Pets

The Hardest Day

Anonymous — Wed, 22 Jan 2020 20:33:46 +0000

The Hardest Day Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 01/22/2020 - 13:33

Sarah Kuta

Photojournalist Ross Taylor captured the final moments between pet owners and their companions. The work has gone viral.

The photographs are heartbreaking.

As they watch their beloved pets take a final breath, the families photographed by Ross Taylor cover their mouths in despair, wipe tears on the backs of their arms and wail in agony. They cradle their companions in their arms and kiss them goodbye.

With his “Last Moments” photo series and forthcoming documentary, The Hardest Day, Taylor captured the visceral emotions of dog and cat owners as they euthanized their pets at home. His work resonated with people worldwide — millions have viewed his photos online.

For Taylor, assistant professor of journalism at CU Boulder, the project was a chance to highlight the connection between humans and animals. He also hopes to comfort grieving pet owners by showing they’re not alone.

“We should not minimize the intensity of the human-animal bond,” said Taylor, whose other work has earned numerous awards, including a 2012 Pulitzer Prize nomination. “If somebody is going through a difficult moment with the loss of a pet, we should stop and move with greater care toward each other.”

Taylor was inspired for the project by a friend who opted for a home euthanasia procedure for her dog in 2016. After researching the practice, he spent several weeks in Tampa, Florida, the next summer shadowing staff members at Lap of Love, a national network of veterinarians who offer hospice and in-home euthanasia services. He also followed veterinarians with the organization Caring Pathways in Denver.

My dogs are there for me no matter what — on my darkest days, on my best days.”

He photographed the final moments of pet owners like Wendy Lehr, whose dog, Mimosa, was euthanized in August 2017 after the nine-year-old South African Boerboel was diagnosed with liver cancer.

Though the photographs of Mimosa were painful to view, Lehr said they helped soothe and validate her grief.

“A lot of people look down on pet owners as if we’re being ridiculous — ‘It’s just a dog,’ or ‘I can’t believe you’re acting this way,’” said Lehr, who lives in Odessa, Florida. “They don’t understand the kind of bond that a human can form with a dog. My dogs are there for me no matter what — on my darkest days, on my best days.”

Taylor and co-filmmaker Luke Rafferty are entering the 53-minute Hardest Day documentary into festivals and plan to make it available in late 2020. The film offers a window into the challenging work veterinarians perform on a daily basis — caring for pets, but also offering compassion and support to their humans.

“It’s not enough to love animals,” said Dr. Dani McVety, Lap of Love’s founder. “Everybody loves animals, but you have to love the people who love the animals. And that’s what we do. When they’re crying, you just look at them and you say, ‘I know.’”

“Last Moments” offers teaching moments for Taylor’s CU classes. For instance, the project exemplifies a modern digital phenomenon: going viral. His work was seen in The Washington Post, Daily Mail and People. When posted on Buzzfeed, the photos were viewed more than 1.5 million times in one week alone.

“Whenever you do any type of journalism, it’s really crucial to make sure your motives are sound,” Taylor said.

Taylor learned photography in his father’s darkroom in Mint Hill, North Carolina, before studying journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Syracuse University, where he earned a master’s degree. Though Taylor’s seen a lot during his career — he’s photographed conflict zones, trauma hospitals and the aftermath of natural disasters — he was moved by the pain he witnessed as families said goodbye to their pets.

“You don’t show emotion in the moment, but you absolutely feel it and your heart breaks for people every single time,” said Taylor. “I definitely get emotional talking about it, and when I edited the film, I cried a thousand times.”

Photos by Ross Taylor

Hardest Day Collection

Photojournalist Ross Taylor captured the final moments between pet owners and their companions. The work has gone viral.

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Winter 2020

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Of Humans and Animals

Anonymous — Sat, 01 Dec 2018 19:00:00 +0000

Of Humans and Animals Anonymous (not verified) Sat, 12/01/2018 - 12:00

Eric Gershon

Inquiry: Leslie Irvine

CU Boulder sociologist Leslie Irvine, author of My Dog Always Eats First, studies the relationships between humans and their pets.

Should people keep pets? Is there an argument against it?

There is, and I’ll make this argument even though I am surrounded by cats and a dog: It is a relationship of captivity. It involves deciding at some point that this other species exists for our entertainment and our pleasure.

You referred to several cats and a dog...

My husband and I have two cats and a dog. All of them from the Humane Society of Boulder Valley, where I’ve been a volunteer for 20 years. Our crew is down from an all-time high of five cats and two dogs. It’s considerably easier at the moment.

What does the term “pet” imply about the relationship between person and animal?

We would never eat them.

‘Adopt rather than shop’ is my message.

Is the human-pet relationship generally a good deal for the pets?

I think so, assuming no abuse and assuming adequate veterinary care and all the other things an animal needs for quality of life — good diet, plenty of exercise. An ability to exercise natural behaviors.

Are we aware of any species other than humans that keeps pets?

There’s the famous gorilla — Coco the gorilla had a kitten. But this was given to her by human beings.

So, we’re the only animal that keeps other animals around for this kind of social relationship.

That’s right.

What does that reflect about us?

First, you can say it reflects our capacity to dominate other species. On a more positive side, it says something about our capacity to relate to others, and by others I mean other beings, not just other humans. In our relationship with animals, we stretch our interactional capabilities. Dog-human friendship isn’t a replacement for human friendship — it’s essentially a different kind of a relationship.

Let’s talk about your book My Dog Always Eats First, in which you explored relationships between the homeless and their pets. What did you learn?

I was sure that the most interesting thing was going to be finding out how homeless people managed to provide food and care for their animals. And, actually, providing food was the least of their concerns. People on the street were coming up to them and giving them bags of food. And most food banks and soup kitchens are now providing pet food. The thing I thought was going to be the most interesting turned out to be the question that had the most straightforward answer.

How do you feel about zoos?

In general, I don’t like them. I don’t like captivity. But I do see that, in some instances, they’re doing some good educational things and some good conservation efforts. And I’m not in favor of the kind of breeding that takes place in zoos, because it’s a very restricted gene pool. I’m not in favor of capturing wild animals anymore. I would like to see zoos phased out. This menagerie was an 18th, 19th-century invention.

Is keeping a single pet at home really that much different from having a one-animal zoo?

Philosophically, no. It’s keeping an animal to look at, keep us company, entertain us — keeping an animal for our pleasure.

There’s been a lot of talk in recent years about the grief many people feel when a pet dies…

Our responsibility for their care makes their deaths feel like something that we could have prevented, to some degree. So, there’s a lot of responsibility tied up in death. Did I do the right thing? Did this animal have a good life?

What are you working on these days?

Research that examines the roles of animals in social problems we generally think of as solely human. This refers back to some of my work on animals and disasters. I did the research following Hurricane Katrina, when it suddenly and very powerfully came to people’s attention that we have to plan for companion animals in a disaster, or people are not going to evacuate. People are going to go back into evacuated areas to rescue their pets. There’s going to be psychological costs of leaving them behind. There’s going to be public health issues.

Is there anything else you’d like to say about the human-animal relationship?

The need to adopt rather than breed dogs and cats. I hope that we can do away with things like puppy mills within my lifetime. I guess ‘adopt rather than shop’ is my message.

Do you see that primarily as a moral imperative, or a practical need?

Both. When I travel — a lot of vacations, I visit the local shelters. And I realize the practical need.

Condensed and edited.

An extended audio version is available under podcasts at colorado.edu/coloradan.

Illustration by Alison Seiffer

CU Boulder sociologist Leslie Irvine, author of My Dog Always Eats First, studies the relationships between humans and their pets.

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