When Kelly Gould first saw Dirk, he was sitting in a crate in the back of an SUV and was being taken to a local rescue event. Kelly made eye contact with him, and fell in love. Her husband Andrew, however, was less enthused. They had just adopted a dog, he pointed out.

 Kelly was persistent. She took Andrew in visit Dirk, a chow/hound mutt, at the foster house where he was staying. Dirk got along well with Andrew, and also with Elliot – their other rescue dog. So Kelly phoned the rescue. “Great!” the volunteer told Kelly, when she inquired about Dirk. “I’m so glad you want to take him. We didn’t think he’d be adoptable.” Dirk was a rescue from Hurricane Katrina. He had never lived in a house. He had spent six months hanging out in a back yard, tied to a tree, with a bunch of other dogs. “He has no manners or social skills. And he marks everything in sight.” (Kelly neglected to tell Andrew the last part right away.)

Kelly and Andrew adopted Dirk, who settled in nicely, and learned not to mark indoors. Learning not to jump on the dining room table and steal food off of plates, however, took a little longer. And he failed obedience classes. The trainer said he would never learn to walk on a leash, or follow commands. 

This only made the Goulds more determined. They worked diligently with Dirk, training him an hour a day (and several more hours on the weekend). Dirk took the Good Canine Citizenship course, run by the American Kennel Club (AKC). The 10-step course that stresses good pet manners and responsible pet ownership. But when it came time to take the test, Dirk failed – miserably!

Undaunted, the Goulds worked harder, and Dirk took the test again. Much to their relief, he did great the second time!

Dirk became the inspiration for Karma Dogs, a non-profit organization in Baltimore founded by Kelly and Andrew, along with childhood friend, Bridget Strama. Karma Dogs are primarily rescued dogs who have been given a second chance in life, and now – with the help of their owners – are giving back.

Kelly had worked in animal rescue, and was frustrated with the lack of education on the humane treatment of animals. She realized if she really wanted to make a difference, it would be by reaching out to children. With early, positive interactions they could learn to respect and appreciate animals, which would lead to responsible, caring pet ownership later in life.

One way Karma Dogs does this, is by teaching children (and their parents) to be safe and responsible around dogs. According to the Center for Disease Control, over 800,000 people are involved in dog-related injuries ever year. They could be scratches, bites, being jumped on and knocked over, or more serious injuries. The highest rate of injuries is for children between 5 and 9 years old.

Kelly believes that many of these injuries would be preventable, if children knew how to interact safely with dogs. So she and Andrew created Dirk’s Guide to Dog Safety, a colouring book featuring artwork by local artists.

The H.E.A.R.T.S. (Help Encourage All Readers to Succeed) program is aimed at increasing literacy. Similar to numerous other programs that have started in the past several years, the H.E.A.R.T. program takes place on a weekly basis in local libraries, and children read aloud to an accepting, non-judgmental, non-correcting dog.

As one of the original Karma Dogs, Dirk excels in the program. “He has inspired and worked with hundreds of kids,” Kelly says. “Dirk is great at knowing what a child need to feel safe and confident.”

Karma Dogs has also runs programs for children with developmental disabilities, which were developed in conjunction with Melissa Winkle, an occupational therapist and owner of Dogwood Therapy.

At the League for People with Disabilities, Karma Dogs help connect with, and teach social skills, to children with autism. “One of the kids I’ve worked with since January, when I originally met him, wouldn’t make eye contact with me or come near Dirk,” Kelly says. “But after working with him for about eight months, he’s happy to see the dog, greets the dog and hugs me. Before, Dirk and I couldn’t hold his attention for 15 seconds; now he will help walk the dog for several minutes at a time.”

The dogs are also used to increase motor skills, like rolling a ball to a dog, or performing Doga – simple, modified yoga poses where the children stretch and reach over to pet the dogs or give them a treat.

Kelly, who works in advertising, says that Karma Dogs takes up all her spare time. In addition to the scheduled events – she attends every one! – there is writing and hosting the website, reading through emails, going through applications, creating new programs, and testing and certifying participating dogs. Karma Dogs is not a rescue, they offer free adoption advice, and will also help with the selection of a shelter dog.  She works with educational consultants, trainers, and a team of over 100 volunteers.    

Karma Dogs continues to evolve.  Last summer, after a series of alarming stories of animal abuse by children in Baltimore, Kelly created the Karma Dog Oath of Kindness, a pledge children take to be kind to animals, to spread the message of kindness to their friends, and to tell an adult if they see animal abuse taking place. Children place one hand on their dog, raise the other, and recite the pledge. The dog that “swore” them in “pawtographs” a certificate that the child gets to keep. Since last summer, over 500 children have taken the oath.

Kelly is passionate about the work she does. “Kids learn dogs are not something disposable, like a video game or a pair of sneakers.  We live in a society where things go out of fashion very quickly, and can become obsolete with the swish of a tail,” Kelly says. “Teaching children to value dogs could lead to fewer dogs in shelters, fewer victims of abuse, and fewer unwanted litters.”  It’s a long-term approach, and it’s aimed at one dog – and one child – at a time.

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Sheri and Reed at a photo shoot

Sheri Berliner is the founder of Petraits Pet Photography – like portraits, but her subjects are of the furry kind! And although she’s had her share of pampered, spoiled pets, her passion is photographing shelter animals to help them find good homes.

Sheri takes photographs of hundreds of rescued pets each month, and then posts them on Petfinder.com and adoptapet.com with a brief bio of each animal. She also sends out those photo/bios to her email list of close to 5,000 pet lovers.

When Sheri is photographing a shelter animal, she believes it is important to make them look as beautiful as possible. “I put them in a studio setting so they look like objects of art instead of creatures in a cage,” Berliner said. “I try to bring out their true personalty, so that the best possible match can be made.”

.Sheri started volunteering at a shelter over 20 years ago. She often fostered strays and owner surrenders. “I realized that with my photographic and writing skills I could use the pets’ own beauty and stories to help them find homes,” she says. “Better photos and extra publicity can help pets move faster into their forever, allowing rescue groups and shelters to adopt out more animals.”

There are some obstacles that Sheri has to overcome, and she has developed some “tricks of the trade.” She has a repertoire of sounds to get pooches to pay attention – she can bark like a dog, meow, and even do bird trills. And she always has a ready supply of liver snacks for dogs and feather toys for cats. But her biggest challenge still remains -“Trying to get the animals not to pee on, or rip up my backdrop.”

Berlineri shares her home with her own menagerie of rescued animals – five cats, two dogs, a bird, and a rabbit. There is also a “revolving door” of fosters that come and go – a momma cat and litter of kittens, gerbils, mice, dogs, or bunnies. She fosters at least 60 pets each year. “One of the reasons I do what I do, is because I can’t take home any more,” she says with a laugh. “There’s always at least one pet each time I do a photo shoot that I wish I could take home with me …”

You can hear an interview with Sheri here: petraits photography interview

For more information, and to view some of her photographs, visit www.Petraits.com

Results of Photo Session

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