Coco Puffz at the Best Friends Los Angeles Independence Paw'rade.
July 2, 2011 Studio City, CA
© Lydia Marcus Photography
For a full set of photos from the Paw'rade go to Lydia Marcus Photography on Facebook.
Showing posts with label rescue dogs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rescue dogs. Show all posts
Monday, July 4, 2011
HAVE A "PAWTRIOTIC" DAY!
Monday, June 13, 2011
L.A. PRIDE 2011
Cali & the WEHO Cheerleaders
I've been going to L.A. PRIDE for 25 years (since I was 16) but this was the first time I ever walked in the parade. A friend who works for NBCUniversal invited me and my doggy Cali to walk with the OUT@NBCUniveral group. It was very exhilarating and fun and the adrenaline pumped me up for the whole day! - Lydia Marcus
Here are my favorite photos from PRIDE:
Cali & Lucille Ball impersonator
Cali is full of PRIDE. Posing in front of an old MTA bus
Me & Cali
Me & Cali walking in the parade
With all the noise, people, moving vehicles, and general mania, Cali kept looking back and checking that I was still behind her.
Olympian Johnny Weir strikes a pose. He was the parade's Grand Marshal
Madame Tussaud's had a float with wax figures of Lady Gaga and Jane Lynch. From a distance I saw Jane and thought she was actually in the parade. The likeness is uncanny.
Heaven is missing two gay angels. :-)
Love these t-shirts! Take that Fred Phelps!
The WEHO Cheerleaders show their spirit!
The focus isn't perfect, but I like the moment - WEHO Sheriffs in front of the Pride festival entrance.
Tons of attendance at the Parade. A view of the crowd
The BRAVO TV contingent: Jenni Pulos, Andy Cohen, Zoila, and Jeff Lewis.
Madison Hildebrand from Million Dollar Listing
OUT@NBCU workers dancing on the route. It was so much fun walking alongside these guys and gals because they really got the crowd pumped up.
L.A. Pride
June 12, 2011, West Hollywood CA
© Lydia Marcus Photography
Nikon D5100 / Nikon 35mm f/1.8 G
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
HAUTE DOGS
My latest Blurb book is available for purchase. Enjoy 40 pages of dogs in costume and haute couture! Premium luster paper, $19.99.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Foxy The Pom Mix
Foxy © Lydia Marcus / www.lydiamarcus.com
Photographed September 13, 2010 in Encino, CA. Foxy is a 10 month old Pomeranian mix rescued from a Los Angeles shelter.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY CALI
One year ago I adopted Cali from Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue. Happy Anniversary my sweet Cali-ente!
Here's a then (4 months old) & now (1yr, 4mo) photo. She went from just under 25 pounds to just under 50 pounds! She's smart as a whip, very obedient, an excellent retriever, lots of fun, and has NEVER chewed anything in the house that doesn't belong to her.
© Lydia Marcus / www.lydiamarcus.com
Photographed July 2009/2010 in Los Angeles, CA
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
CALI AND LUCY THE CHOCOLATE LAB GO NUTS OVER A SQUEAKER
My dog Cali and her bff Lucy The Chocolate Lab go nuts over a squeaker. Lucy jumps for joy several times at the sound of it!
iPhone 3GS video by Lydia Marcus.
Recorded June 9, 2010 in Encino, CA
Friday, March 26, 2010
CALI STROBIST
This week I did a strobist style portrait session with Cali. The set up was a red seamless paper background, 2 Nikon Speedlights (an SB-800 and SB-600) controlled off camera in Commander mode by my Nikon D80. Each light was mounted on a stand with a small Photoflex umbrella. The black outer shell of the umbrella was removed so that the Speedlights could shoot through the white side. Initially I tried shooting into the umbrellas, but with Cali being so dark, there was just too much light lost and it wasn't looking bright enough. Even shooting through, I had to plump up the light settings on both Speedlights to +3 stops. First shot above was done at f/4.5 at 1/45, second was f/6.7 at 1/45.
