Dog of the Month - Kenai

Dog of the Month

Aug 21

I recently photographed Kenai at Varsity Lake in Boulder, Colorado. His mom contacted me as she wanted him photographed before he passed away so she would have some professional photos to remember him by. He was experiencing some medical issues and did not have a good prognosis. When she contacted me he was still feeling well and in good spirits.

He was such a gentle boy, observing the world around him and enjoying all the smells as the wind kicked up. We got a lot of great photos of him by himself and with his people.

Here is what Kenai’s mom had to say about him:

“It's hard to put into words what he meant to us.

We adopted Kenai back in July 2008, six months after we lost our precious 17 year old Beagle mix named Scamper. When we decided that we were ready for another dog, we looked into rescuing another Beagle mix in the hopes that he would be similar to Scamper. When we first met Kenai, it was love at first sight.

After driving down and bringing him home from the Valley Humane League down in Alamosa, we quickly learned that he was the complete opposite of Scamper. Kenai proved to be a wild, crazy man with many quirks. He ended up being exactly what we needed. From the beginning, Kenai made us laugh and brought so much joy.

He loved sitting out on the porch watching people pass by. As the self-appointed guardian of our house, he dutifully barked at every single person or dog that walked by. He also loved food and treats of all kinds. His favorite pastime was just sitting in the company of his family. He loved his people, and we loved him.

Kenai dealt with a few health problems during his life, including fighting anemia which was discovered after he had a seizure, and most notably, he tore his CCL (the dog version of the ACL). He made us incredibly proud during his months of physical therapy and rehab where he strengthened his legs and relearned to walk, conquering his fear of the water treadmill (and vet visits in general).

We thought he would live forever. Unfortunately, in December, he was diagnosed with a rare type of splenic cancer, and as hard as he fought (with us fighting alongside him), we had to say goodbye to him just before Valentine's Day. He was just three months shy of his 16th birthday.

He was my best friend. He brought so much joy and laughter, companionship, a feeling of security (he was always on guard and on alert), and unconditional love. He will be forever loved and forever missed. Happy trails to you, my dear Kenai, until we meet again.”