Joyful dog. Technical side of shooting

In general, a dog in a dream means a friend - good or bad - and is a symbol of love and devotion.

Seeing her in a dream foretells receiving news from a friend or meeting him.

Small dogs in a dream mean troubles, worries, vanity.

A black dog in a dream means your friend who has started something against you.

A white dog in a dream is your close friend.

A red dog in a dream means a very close person, husband, wife, lover.

The breed and size of a dog in a dream characterizes your friends.

A poodle, Spitz and other decorative dogs in a dream are a faithful and gentle friend.

A Great Dane in a dream is a big and smart friend. But if in a dream he bares his teeth at you, then beware of him. This is no longer a friend, but an insidious enemy.

Hounds and hunting breeds in a dream mean selfish people who will not hesitate to make money from you or deceive you for profit. But if in a dream you know that you have hunting dogs, then the dream predicts good luck or profit for you.

If dogs are chasing you in a dream, then you should be wary of traps prepared for you by insidious enemies.

Guard dogs are loyal, devoted and strong friends who are ready to protect you in difficult times.

Meeting a dog in a dream means receiving news from a loved one or friend.

A playing dog in a dream is a harbinger of a joyful or pleasant meeting.

An affectionate dog means a devoted friend. However, if in a dream an unfamiliar dog caresses you, then you should be wary of deception or betrayal.

Petting a dog yourself in a dream is a sign that you are trying to win the favor of a loved one.

A snarling, barking, growling, attacking dog in a dream predicts quarrels, scandals, and insults.

If you dream that a dog has bitten you, then you should not lend money to your friends, so as not to quarrel with them later because of this.

Sick dogs in a dream symbolize a decline in business or the loss of some property.

If in a dream you see that a small dog is sick, then sadness and disappointment await you.

A dream in which you saw that a dog is hiding from you, avoiding you, or running away from you, portends a breakdown in your relationship with a close friend and his cooling towards you.

Hearing a loud bark in a dream is a harbinger of success in business. If barking scared you in a dream, then the news will be unpleasant. Hearing several dogs barking in a dream means a big scandal or trouble.

If you dream that some big red dog had an accident, as a result of which it died, then you will soon learn about the sudden death of a loved one who will die as a result of a similar accident.

Gnawing dogs in a dream means a quarrel with a loved one.

If you dream that your dog is chained or collared, then know that your friend is not free from any obligations and you cannot count on his loyalty.

If in a dream you manage to unhook the leash and remove the dog’s collar, then success in your personal life and victory over your rivals awaits you.

A beautiful white dog in a dream foretells receiving good news from a loved one.

A dirty, wet, unkempt white dog in a dream is your close friend who, because of you, got into an unpleasant situation and had a lot of trouble in his family.

Angry dogs in a dream are your enemies. A mad dog in a dream is your fierce enemy. Often such a dream predicts that you will experience shame or humiliation caused by unfounded accusations.

A doghouse in a dream is a harbinger of the fact that you will soon find yourself in cramped circumstances and will be forced to reckon with it.

Riding a dog in a dream means the strength of your position and good luck in business.

Dogs fighting among themselves are rivals.

Walking with a dog in a dream is a sign of a pleasant time with your loved one.

If in a dream a dog protects you from enemies, then know that you have a friend whose help you can count on. See interpretation: animals.

Subscribe to the Dream Interpretation channel!

Subscribe to the Dream Interpretation channel!

I had never thought about photographing animals before, even as the owner of a spectacular and photogenic English bulldog. But when, for one of the last episodes of “Pavlova’s Dog,” I needed to work with several breeds at once to implement my plan, I did not give up. Since in photography I always aim for a certain high-quality result, when faced with new tasks, I try to approach them creatively and with soul.

“Pavlova’s Dogs” © Alexander Khokhlov

The beautiful thing about creativity is that often one project idea can turn into something more. As a thank you to the owners who kindly agreed to participate in the filming of “Pavlova’s Dogs,” I decided to take portraits of their beloved pets. But I wanted to do it in my own way, taking into account the temperament of my cute models and with a bit of humor. I’ll tell you today how one of my funniest series “The Dog Show” came into being, which received a silver award in the international photo competition The Prix de la Photographie Paris in 2017.

