Cassie was one of the very first pups I photographed at the SPCA of Wake County when I moved to Raleigh more than a year ago. Her photo is still easily one of my all time favorite “adoptable” photos and she almost made it on my business card, but the way I had to crop the photo would have looked odd. The best part about volunteering at an animal shelter is when you get to hear from the families who adopted these sweet animals. I had the chance to catch up with Cassie (we called her Mama Cass at the SPCA) two weeks ago for a shoot at the Raleigh Art Museum. Man…she is one of the most beautiful dogs!
Mom and Dad Jamie and Adam could not be more perfect for Cass. Adam laughs when he tells the story about how he wanted a lap dog, particularly a Chihuahua. Ha…they walked out with Cassie. She’s a lap dog alright and about the size of 50 Chichis! When you know, you know! And Jamie and Adam knew she was the one.
Cassie unexpectedly became very ill over the summer. Part of her face was paralyzed and doctors were never able to actually figure out what was wrong. They almost lost her. Jamie says during that time, she realized how important it was to spend time with the people (and pets) you love most and not miss a moment and look back with regret. She quit her job and found a new one so she could be closer to home and spend more time with Cassie (and Adam of course!) TEAR…that’s love. That’s what Cassie did for this sweet family and they have done SOOOOO much for her and she is very grateful, you can tell.
Can you handle some more?? Many many hours, days and sleepless nights later, Cassie all of a sudden became better! Before Cassie was at the shelter, she spent a YEAR in foster care at the fabulous home of Alanna! She is one of the lead volunteers at the SPCA and won this year’s “volunteer of the year award.” Her prize was a photo shoot with me! She was actually my first Raleigh client and already had photos of her five-dogs-one-man family and felt moved to gift her session to Cassie’s family. WOW! Alanna says she just got “permission” from her man to adopt a sixth dog about a year ago and it was going to be Cassie. After all, she had lived with them for a year already! Just as Alanna went in to file the paperwork, she learned that Adam and Jamie already filled out their paperwork for Cassie. Alanna said it was really hard, but after an intense interview with Adam, she knew Cassie had found the right home.
Alanna and Cassie haven’t seen each other in a year. When Alanna came to the shoot, Cassie went crazy! She recognized her foster mom from a mile away and as you can see from the photo strip below…it was a joyous reunion! Enjoy!
