Retired Guide Dog - Warrington

Today I was delighted to meet Neil and his yellow lab x golden retriever, Leighton.  I was welcomed very warmly by them both into Neil's home in Warrington.  It's just the two of them at home now, and they are totally devoted to each other.

Leighton was initially a little camera shy, and jumped up from his spot every time the shutter was released - bringing me one of his toys and smearing his nose on my camera lens!  However, after about 20 minutes of shooting, Leighton could hardly keep his eyes open and I did come away with quite a few shots of him snoozing :-)

Neil was very generous with his time and stories - one of which was that of Leighton eating £90 in cash belonging to his previous (blind) owner. Ooops!  Not wishing to stereotype, but that's Labradors for you!

Latest (and Last!) Project for BA Photography

So, in about 3 months I should have completed my BA (Hons) in photography!  I have decided to keep this blog going during my final major project, which is producing a series of portraits of retired guide dogs.  I have been photographing dogs as part of my coursework for quite a while now, and wanted to explore an older group of dogs.  What happens to guide dogs when they retire?  Who do they live with and what do they enjoy doing in their retirement?

My first shoot took place at the Guide Dog Training Centre in Atherton, where I met Helen and Lesley, and their respective retired dogs, Nash and Nixon.  It was a cold but bright day, and so I shot both outside in an agility area, and indoors in the training arena which is like a daylight studio, with large ceiling windows -perfect!

8 year old Nash was happy to oblige, and happily ran through the agility course.  13 year old Nixon was a little more choosy, and demanded a rider of teddy bears, bones, and head scratching ! ;-)

Both dogs were clearly devoted to their owners, so thanks to Helen and Lesley for convincing the dogs to co-operate!

Nash

Nixon