Marketing Holistics

Susan Payne breeds, handles and judges Chihuahuas. Her book, The Chihuahua, was just published by Kennel Club Classics. I finished reading her book from cover to cover. The section on the history of the breed is very interesting and my favorite part.  In Mexico dogs were believed to accompany souls to heaven. The Chihuahua has tremendous “star quality.”  Every Chihuahua has a story. Susan Payne emphasizes the importance of  finding a breeder that breeds to the standard which is crucial for the health of the dog.

In 2006, my husband and I had visited the Springfield, MA, Dog Show the previous winter. We were interested in finding a Bassett Hound . We are very partial to these hounds. We spotted a little girl named Edith who ate rocks and another fine guy named Grissom. We  were just not ready at that time.  The following year we rescued Seamus, who is the most perfect and handsomest dog in the entire world. Seamus has taken over our plush rocker/recliner- a birthday present for my husband. Seamus has a sister, Holly who is also a “rescue hound.” These guys are spoiled. They get scrambled eggs for breakfast on Sunday and have a beautiful dog bed from ORVIS that is big enough and comfortable enough for me to spend the night with them although I typically do not do so. However, I brush their teeth almost every day. Get the picture!!! Seamus even has his own blog and frankly, the ladies swoon over him. As you can see, the rescue league ad for Holly, claiming that she was “the best of breed” may have been an exaggeration but the part about “her sweetness” was right on.

Well it is definitely time to switch gears and get back to Chihuahuas!

A colleague of my husband, Steve, was at the 2006 Springfield show with her tiny Chihuahua. I took a few pictures of Sue Pease and her pet and sent her a few prints. Several months later, Sue Pease’s friend, Chihuahua breeder, Susan Payne, asked my permission to use a few of my photos in a book she was writing for Kennel Club Classics. That’s how I met Susan Payne in the Spring of 2007 when I took some photos for the book she was authoring about Chihuahuas.

Of course, I was thrilled at this opportunity and took more photos for Susan Payne over the next few days. During the process I learned more about this charming breed.  Susan’s interesting and informative book, The Chihuahua,  is now available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. The cover of the book is shown at the left. Sue Pease also happens to be a contributor to this fine book. Photographing pets for personal pleasure is very different than photographing dogs to document the characteristics of a particular breed.  Breed standards are very important. The Chihuahua has a section on animal care  which provides so much valuable information. I just learned that there is a small space where plates join in their skulls and I imagine this spot is vulnerable.

I prefer to take pictures. Writing a blog post is quite a task for me but practice makes perfect. I admire people who are prolific/adept writers and realize that the process is not as easy as the final product might make it seem.

I’ve included  my favorite photo from this project in my post. I also really love the photo of Broadway dog trainer, Bill Berloni, who looks like he has his hands quite full. Of course, you will have to read this book to find out why. Perhaps you will discover why this tiny little creature is so popular and adored by millions of people around the world. All the Chihuahuas that I have met are smart, confident and well-behaved and to be perfectly honest I don’t think I can say that about all the bassett hounds I’ve met.