Beginning of work

Before embarking on any creative photographic task, especially one as large-scale as a project, you need to carefully consider the concept of the series. My search for inspiring pictures led me to the works of a wonderful photographer from Germany, Elke Vogelsang, whose funny pictures of dogs have long conquered the world. This determined the vector of shooting - I decided that I would shoot in the studio, especially since it was in winter, from the front and using a wide angle to make the portraits more comical. At the same time, it was important not to be like Elka in style and to do everything in our own way. Therefore, a test shooting was made as a trial balloon. I trained not on cats according to the will of the Goonie from “Operation Y”, but on my own English bulldog named Audrey.

Test shooting, especially if we are talking about a type of photography that you have never done, is extremely good for understanding your own capabilities, calculating resource costs and finding pitfalls. From the first shoot, I realized that in principle it is impossible to ruin a photograph with an English bulldog, but it is impossible to shoot it from a wide angle in a “passport” perspective. Due to the distortion of perspective, the ears are hidden behind the head, resulting in a huge bald face that looks completely unattractive. Therefore, I spent the rest of the shooting with the good old 70-200 mm telephoto and worked on the lighting.

A dark background adds drama to your photos. For this project, I didn't want to go high key to avoid the photos looking too stocky. In addition, the dark backdrop gives the pictures good contrast. Subsequently, I began to experiment with background colors in order to slightly diversify and visually enliven the series.

Technical side of shooting

If you have the skills to work with studio lighting, the shooting process always goes faster. An hour and a half is enough to set the light, work with the “model” and take the required number of frames. In general, this can be compared to children's photography - dog photography is mainly about capturing the moment. It's always a lottery: you will never know what emotion this or that animal will give you. This, perhaps, is the main interest and goal of this type of photography: to find in each animal something unique, funny and attractive to the photograph, to reflect the character. If, looking at the finished portrait, the owner exclaims “Yes, this portrait is all about my dog!”, then you can be sure that the shooting was a success.

Technically, such a photoset is not difficult to prepare. I conducted my test shooting using just one monoblock with a 90-centimeter octobox or a beauty dish with a diffuser as a key light, as well as a reflector to highlight shadows. Subsequently, I began to add additional monoblocks with strip boxes to the scheme to create backlight on the sides - this made the pictures a little more voluminous and made it possible to separate the dogs more from the background. An improvised white table on which the dog will stand or sit during shooting can also act as a reflector. Additionally, you can use background lighting - for example, using a honeycomb reflector.

Unfortunately, not all of our four-legged friends react adequately to outbreaks. During one of the filmings, our team could not hold in place a relatively small Staffordshire bull terrier, which after the first “puff” took off and ran away in terrible fear to hide under the table. Nothing helped: neither exhortations, nor food. The dog resisted as if he felt that we wanted to sell him into slavery. To solve the problem, I decided to abandon the use of studio monoblocks, which caused stress in the dog, replacing them with a single one with a power of 1000 W. The tired dog, under the light of the hot lamp, quickly relaxed and calmed down, after which within literally ten minutes I managed to take that very shot and save the shoot.

Photographing dogs is a very fast-paced process, so you'll need a camera and lens with fast, sharp autofocus. In my shooting, I used a Canon EOS 5D Mark III digital SLR camera with Canon EF 17-40 f/4L USM and Canon EF 70-200 f/4L USM lenses. As an experiment, I tried to work with the latest digital medium format cameras Hasselblad X1D-50c and Fujifilm GFX 50S, but despite the highest image quality, slow focus creates significant inconveniences, and shooting with such equipment requires some experience and dexterity. At the same time, in such shootings, I rarely resort to tracking focusing, working in the One Shot mode - this is by no means a guide to action, so you can safely use the Servo mode.

There are a huge number of nuances in photographing dogs that should be kept in mind before starting such a project. Below I will give some practical tips that I was able to formulate from my own experience.

1 How to prepare for photographing dogs in the studio?

First of all, you need to find out as much information as possible about your “model”. Study the breed, the features of its physics and character. For example, greyhound dogs are not very comfortable sitting on hard surfaces, bulldogs do not tolerate heat, basset hounds are incredibly stubborn, and the rare pharaoh dogs are still semi-wild animals that are difficult to train.

So, during filming, I learned about the heavily tarnished reputation of bull terriers, which, thanks to the media, were dubbed killer dogs. The breeders themselves are very worried about this fact, since these small, stocky and strange-looking four-legged Englishmen are quite calm and friendly. But the power of propaganda is truly unique - while photographing Navarra's bull terrier, I couldn't help but feel a slight feeling of unease when I looked at her characteristic “shark” smile a couple of meters away from me.

