People love collecting. Go to any garage sale, estate sale or antique show and you will see avid collectors carefully inspecting items in vendors’ booths on tables or in boxes. As antique shows gradually become a thing of the past, the Internet provides a major outlet for finding antiques and collectibles. It is especially helpful when what you collect is not common or easy to find.

  Collecting dog-related items has become increasingly popular during the past 10 or so years. Dog objects are fun items that dog lovers can use to personalize and decorate their spaces. The possibilities for collecting dog-related items are endless. Today, there are dealers who specialize in dog art, objects, books and photographs.   While many people collect specific breeds or specific items, my collection is eclectic and includes different breeds and media. It consists of wood, metal and dog figurines, prints, paintings and photographs, with photographs constituting the primary focus of my collection.   I have always loved old paintings of dogs but realized that most were beyond my budget. I started collecting photographs eight years ago when I found a framed photo of a Chihuahua sitting on a chair. I paid about $10 for it and my collection began. There weren’t many photos for sale at antique shows, so I was certain that it would take me years to build up a moderate collection. This pace would surely be better on my budget. I soon discovered E-Bay and an endless source for photos. My collection grew exponentially.   I was drawn to photographs for several reasons. First, as I mentioned, they are much easier on my budget than paintings. Second, they are more portable and ship easily and inexpensively. Third, I was intrigued by the fact that 100 or more years ago so many people cared about their dogs enough to have them photographed by a professional in a studio setting. Often the dog is seated or lying on a piece of furniture or in front of a fake backdrop of woods, water, mountains or a grand interior. I primarily collect photos with only a dog or dogs in them but occasionally I buy one with a person or people in them.   Within the field of photography there are many different types based on format and technology. Examples include daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, cartes de visite (CDVs or visiting cards), cabinet cards, stereographs, albumen prints, dry plate, silver prints and real photo postcards.   Although I collect black and white photos that span between 1850 and 1950, I am partial to three types: CDVs, cabinet cards and photo post cards. CDVs were introduced in 1854 and were made until about 1905. They are albumen prints mounted on a 2 1/2-inch by 4-inch card. They are often printed or embossed with the photographer’s or studio name.   Cabinet cards were introduced in 1863 and were made until the early 1920s. They are made using a wet-plate negative on albumen paper that measures 4-inches by 5 1/2-inches and mounted on 4 1/4-inch x 6 1/2-inch mount. The size of the mount can vary for either type of photo. Both CDVs and cabinet cards were produced in photographer’s studios.   Photo postcards were first introduced in 1900 and remained popular through the 1940s. They are real photographs that are developed onto photo paper the size and weight of a postcard with a postcard back. Postcard photos were created by professionals and amateurs alike.

 

Care and Preservation Without proper care photos will not last. They need to be stored or displayed out of direct light in dry, temperate spaces. Learn more about collecting and caring for photographs at the International Museum of Photography in Rochester, N.Y., The American Museum of Photography (virtual museum) and Collector’s Guide to Early Photographs by O. Henry Mace.   Some museums, antique dealers and art galleries specialize in animal related items, far fewer specialize in dogs. Here are a few that do: William Secord Gallery, Genesee Country Village and Museum, AKC Museum of the Dog and The Cobblestore.

 

It’s pumpkin carving season, and for many us dog lovers that means immortalizing our four-pawed pals in flickering lanterns. A few days ago, we received this image of a pretty stupendous dog-o’-lantern from last fall. We asked the carver, Julie Life, how and why she created her canine tribute.

  Why: “My husband asked me to make it last year for a little carve contest in our town,” says Life, a high school science teacher living near Newport, Ore. “We won $50 and went out to dinner with the money.” Life is also an agility dog trainer (Agility 4 Life) and runs a poop scoop service called The Poop Thief.   How: Life made her own stencil from a pen and ink drawing, and used a pumpkin carve kit, available in any store. She says photographing the illuminated pumpkin was the hardest part.   Time: The carving took four hours from beginning to end.   Bonus tip: Storing the pumpkin in the fridge every night helped the pumpkin keep longer.   Inspiration: The pumpkin is carved in the likeness of Bob Hay and Julie Life’s English Mastiff, Brutus, who defied a diagnosis of lupus to live to 11 years old. He had a great life, despite his medical challenges, including medications that eventually caused him to become diabetic and blind. “He traveled everywhere with us,” Life says. “He also was well known in our little town and I think he was integral to causing the increase in Mastiffs that we now see in our local area.”  

Have you carved a dog-o’-lantern? Send a photo to webeditor@thebark.com or upload a photo on our Facebook page.

While visiting my parents in Oregon, I was out running when I saw a bucket filled with water suspended under a sign that read “Doggy Watering Hole.” I was charmed by this thoughtful, neighborly gesture at the side of the road. This sort of community-mindedness is something to be celebrated.

  Now I realize that there will be folks who think, “Ew, what a great way to share germs.” To this I say 1) I ran by the doggy watering hole nearly every day for close to two weeks to check it out and the water always looked fresh and clean, so it is clearly being changed frequently, and 2) It sure beats having the dogs drink out of nasty puddles in the street that contain fuel products or other hazards.   I’m in favor of people carrying plenty of water for their dogs when they are out and about, but this watering hole is such a great idea as a way to help people and dogs who get caught out without quite enough for whatever reason. Have you seen anything like this in your neighborhood?

 

There are a lot of elegant, strange and quirky doghouses out there. From straightforward shade providers to structures so tricked out they’d blend in on the Vegas Strip. Maybe because the scale is manageable and the perspective tenants are usually agreeable—especially on aesthetic issues—doghouses draw out the inner architect in us.

For too long your design-and-build efforts have gone unsung. But now the DIY Network wants to reward these backyard domiciles with more than a lonely howl. Enter your hand-crafted creation in the Best DIY Doggone Doghouse in Americz contest, and you could win the grand prize of a $500 Orvis gift card or a weekly prize of a DNA breed identification kit. So far there are canine cabins, palaces, pueblos and palapas entered in the contest—which runs through July 23. We’re hoping to feature photos of the winner in the September home-themed issue of Bark.