Cali is remarkable patient and focused for a puppy. She will sit and pose for quite some time if you have her ball and chuck it in her line of sight. :-)
Photo Credits © Lydia Marcus 2010 / www.lydiamarcus.com
Cali, 1 year old
Photographed March 25, 2010, Los Angeles, CA
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
EXTRA, EXTRA: THE DOGGIE NEWS
Cali goes nuts over squeaky toys - I'm convinced she's made up her own language based on squeaks! I bought this rubber chew toy at Cost Plus World Market over the holidays. I hadn't given it to Cali yet because I was nervous about how quickly she would chew through it but lately she seems to be taking it a bit easier on her chew toys as she matures. So today I debuted the Doggie News ("All the news that's fit to chew") and she went wild over it. Unfortunately the toy only lasted about 15 minutes before she's chewed the corner off and it no longer squeaked. At least I got a cute picture out of it!
Cali, 10 Months Old
Photo credit © Lydia Marcus 2010 / www.lydiamarcus.com
Photographed January 19, 2010 in Encino, CA
Friday, December 25, 2009
LUCY THE BOXADOR MODELS HER HOLIDAY SCARF (TAKE TWO)
I originally blogged on 12/08/08 a diptych of Lucy in other poses from the same shoot. Even though Lucy is no longer with us, I couldn't resist going back through the photos from that day and trying to find another pose to post for the holidays. She was a lovely model, so human and soulful in her expressions.
Photo credit © Lydia Marcus / www.lydiamarcus.com
Photographed December 02, 2008 in Encino, CA
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
PIERCING
Lucy The Chocolate Lab
Photo credit © Lydia Marcus 2009 / www.lydiamarcus.com
Photographed December 9, 2009 in Encino, CA
Friday, November 20, 2009
ADOPT A RESCUE DOG IN LOS ANGELES
Every time I take Cali out with me I get questions about where I got her from so I thought I'd do a reference blog for anyone looking to adopt a labrador in Los Angeles. I am also including a few other general references to good general rescue groups in L.A.
The biggest misconception people seem to have about rescue groups (and even shelters) is that they can't get a puppy or a purebred there. Labs of all colors and ages are available at rescues and shelters.
After my beloved Lucy The Boxador died of lymphoma in late June, I searched many places looking for another dog: petfinder.com; craigslist; petorphans.org; petadoptionfund.org in Canoga Park; karmarescue.org; and more.
The three main places I found that specialized in labs were: Labs And Buddies; Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue; and indilabrescue.org.
Here's a breakdown of each group.
1). Labs And Buddies is where I found my last dog, my beloved Lucy The Boxador. labsandbuddies.org is run by the blood, sweat, and tears of Laura Portillo and a small group of volunteers.
This is a blurb from their website:
"Laura Portillo is the founder of 'Labs and Buddies Rescue'...Although her first love is the Lab, she loves all breeds and will rescue any breed in need, space and finances permitting. She specializes in black dogs, because unfortunately they're always the last ones to be picked by adopters at shelters, and too often they're not picked at all..."
It breaks my heart to see some dogs available on their website that have been around since I adopted Lucy from them in December 2007. Labs and Buddies have a wonderful heart but unfortunately I don't think they have the time or resources to get every dog shown (some live in kennels). I know with Lucy, they rescued her from the Camarillo shelter in September of 2007, then she was put in a kennel for several months, and because she was not doing well in that environment, Laura personally took Lucy into her home a couple weeks before I adopted Lucy in December 2007. Lucy was lucky to get out of the kennel in a few months, it's horrible to think that some dogs are stuck there for years.
Most of the adoption events are held on weekends in Woodland Hills, so please check them out if you're looking for a dog. They have much more than labs too.
2). Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue is where I found Cali. I was very impressed by the work that SCLRR does in fostering the dogs and interviewing applicants before adopting a dog out. The woman who fostered Cali is one of the founders of the group and has personally fostered around 500 dogs herself! Getting Cali from SCLRR saved me a lot of time, money, and training. At four months old she was already crate and potty trained, knew sit and lie down commands, was spayed and had all her shots. As an incentive to put your dog through obedience training, SCLRR refunds $50 of the training cost (you can go to any training place you choose) for basic obedience. Dogs at SCLRR aren't kenneled, they are fostered in homes with dog savvy owners and generally exposed to other dogs, children, and sometimes cats. This way the foster parents are able to report about how well a particular dog does and if they should be placed with another pet, be a solo dog in the home, if they're too boisterous for kids, or if they have a prey drive with cats. Personally I found it really nice to have more information on a dog's personality, temperament, and even energy level before making an adoption decision. Also a really nice touch, when I adopted Cali I was given a folder that included all her medical papers and other information about raising puppies and labradors in particular. There was even a training dvd! And Cali's sweet foster Mom even gave me a couple of her toys (Cali still plays with her stuffed lambie - how she hasn't destroyed it with her puppy chewing is beyond me), a nylabone, and a few days worth of her kibble. And Cali's foster Mom has always been available for follow-up emails or calls. One extra perk from my experience with SCLRR is that I've become friends with the lady who did the home check. She has a black lab too and Cali and her dog Kylie have had a couple doggie playdates so far.
3). Independent Labrador Retriever Rescue of Socal (indilabrescue.org). The only personal experience I have with indilabrescue is a representative coming to my house to do a home check. But I can see from their website that they seem to be run in a similar way to SCLRR. All the dogs are fostered in homes and there's always a very informative description of each dog available for adoption.
What I think is really good about both SCLRR and indilabrescue is that the dogs don't seem to be stuck in foster care for long. They both appear to have a very good turnaround.
Another good rescue group I encountered is Karma Rescue. They were very organized, had lots of info about each dog they fostered (they also mainly do home fosters, but have some dogs kenneled), and spent a lot of time with me answering questions and trying to match me up with dogs. They don't specialize in labs, but when I was going to their adoption events I saw a few pit/lab mixes, and some older black labs. They specialize more in Pit Bulls so the pit mixes are probably what you will encounter there.
Also check out Hope For Paws, a group run by one of my flickr friends Eldad Hagar. Eldad has an amazing flickr photostream documenting all the dogs and other critters he has saved and adopted out. He and his wife Audrey put together an amazing hard cover book Our Lives Have Gone To The Dogs that's only $9.95 and filled with heartwarming tales and before and after photos of wonderful dogs that went from neglect to loving homes.
All the money made from sales of the book go directly towards saving more homeless animals and towards veterinary costs. I highly recommend buying this wonderfully inspiring book for yourself and if can afford it, get a few copies for gifts!
Along with the nearly 100 pages of photos and stories, there are some great dog related quotes inside. I love this one on page 24, "The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue."
If you want a dog please consider adopting from a local rescue or shelter. I think petfinder.com probably has the most comprehensive list of rescue groups by zip code. I've never bought a dog from a store or a breeder in my entire life. The bond you will have with a dog that comes from a shelter or rescue is unbelievable. They are so happy to be in a loving home and they will thank you with their love and companionship forever.
- Lydia Marcus
The biggest misconception people seem to have about rescue groups (and even shelters) is that they can't get a puppy or a purebred there. Labs of all colors and ages are available at rescues and shelters.
After my beloved Lucy The Boxador died of lymphoma in late June, I searched many places looking for another dog: petfinder.com; craigslist; petorphans.org; petadoptionfund.org in Canoga Park; karmarescue.org; and more.
The three main places I found that specialized in labs were: Labs And Buddies; Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue; and indilabrescue.org.
Here's a breakdown of each group.
1). Labs And Buddies is where I found my last dog, my beloved Lucy The Boxador. labsandbuddies.org is run by the blood, sweat, and tears of Laura Portillo and a small group of volunteers.
This is a blurb from their website:
"Laura Portillo is the founder of 'Labs and Buddies Rescue'...Although her first love is the Lab, she loves all breeds and will rescue any breed in need, space and finances permitting. She specializes in black dogs, because unfortunately they're always the last ones to be picked by adopters at shelters, and too often they're not picked at all..."
