Graffiti Alley is a pretty popular spot for photos in Ann Arbor, so we did run into a few other people, and of course, they couldn’t help but love on Little Bear! He always steals everyone’s heart, especially when he’s wearing his prosthetic leg and people hear how he was born without his back left lower leg and paw. Andrea had him fitted for a prosthetic to help him walk when she adopted him as a senior dog. He’d learned to sort of army-crawl, but it was hard for him to go far and had caused him to develop pretty bad arthritis. The prosthetic helped with all of that so he was able to get out more and follow Andrea on her adventures around town!

Oh and if you saw the last blog post, you know that Andrea also has chickens, so naturally we brought one along for an urban chicken photoshoot! I mean, why not? The transportation of the chicken was a hilarious. We put the hen in a large cardboard box (not sealed, just loosely closed so she couldn’t hop out. She was pretty calm once we got going. We parked the car in a ramp and rode the elevator down with some strangers as we were carrying this generic cardboard box that occasionally let out a cluck or squack. We almost died trying not to laugh! Once we were in the alley, we let the little lady hop out and strut her stuff! Scroll down to see!

Who knew chickens had such an appreciation for urban art?

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Andrea has a little coop in her backyard with 2 Rhode Island Red chickens. Since we were going to be taking pictures of her and Little Bear together, we thought we might as well include her backyard chickens in the fun! We decided to do the photography session right in her backyard because Andrea wanted to have photos of Little Bear in all of his favorite places. They loved to spend time in their backyard garden with it’s abundance of shade, tree swings, and flowers. Little Bear would pass the time watching his two favorite hens. It made for the perfect spot for their photos.

Little Bear was the sweetest boy, and had unlimited smiles throughout his photography session. He was born without one of his paws, so his mobility was somewhat limited, making him one of my easiest models for pet photography! We didn’t have to worry about him bolting off or even catching the chickens when we let them out of their coop! Don’t worry, no chickens were harmed in the making of these photos!

During the session, I was just so touched by how tender and loving Andrea and Little Bear were with each other. Even though Andrea had adopted him as a senior dog, their connection was stronger than many life-long partnerships. It was an honor to preserve their relationship with photography.

So it is with a full but heavy heart that I share these photos today. Andrea lost Little Bear last week at the age of 12 after battling thyroid cancer and megaesophagus for 15 months. He had been given just 6 weeks to live when he was diagnosed, but Andrea gave him love and care fit for a king, and I don’t doubt for a second that his happy and extended life was a result of her intense devotion to him.

I am so glad to have been able to preserve a slice of their lives through these photos. It means so much to be able to look back on favorite times hanging out in the backyard, stalking chickens, and just living life. Here’s to your memory, Little Bear. May you chase chickens to your heart’s content in Heaven.

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