I spent two afternoons in September at the Home for Life Animal Sanctuary. Those that know me know that I am a HUGE animal lover, I have volunteered for Feline Rescue, Inc. in St. Paul for 7 years and I do pro-bono photography for animal related causes. Home for Life has a special place in my heart because I truly believe in their mission. Lisa, the director of HFL, has a heart of gold and these animals receive top notch care and love. The staff at HFL knows each animal by name (and believe me, there are LOTS of them!) and can tell you each one's heartbreaking story.
Home for Life is a long term care facility for cats and dogs, and they even have a few birds, bunnies, a goat AND a tortoise! They do not adopt animals out, rather once animals enter the sanctuary they truly have a Home for Life. These animals have come from all kinds of backgrounds, some have suffered severe abuse and neglect by humans, some have various health problems that made them difficult to find traditional homes for, and some have come after their owners have passed on or could no longer care for them. They have come from all over the country, all over the world in fact. Each one of them touched my heart.
Gene'o & I have been donating our time by photographing Home for Life fund raising events for over three years, and I was honored when Lisa asked me to come to the sanctuary and photograph the animals. Each month the sanctuary sends sponsors photos and updates of their sponsored animal, and they were in need of updated pictures. I know that my four pets (three cats and one dog--all adopted or personally rescued by me) would be considered unadoptable by many animal shelters due to health or behavioral issues and although I would never dream of abandoning any of them, I am happy to know that other animals have a safe haven because of HFL. Although HFL is a dream come true for many animals, there are still thousands if not millions more nation wide who are not so lucky to end up in a loving home or sanctuary such as this one. Please, I urge you, do not add a pet to your family unless you are ready to make a lifetime commitment to him or her, and please SPAY AND NEUTER your pets! Even one litter of puppies or kittens will contribute to the horrible overpopulation problem that this nation faces. That is a whole nother topic for a different day!
Anyway, I will get off my soap box and share the photos that you came here to see in the first place! First up, are the cats! Cats happen to be my personal favorite (although I love dogs too, don't get me wrong!). All of these cats are in need of sponsors. There is a cat of every age, shape and color so please check them out on the HFL web site and pick one (or two or three!) to sponsor today! What a great Christmas gift for the animal lover that already has everything!
Check out these cuties! They were born on Labor Day and were only 1 week old when I took this. Their mama, Valentina, was taken in by HFL shortly before giving birth. I don't know her full story but she is missing a leg. She is such a good mama and was a total sweetheart when I went in their room!
Next up are the dogs! Wow, were the dogs challenging to photograph! Unlike the cats, the dogs are housed all throughout the sanctuary grounds. Some share community living space and some have their very own "suites" because they need to be alpha. All of the dogs have access to shelter that is heated in the winter and air conditioned in the summer, and they all have access to a fenced in run area so they can run around and socialize. The staff also takes them out into the fenced in fields for exercise time each day. Despite their varied and sometimes sad pasts, they all seem very happy to be where they are now!
And one of my favorite dog pictures from the day was of Doty, a beautiful Great Dane!
Oh, and of course I can't leave out Candy! He is 20 years old and has quite the vocabulary and really likes to use it! Once you enter the cattery that Candy lives in you immediately know he's there! This photo is a little blurry but I still like it...he was madly flapping his wings and showing me how handsome he is!
If you're interested in seeing more photos of the animals I photographed, check out this short slideshow.
So don't worry, I am already working on a new post that is wedding related so you'll be back to normal viewing soon! I just couldn't wait to share these! And local TC photographers, if you're interested in donating your time and talent to spend 2 afternoons out at HFL let me know and I'll put you in contact with them. They are looking to feature a different photographer each month!
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