Once on site, be sure to give your dog time to get to know you and explore the studio area. This way she will feel much calmer. Behave in a friendly, confident manner, but try not to be familiar.

Talk to the owner, find out if the pet has any individual characteristics, whether he gets along well with people and other dogs, whether he is afraid of outbursts, and how he reacts to a treat from someone else’s hands. The more information you gather, the better your shoot.

Before exhibitions, dogs with lush fur must be groomed according to the breed standard - combed and styled using cosmetics. If you are going to shoot in a studio with a similar “make-up”, then look for a ventilated studio with windows, otherwise the varnish can cause a serious headache, as I personally saw when shooting a charming collie.

A spacious studio with windows will save you not only from the smell of cosmetics - dogs also often have a specific smell, especially when it comes to hunting breeds. And don’t forget that these are animals that, due to stress or overstimulation, can easily use the studio room as a toilet; the consequences in a closed room without windows will be felt much more strongly.

2 What dogs are best for studio photography?

As a rule, these are animals that are loved and cared for. Such animals are in excellent shape, socialized and obedient. If we are talking about purebred dogs, then a huge advantage will be that such animals have experience of exhibitions, where they stand for a long time on grooming tables and in rings, so an hour or an hour and a half of photography will not be very stressful for them.

Pay attention to grooming features. For example, taking a portrait of a huge, combed bobtail is not very interesting - the gaze is hidden behind the bangs, and only the nose and tongue are in the photographer’s lens. During the shooting, together with the owner and assistant, we experimented with combing to open up the dog’s eyes more, and when we put glasses on the fluffy face and blew on it with a fan, we realized that we had hit the mark. Before us was a living copy of Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev.

But the black poodle that came to us for the shoot was the epitome of elegance. But in his case I had to tinker a little more with the light. Due to the thick, black coat, the backlight must be stronger to create visible outlines that separate the dog from the background.

3 Is it necessary for the host to be present during the shoot?

The role of the owner or trainer in filming a dog is difficult to overestimate. However, you should be prepared that in conditions of a new environment or stress, the animal may not behave quite adequately, react confusingly to commands due to banal excitement. Therefore, you should not stay on the sidelines, hoping that the owner will solve all your problems. Any shooting is a team effort, and only if it works well will you be successful.

4 The role of the assistant

During a shoot, the photographer works with the picture as a whole, but the owner cannot know all the technical nuances. Especially if this photo shoot is the first for him and the pet. To work comfortably on site, your team must have an assistant. He will monitor the correct arrangement of light and decorations, the appearance and pose of the “model” in the frame, and will give advice to the owner in what position to hold the food or in which direction to throw his favorite toy. A good assistant is an invaluable specialist who can keep track of a large number of details, the observance of which is the key to beautiful photographs. 5 What about food?

Dogs are often willing to work for food, but don't expect this method to be one hundred percent effective. A dog is a living being; due to emotions, it can refuse food or its favorite toy and will be very worried if the owner and the photographer do not calm it down. For example, we were able to take one of our favorite portraits from the “The Dog Show” series with the basset hound Frayby only after feeding the animal a little… with a banana. The complementary food that the owner took with him did not work well, and the banana that we bought for a snack turned out to be a coveted treat for the dog.

Before filming, also ask the owner to bring water and a bowl for the animal - overexcited dogs are often thirsty, especially if the studio is too hot.

Dog photography is not an easy, but fascinating job, in which there is always a bit of intrigue. As you can see, if you have your own approach, focus on results and patience, you can approach this task in different ways. The success of such a shoot, first of all, lies in teamwork: the roles of the owner or coach, the assistant and the photographer himself are equally important. If you yourself are the owner of an animal, then it will be much easier for you to conduct such a survey and find a common language with your pet. If not, then don’t worry and remember that this is a friend to whom you can always find an approach. Good luck!

Ji-Gi is truly an extraordinary dog. Naturally, to me, who is biased, absolutely everything that concerns my favorite seems extremely important and interesting, but believe me, she honestly deserved this additional chapter in my story. She is, in her way, even more amazing than Rolf among shepherd dogs. It is she who, one might say, is rehabilitating in the eyes of dog lovers an entire breed, which is generally considered difficult to train, not very intelligent and comfortable in everyday life, adapted exclusively for hunting.