It breaks my heart to see some dogs available on their website that have been around since I adopted Lucy from them in December 2007. Labs and Buddies have a wonderful heart but unfortunately I don't think they have the time or resources to get every dog shown (some live in kennels). I know with Lucy, they rescued her from the Camarillo shelter in September of 2007, then she was put in a kennel for several months, and because she was not doing well in that environment, Laura personally took Lucy into her home a couple weeks before I adopted Lucy in December 2007. Lucy was lucky to get out of the kennel in a few months, it's horrible to think that some dogs are stuck there for years.
Most of the adoption events are held on weekends in Woodland Hills, so please check them out if you're looking for a dog. They have much more than labs too.
2). Southern California Labrador Retriever Rescue is where I found Cali. I was very impressed by the work that SCLRR does in fostering the dogs and interviewing applicants before adopting a dog out. The woman who fostered Cali is one of the founders of the group and has personally fostered around 500 dogs herself! Getting Cali from SCLRR saved me a lot of time, money, and training. At four months old she was already crate and potty trained, knew sit and lie down commands, was spayed and had all her shots. As an incentive to put your dog through obedience training, SCLRR refunds $50 of the training cost (you can go to any training place you choose) for basic obedience. Dogs at SCLRR aren't kenneled, they are fostered in homes with dog savvy owners and generally exposed to other dogs, children, and sometimes cats. This way the foster parents are able to report about how well a particular dog does and if they should be placed with another pet, be a solo dog in the home, if they're too boisterous for kids, or if they have a prey drive with cats. Personally I found it really nice to have more information on a dog's personality, temperament, and even energy level before making an adoption decision. Also a really nice touch, when I adopted Cali I was given a folder that included all her medical papers and other information about raising puppies and labradors in particular. There was even a training dvd! And Cali's sweet foster Mom even gave me a couple of her toys (Cali still plays with her stuffed lambie - how she hasn't destroyed it with her puppy chewing is beyond me), a nylabone, and a few days worth of her kibble. And Cali's foster Mom has always been available for follow-up emails or calls. One extra perk from my experience with SCLRR is that I've become friends with the lady who did the home check. She has a black lab too and Cali and her dog Kylie have had a couple doggie playdates so far.
3). Independent Labrador Retriever Rescue of Socal (indilabrescue.org). The only personal experience I have with indilabrescue is a representative coming to my house to do a home check. But I can see from their website that they seem to be run in a similar way to SCLRR. All the dogs are fostered in homes and there's always a very informative description of each dog available for adoption.
What I think is really good about both SCLRR and indilabrescue is that the dogs don't seem to be stuck in foster care for long. They both appear to have a very good turnaround.
Another good rescue group I encountered is Karma Rescue. They were very organized, had lots of info about each dog they fostered (they also mainly do home fosters, but have some dogs kenneled), and spent a lot of time with me answering questions and trying to match me up with dogs. They don't specialize in labs, but when I was going to their adoption events I saw a few pit/lab mixes, and some older black labs. They specialize more in Pit Bulls so the pit mixes are probably what you will encounter there.
Also check out Hope For Paws, a group run by one of my flickr friends Eldad Hagar. Eldad has an amazing flickr photostream documenting all the dogs and other critters he has saved and adopted out. He and his wife Audrey put together an amazing hard cover book Our Lives Have Gone To The Dogs that's only $9.95 and filled with heartwarming tales and before and after photos of wonderful dogs that went from neglect to loving homes.
All the money made from sales of the book go directly towards saving more homeless animals and towards veterinary costs. I highly recommend buying this wonderfully inspiring book for yourself and if can afford it, get a few copies for gifts!
Along with the nearly 100 pages of photos and stories, there are some great dog related quotes inside. I love this one on page 24, "The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue."
If you want a dog please consider adopting from a local rescue or shelter. I think petfinder.com probably has the most comprehensive list of rescue groups by zip code. I've never bought a dog from a store or a breeder in my entire life. The bond you will have with a dog that comes from a shelter or rescue is unbelievable. They are so happy to be in a loving home and they will thank you with their love and companionship forever.
- Lydia Marcus
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