Photos capture tender moments between dogs and their young families

Photos capture tender moments between dogs and their young families

By Dogs Are Family | January 26, 2014 | Comments (1)

Lindsey Potter loves taking photographs and specializes in taking pictures of families. Many of her beautiful photographs feature dogs with the newest members of their families.

The South Florida photographer includes dogs because her clients want their dogs involved. "Most of my clients love their dogs immensely and consider them to be part of the family," Lindsey told DogHeirs. "I strive to capture the love that everyone feels for each other." She adds, "What is more loving than the family dog?"

That love shines through in the images captured by the mother and former elementary school teacher. Maybe it's in part because Lindsey really loves dogs herself. Lindsey shared a few of her photographs with DogHeirs and tells the story of how her family rescued their two dogs. One of her dogs  - Jensen - is quite famous for her antics around town.

"My husband and I had the most amazing Yellow Lab in the world, Georgia. She was the kind of dog that you would never forget. In fact, from the day we adopted her, she and my husband were inseparable. She even went to work with him every day. Once she died from old age, we were devastated."

"After a while, we decided that we would like to adopt another dog. We had discussed the option of getting another Lab or possibly a Mastiff. My husband went to a local shelter and found a dog who happened to be listed as a Mastiff/Lab mix. She had been hit by a car and nursed back to health by the shelter. We thought it must be fate and adopted Jensen that week."

"We soon learned that Jensen had the energy of approximately 20 Jack Russel Terriers on RedBull, and she was easily the most intelligent dog that we'd ever encountered. She began exhibiting several quirky/naughty behaviors (running away, taking naps on the dining room table, chewing everything in sight). It's not everyday that you find a 90 pound dog who jumps into your kitchen sink to pee!"

"Although we gave Jensen plenty of exercise, we thought that she might be a bit more well behaved if she had a friend. We really missed having a Yellow Lab, and found one at another shelter who had been surrendered because he had heartworms. We adopted him, named him Sawyer (we were big fans of the show LOST at the time), and brought him home and began treatment for his heartworms. Luckily, he had no permanent heart damage, and has been a healthy dog ever since. We describe Sawyer as the "textbook Lab." If you feed him, rub his belly, and tell him that he is a good boy, he thinks that he's had the best day of his life!"

"Jensen isn't quite as easy to figure out. She is a bit of an escape artist. She is usually inside, but can get out of our backyard easily. We have a 6 foot fence which she has jumped over, eaten through, or dug under. We boarded her at a kennel once and she ate a 3 foot hole through a chain-link fence and escaped (luckily she was fine). We tried to crate her when we left the house, but she learned how to pop the locks and could figure a way out of the crate within 30 seconds. In fact, she is so skilled at escaping, that Animal Control keeps her description on file."

"Among Jensen's favorite hobbies are taking naps on our dining room table, walking around on our kitchen countertops, opening doors and drawers, eating things she's not supposed to, running away, hanging out on top of our BBQ grill (better vantage point to find lizards to catch), sliding down the slide on our children's play-set, pushing pillows off of the beds (once they're made), and jumping onto anything high."

"After reading countless dog behavior and training books, we looked for guidance from several different vets, specialists and trainers. We finally found help with a Veterinary Behaviorist. She confirmed that Jensen was an unusually intelligent dog who had containment issues and needed an incredible amount of mental stimulation."

"We now have a special routine for Jensen which includes a rotation of dog toys, unique puzzles for her to find her breakfast and dinner, permission to nap on our dining room table and countertops, and frequent visits to a Doggy Day Care facility. This has helped her quite a bit and her attempts to run away have been reduced dramatically."

Jensen with Lindsey's daughter

"We've had Jensen for almost 4 years now and every day has been an interesting adventure. The one thing which remains constant is our love for her, and her love for our family. It hasn't been easy, but when I see her cuddling with our children on their beds each night, I know that it has been worth it."

Potter family portrait by Canadian photographer Erik Hornung

Visit Lindsey's website to see more of her beautiful photos.