The Ebony and Ginger Project, No. 2

This last weekend, I went to the Austin Humane Society (AHS) to photograph dogs. While I did my "no rain" dance so I would be able to photograph them outside, I didn't do the "no humidity" dance. They, at least, got to go in after 10 minutes or so - while I was outside for 2 hours straight. However, I think I got some good shots and good stories. For all the dogs available for adoption, see
http://www.austinhumanesociety.org/feature/dog.htm. For further discussion of what The Ebony and Ginger Project is about, see my prior posts.

The first dog I actually want to highlight is also the AHS Featured Dog, "Petey." Of the dogs currently up for adoption, I think he is definitely a really good one to consider, and my assessment is based upon my personal interaction with him. Petey is a fit dog, seems like he has a confident and good disposition, attentive to the people around him, and not overly distracted by everything else. Pretty laid back dog.

However, for someone who is comfortable with a medium-sized dog, I think he would be a good option. He has a little pit bull in him, but that part of him does not seem to dominate his personality. I have known some great dogs with pit bull in them, and Petey seems like the more even-tempered ones ... all were great dogs. However, I sense that Petey would be "defensive" when he needed to be. It should be noted that Petey has heartworms, and would need to be treated in a new home, but you might ask about that - if that is a concern.

Probably one of the other really good dogs there is a pit bull mix named "Starlett" and she seems to have similar personality as Petey. She is a dog who has also been there the longest, since October 2008. While mixes are hard to tell for sure, I would bet she has something like a labrador retriever mix in her. One of the pit bull mixes I knew well looked VERY much like Starlett, and he likely had a mix of labrador (because of the larger size and longer legs). With my friend's dog, Indy, the temperament was largely more playful and friendly, out of his labrador side, except when he had to become the alpha in a situation. Indy had great judgment about the appropriate use of his command.

Starlett strikes me as she might be similar, so you might consider meeting her. If you want to see a neat video of her, there is one online with her description at the AHS website linked above.

As for the next dog, "Moose," he strikes me as having pit bull and possibly Akita, or even chow chow (given the black on his tongue). He is 3 1/2 years old and 65 lbs. While he definitely is an alpha male, for people who are comfortable with larger dogs and a stronger breed, he apparently has a great disposition and the Humane Society staff are vary positive about him. Again, while pit bulls are not for weak owners, Indy and other pit bulls mixes I have know were great dogs, and were great defensive dogs for a household. If you might have an interest in knowing more about him, definitely consider visiting with Moose. He strikes me almost as "Daddy" is on the Dog Whisperer.

One of the other pit bulls I photographed is "Olive," who just got surrendered and is not yet up for adoption, but likely will be soon. "Olive" is apparently dog aggressive, and would likely require an experienced dog owner, but she is apparently very sweet and loving to her people.




There are a number of all black dogs, likely all with some border collie and possibly labrador in them, or possibly shepherd.

The first of these, "Pumpkin" is a sweetie pie, very submissive and likely a dog that would be content to be with her owner, without too many distractions. She has the most striking eyes - very soulful.

"Ember" definitely has the personality of a border collie, and very active even at 10 years old. Ember was constantly assessing her environment and alerting to anyone in the area. For someone who wants a dog that will be protective and watchful, Ember is a good prospect - and likely very sweet to her owners, but protective as well.

The third one was "Hope," whose temperament is somewhere between Ember and Pumpkin, but was pretty observant of her surroundings. Hope is the youngest of the 3, since she is 3 years old.

Probably my favorite dog I saw actually is not yet up for adoption, but I happened to photograph her outside when she was getting walked. She was recently surrendered by her owner ... and is an absolute SWEETIE PIE. Her name is "Peppermint" and she is also in the photo at the top. Definitely be watching for Peppermint, on the adoption picture comes up, or call down to the Humane Society about this wonderful dog. Very sweet, even disposition for someone who wants a companion. While I don't think she would be aggressive at all, she probably would be a snuggler and I think would try to do everything she could to please her owner.

Another dog with an interesting story is also not currently up for adoption, but I hope that over time she might be. Her name is "Mopsy," and she is so scared of being surrendered that she barely eats or responses. The Humane Society is working with her, to see if they can help her become sufficiently outgoing to be put up for adoption. I didn't get her whole story, but I felt sorry for the little sweetie, and wanted to include her story and photo.

The last dog I would definitely highlight is "Princess." Princess ... is a chow mix puppy, and because chows are typically thought in negative light, I wanted to include her. Female chows, particularly mixes, are much less aggressive than full-blooded chow males. Since she is a puppy, she might be easier to integrate with other dogs now who will also be of equal size - 60 lbs or so. She probably should not be put into situations where there would be any small dogs or cats. However, chows can be VERY loving to their owners, and female chow mixes can be great dogs around people generally. Princess is so cute.

Definitely considering checking out these or other dogs in your local shelters.