
    • Cairn Terrier
    • Cesky terrier
    • Manchester Terrier
    • Staffordshire Bull Terrier
    • Labrador Retriever
    • English Setter
    • Irish setter
    • Irish Red & White Setter
    • Clumber spaniel
    • Irish Water Spaniel
    • Boxer
    • Dogue de Bordeaux
    • Giant Schnauzer
    • Komondor
    • Saint Bernard

Really unique feet:

    • English toy spaniel (fused toes often seen and acceptable)
    • American Foxhound (feet foxlike)
    • Dachshund (five toes, four in use!)
    • Alaskan malamute (snowshoe type)
    • Tibetan terrier (snowshoe type)

The most unique feet go to….Norwegian lundehund!  The feet are oval with at least six fully developed toes, five of which should reach the ground. Eight pads on each foot. The additional toes consist of one three jointed toe, like a thumb, and one two-jointed toe along with corresponding tendons and muscles that give the foot a strong appearance! This unique foot design has a practical use – Norwegian lundehunds were used for hunting puffins and needed to be nimble as they crawled & climbed over rocky outcroppings and cliffs where puffins live. 

WHEW! All those feet on all those different dogs! 

How about Blue’s big mitts to wrap things up? In measuring he has feet that are roughly 3.5 inches long and 3.5 inches wide – WOLF sized feet! (Wolves typically have feet that are 3 to 4 inches wide and 3-4 inches long though some can have larger). He has dainty white socks, two black toenails (one on a white paw!) and one mostly brown toe. 

With his feet measuring roughly the same size width and length wise puts him in the appropriate round / rounded foot category!

Such a transition into feet from adorable toe beans (which on Blue are the BIGGEST beans I’ve seen!) into how dog’s feet are like our hands, how dogs are digitigrade and walk on their toes to the different types of paw shapes for different breeds! 

What shape of paws does your dog have? 

(Images aside from Blue’s big paws were found in various places via Google searches. They are used merely for example purposes. )

What are toe beans? How do they relate to paw shape of different breeds? Read More »

Today is Squirrel Appreciation Day! Here’s 12 facts to help you appreciate them!

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Indeed, today is Squirrel Appreciation Day and who appreciates squirrels more than… dogs! 

Those fluffy tailed birdseed bandits provide for hours of watching as well as exciting things to chase as they scurry about the yard. And like you, Blue and I both didn’t know there was a Squirrel Appreciation Day! This day of appreciation began in 2001 by a wildlife rehabiltator in Asheville, North Carolina named Christy Hargrove. She wanted to to encourage people to enjoy the company of squirrels and understand how they fit within our ecosystems.  23 years later and its the first time I’ve heard about it!

Let’s do some squirrel appreciation!

  • There are more than 200 species across the world! (Though Australia seems to be the exception!)
  • Sizes range from 5 inches from nose to tail (African pygmy squirrel) to squirrels that are 3 FEET LONG (Indian giant squirrels)
  • Squirrels, like their rodent cousins, have front teeth that never stop growing – which means they never wear down from constant gnawing!
  • Two main species are tree squirrels and ground squirrel with the third being flying squirrels
  • In Minnesota you can find:
    • Flying squirrels
    • Fox squirrels – the biggest squirrel in Minnesota!
    • Grey squirrels
    • Red squirrels 
    • Thirteen lined ground squirrel (aka Minnesota gopher)
  • Groups of squirrels are called a “scurry” or a “dray” (groups only happen when they snuggle together in the winter, otherwise squirrels are solitary!)
  • Tree squirrels belong to the genus Sciurus, which comes from the Greek words “skia” (shadow” and “oura” (tail).
  • Squirrels belong to the Sciuridae family which also includes chipmunks, prairie dogs, marmots and woodchucks!
  • No vomiting, burping or experience heartburn because squirrels can’t!
  • Black squirrels are not their own species but… grey squirrels or fox squirrels!  The black coloration comes from melanism – the development of dark pigment. 
  • White squirrels can be albino, though they frequently don’t have pink or red eyes owes their coloration to leucism. 
  • Squirrels lose approx 25% of their buried food which frequently results in assorted planted plants & trees in assorted locations!

Wow! Loads of cool facts to help us appreciate those birdseed scavenging fluffy tailed squirrels on this day of appreciation!

Blue is posing with this month’s BarkBox toys: blue squirrel “Scamper” and yellow squirrel “Nutso” (it seems BarkBox was on top of Squirrel Appreciation Day!). He thanks his grandma for these nifty boxes that come every month full of new toys (because he needs more…) and tasty treats.

Also… Blue isn’t the greatest catcher… he closes his eyes and treats or toys hit him right in the face! This happens rather frequently haha!

Today is Squirrel Appreciation Day! Here’s 12 facts to help you appreciate them! Read More »

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