Dzhinechka was not even three months old when she went on her first car trip. At about the same age, he traveled from St. Petersburg to Smolensk and Rolfushka, only with him we still lived in the usual conditions for a small puppy, in an urban apartment. Jinka, contrary to all customs, ended up in the wild forest. Dazed from work, from the city, from people, we then hid from everyone and everything on the shore of the beautiful Lizhmen Lake in Karelia.

At first, of course, I was worried about the baby. True, she had been in the forest near St. Petersburg since she was a month old, when I, a sinner, in violation of the rules, took her, the only one of the entire litter, on long country walks. But there, after all, for an hour or two, under the vigilant supervision of the whole family, both people and dogs. Now, of our own free will, we have found ourselves cut off from people and civilization for no less than two weeks. And feeding is not the same as in the city, and getting lost in the forest costs nothing for a baby. Well, so be it, I decided, I’ll lock it in the car!

Not so! Ji-Gi, of course, instantly decided everything in her own way. At the very first intermediate overnight stay, on the high bank of the Olonka River, as soon as we let the adult dogs out of the car, she began to pound her whole body against the walls and windows, like a captive princess. They gave up. Released.

At first, of course, we kept our eyes on her, but how long can we be hypervigilant? There are other things to do on the hike. I can’t help but prepare food and look after the simple life of the camp. And soon she was already grazing in freedom, on equal rights with her mother and Rolf. Only in the forest, beyond the road and hills, where older dogs had the right to go on their own, I did not let her go. From time to time I cried out: “Where is my Dzhinechka?”, to which my practical-minded son answered melancholy: “He’s eating somewhere...”. He wasn't wrong. Jinka, a true fox, was constantly “jackaling” throughout the parking lot and in its immediate vicinity, looking out for anything that was lying badly. I even dug up tin cans that had been poorly buried by previous tourists. I think this could not have happened without the active help of a loving mother.

When they say a common saying in front of me: they say, the dog eats everything that is not nailed down, I just grin. Mine will take a little longer to get nailed down, that's the whole difference. They even taught the cat to steal - who else would throw away tasty things from above, from the buffet, from the table, from the refrigerator? My people eat everything, including pepper and mustard - if you don't watch it. In a desperate attempt to wean one of the foxies from licking pots and pans left unattended on the stove, I tried to add the hottest cayenne pepper to the heated fat from under the cutlets, which, given my love for everything spicy, I eat infrequently and not without difficulty. Do you think she couldn't handle it? No matter how it is!

And it’s not because they don’t get what they’re entitled to that they’re gluttonous. No, I monitor their diet quite vigilantly, if only because of their breed's tendency to be overweight, because a fat dog is always an unhealthy dog. I always keep them at the same weight, which is assigned to them according to the breed standard. The point here is not hunger, but the innate desire to get food for ourselves, on which the working qualities of all hunting dogs are based. I have observed that the insatiability of a hunting dog is directly proportional to the expression of its other special hereditary qualities. This is why there are so many malicious “scavengers” among Foxes and other hunters, and why it is so difficult to train them to refuse food found on their own or offered by strangers. And if even poodles, who, of course, had hunters in their family, but in very distant generations, gravitate towards this, then God himself commanded mine. To be honest, I’ve already given up fighting. This is how I have them, this is how I love them. After all, dogs, like people, do not exist without problems. However, this is also where Dzhinechka differs from ordinary foxes - she searches the yard solely out of boredom and lack of attention during a walk. The most obedient, by the way, always receive the least attention.

At just over two months old, Jinka has perfectly adjusted to bivouac life, although, I note in parentheses, she still does not have that ardent love for the forest like her mother did. This is explained, I think, by heredity on the father’s side, whose ancestors lived for many years in the enclosures of a very good, but still specialized nursery. Gee not only did not try to escape from the tent and car, but also began to actively guard the parking lot, quickly realizing that where we lived, strangers had nothing to do.

