Byrne. Celebration of Life. Toledo Pet Photographer.

We all know that life is painfully short. It seems even shorter when it comes to our furry loved ones. When you nurture and care for another being, when you grow up with them, you hope to keep them forever. But you can’t. Loss might be the deepest heartbreak we have to endure as human beings.

How do we cope with loss? We grieve. We remember. We reminisce. We celebrate what was. We cherish what we had. And then we honor their memory by moving forward and living each moment to the fullest. Documenting life is so important to me as a photographer because you get to hold those photos in your hands even after a loved one has passed. You get to relive the happy moments and dwell on the smiles that filled a life.

Dog’s might not smile… not in the sense that humans do. But they exude so much love and joy that they deserve to be documented to. They impact our lives by giving us so many wonderful experiences. Some of those moments teach us hard lessons and others bring out big belly laughs. Any life that impacts ours so deeply deserves to be celebrated and photographed.

Phew. That got really deep, really fast. Forgive the heaviness in this post. I felt the need to share my heart. This precious family belongs to my dear friend, Lydia. Lydia is also a photographer and about a year ago, we began working together regularly. I had met Lydia’s dog, Byrne, a few times when visiting her home. He was a wonderful boy. He always wanted attention but was happy to sit under the table and keep your feet warm. Byrne’s family discovered he had cancer after the holidays. Due to his age and the extent of the spread, Byrne was not a candidate for treatment. Lydia and her husband, Neal, spoiled Byrne as long as they could and Byrne told them when he was ready to go.

The purpose of sharing these photos is not to spread sadness. I am sharing Byrne to honor his legacy and his beautiful life. Byrne had a wonderful family and he brought so much joy to their lives. It was truly an honor to get to photograph him and his family before he passed. Find out more about Byrne and his life in my interview with Lydia below.

Where did you get him? Our friend, Tim, was driving down Byrne Road one day, in 2009, and saw a girl kicking a dog in the head so severely that he and 3 other cars pulled over and confronted her. She said “he wasn’t walking on the leash right.” Which at about 10 weeks old (according to the vet’s estimate) is hard to do. They called the cops, but the girl ran away before they arrived. Once the cops were on scene, they explained that one of the people that pulled over could take the dog or they would take him to the pound for adoption. Knowing that my husband and I were looking for a puppy, our friend Tim asked us if we were interested and brought him over.
I was surprised when I came home late from my serving job at the time, but was tired and apprehensive at first. But fell in love with him the next day. He was small enough to lay on my chest as I job hunted from home and then grew into 90 pounds of loving. He was the best cuddle monster, who rarely left his momma's side.
How old was he when you brought him home? About 10 weeks, according to the vet.
How did you choose his name? My husband actually came up with the idea since he was rescued off Byrne Road to call him, Byrne. But he has lots of awesome nicknames - Bernie, Mr. Burns, Bernardo, Bernadette, Bernice
How old was he? He turned 11 years old the month he passed.
What 3 words would you use to describe his personality? Smart, Chill, Loyal.
What was his favorite toy or treat? Anything that squeaked.
What did you enjoy doing together as a family with Byrne? Playing outside, going for walks around the neighborhood, taking him to the family pond.
A favorite memory of him, a hard time that he helped you get through or a funny story about him? Bernie was there for me through many difficult times in my life, including the death of my mother, miscarriages, and difficult marriage patches. He was always there to cuddle me and loved us unconditionally. He only wanted to be by my side.
Why is it meaningful to have professional images of him? He was such a large part of our lives for 11 years. I’m a photographer myself and have lots of photos of Bernie, but not many that include me with him. I couldn’t imagine not taking the time to document that myself with him, too.
What stood out to you about your experience with Rebecca as your photographer? Rebecca’s calm nature, instant connection with animals (particularly pups of all kinds), and photographic eye when it comes to documenting families. I loved every part of our experience and Bernie especially loved her special dog treats.