Painting the older dog.

Dogs age pretty much the same way that we do.  Their chins sag and their teeth become stained.  Their waists thicken and the gums maybe aren’t so attractive anymore. 

What becomes difficult when I am asked to paint an elderly dog is that the owners still see the young dog in the old dog.  This was a challenging  job because Jeb was sixteen when I met him.  My task wa to paint Jeb but try to recapture some of his youth.  I hope I succeeded.

If you are thinking about having a portrait done of your dog, don’t wait too long.

Woodsley and Jeeves.

I’m not usually a Spaniel fan but these two dogs were something else.

Acrylic glaze on panel.  24″ X 20″  Private commission.

Dogs, Water and Scent.

This is interesting.  My training partner is a police officer.  She has a patrol dog (GSD) and a search and rescue dog (Rotti).  She was called to do a search a month or so ago at a lake in New Hamshire.  The search was IN the lake.  Yes, the idea that the escaped convict can avoid the bloodhounds by running up the stream bed is a myth.  Dogs can detect scent in water.  The gases and cells that are released by the cadavre migrate to the surface and can be detected by dogs.

Dugan is trained to air scent in the boat and direct the boat by moving his body.  He alerts in the same way he would on land.  He found a body in 160 feet of water.  They sent cameras down to confirm.  How cool is that?