Photos Of My Foster Dog For The Past 8 Months.

Cinema is a 3yr old female Galgo Espanol who has been looking for her forever home here in Chicago IL for 8 months. Cinema was rescued and rehabilitated by Fundacion Benjamin Mehnert in Sevilla Spain.

About the Galgo Espanols

The Galgos are bred by hunters (galgueros) to hunt hares. During the annual hunting season that runs from October through January, many live in cramped dark sheds when they are not coursing, spending their days confined and neglected. Most are ill or injured and on the brink of starvation, deprived of human care and affection. Training techniques are barbaric and include towing Galgos from cars, trucks and motorcycles at high speeds.

After the end of the hunting season, the hunters get rid of most of their dogs by abandoning them or by destroying them in the most horrendous ways. Massive and uncontrolled overbreeding makes it less costly to buy new Galgos each year than to keep the old ones.

By tradition, the dogs are often killed by hanging them by their necks with their feet just touching the ground, swaying back and forth causing the dogs extreme pain and agony for several days until they die. Other traditional ways to murder the dogs are to throw them into abandoned wells covering them with burning wood, beat them with rocks or bury or burn them alive. The hunters believe that the more the dogs suffer, the more successful the following hunting season will be.

The abandoned dogs often die of starvation or injuries, and if they are caught, they are mostly brought to municipal killing stations. Associations in Spain, rescue and rehabilitate as many dogs as possible so that they have a chance at a future and a forever home. The Galgo is a truly precious breed. Although not considered pets by Galgueros, they are wonderful companions and eternally grateful for a second chance.

More about Cinema

Cinema is a sweet young active girl who is very curious, affectionate, playful and entertaining. The name FBM gave her, Cinema, was very fitting as she LOVES to watch tv. She will sit in front of the TV and watch the people or animals on the screen. She also loves to be in front of the camera. In 2014, I took up photography to try and tell the story of the Hunting Dogs of Spain. With each of the foster dogs that my wife and I have fostered I take adoption photos of them and if they like the camera they help me become a better photographer. Cinema has been one of the best models I have had, and she has helped me truly learn how to photograph black on black along with showing off Cinemas great modeling abilities. She has gotten a lot of attention, but unfortunately still has not found her family. Because of her past life in Spain, she is very nervous of meeting new people and the families that have been interested in her have not been able to bond with her and her with them. She has been getting better with meeting new people, but her potential family needs to understand her past and give her all the patients and time she needs to feel comfortable. With her photos, I try to show her true personality and how elegant she is.

I wanted to share the photos I have taken of Cinema while we have been fostering her in our home. A potential family with experience with fearful dogs will be coming to meet her next weekend.

More info: StinkeyePhotography.com

Photos Of My Foster Dog For The Past 8 Months.

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In 2012 my wife and I were blessed to be rescued by a Galgo named Leena. This scared little white Galgo inspired my wife and I to start Love Hope Believe Galgo Adoption (www.adoptagalgo.com) in 2013. When our group was first starting out, we were lucky enough to have a member of Hearts Speak (www.HeartsSpeak.org) take photographs of our adoptable Galgos. In 2014 I took up photography and joined HeartsSpeak to pay it forward. Internationally renowned dog photographer Travis Patenaude of Stink-Eye Photography creates unique portraits that foster an emotional connection between the subject and the viewer. He believes emotions and feelings are a vital part of telling stories and has to be put in a form that touches the hearts of people' to evoke empathy and to have the viewer want to learn more about the dogs. Travis is an advocate for animal rescue and animal rights, in particular raising awareness for the plight of the hunting dogs of Spain. He has won international awards and have been published across international print, online media, and magazines.

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Vėjūnė is a community manager who helps artists all over the world introduce their artwork to Bored Panda readers and in that way, become more popular. Since she was always fascinated by the art world, she studied Culture Management and Cultural Policy at Vilnius Academy of Arts where she expanded her knowledge about it. Now she's using all this knowledge to showcase its beauty and help others dive into the fascinating world of art.

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