Our piece of the coast was separated from the sandy lane leading from village to village by an excellent raspberry tree, the most abundant in these places. Once or twice a day, women passing from one village to another stopped behind the bushes to “pick a berry.” Our baby immediately, without thinking twice, flew out onto the road, bursting into a characteristic “guard” bark. No matter how funny it looked when performed by a two-month-old puppy, these were still the first attempts to claim his rights to the territory. It is a well-known fact that the troublemakers were afraid not of the puppy at all, but of our huge Rolf, slowly, with dignity, emerging from the bushes, where he was feasting on ripe raspberries. He looked at his aunts gravely and disapprovingly: what kind of commotion have they made here? It’s not the child’s fault, that’s my word! There was no reason to take military action, and I, without wasting any time, recalled Rolf and Bambi, who was spinning right there at his feet, took little Gee into my arms - I don’t wish people undeserved troubles. But since then, Ji-Gi has sacredly and inviolably believed in her own strength. By the way, a few years later, her granddaughter Bart gained faith in himself in the same way, only it was not on Lizhmenskoye, but on Dvinye Lake.

Much later, already at the age of one, she will learn to truly “take the intruder”, hang in a death grip on clothes, and if she is lucky and the clothes turn out to be fragile, then on her leg. She will still develop her own, very effective, despite her small stature, fighting techniques, and she will also get used to genuinely going berserk from a kick. But the very desire to protect from strangers what is dear to her, and, mainly, my sacred person, comes from there, from the bright Lizhmen childhood.

Now G is my most reliable bodyguard, and I say this without a hint of irony. Like any professional bodyguard, she is calmly calm in front of good people, you can talk to her, you can stroke her. But if any threat happens!.. Without thinking for a second, she will rush at both the dog and the tall bully. And the drunken boor retreats - not only in the face of the indomitable pressure, but also in the face of sharp, strong and not so small teeth. Well, foxes can bite! If her brother, Jock, is hunting a bear, why not use the same techniques against a person - when he deserves it!

It is Jinka that I take with me to training classes, when I need not just to show my students technical techniques, but to “train” them for serious protection of the owner. Her rage is genuine, she conveys it even to the most lazy and passive. Gambling, as befits the breed, Gee works fearlessly and flawlessly. Looking at her daughter, Bambi learned to work in the same way; she is much calmer and conflict-free in character. And when the two of them demonstrate the detention of a violator and the protection of the owner in our demonstration programs, where we demonstrate unexpected aspects of dog behavior, no one remains indifferent in the audience. And these are not at all pre-learned and carefully rehearsed circus acts. This is their calling, their voluntary holy duty. To tell the truth, they will protect me just as selflessly, if anything happens, from anyone, even from members of my family.

As a joke, I call Dzhinechka “mummy.” She really, no worse than the Shah’s Mameluke bodyguards, guards my integrity as soon as strangers appear in the house. She knows for sure: according to the combat schedule, her post is next to her mistress. Let everyone else fight for the palace, the treasury, the harem of the Shah! The Mameluke's frontier is the last with a sacred person!

And this is a little thing, thirty-seven centimeters at the withers, which is about ten times smaller than me in terms of weight and size! After all, from her point of view, I am an all-powerful giantess, so I would have to fight off any danger, and even cherish it! But she, my faithful friend, will rush at any attacker, trying only to leave me far behind, in the safest place. Covering me with your little body! Neglecting all the laws of self-preservation!

Jinka is so confident in her abilities that, as the Senior Bitch of the pack, she marks her territory on a par with the Leader. And when I first saw her boyishly lifting her leg up a tree, I must admit, I was confused. If I myself had not delivered her children, I would have doubted her sexuality. After all, until then I had never seen such fighting maidens.

For all her indomitable activity in guarding, she is incredibly obedient and self-possessed. When I come to the store with her, I don’t even tie the leash, I just throw it on the floor, and she sits without moving. Here, even if you walk past a cat, teasing it with an evil hiss, or even tempt people with anything, it will definitely turn to stone. In the presence of a cat, this internal tension reaches such an intensity that sometimes she does not immediately understand when I take the leash to lead her away. It’s as if she’s coming to her senses after a powerful trance (that’s what it is, by the way) - she looks at me a little incredulously and gets up slowly, barely noticeably stretching, one by one putting in order the muscles seized by a steely will.

Once I came to the bank on business and sat her in a corner so that I could calmly manage my business. Along the way, I chatted a little with a security guard I knew, an avid dog lover, who spent his free time training service dogs. There were no people there, and we talked for about ten minutes. Jinka sat on the sidelines at the command “Place”, sat motionless, as if she were a column cast from metal, as she knows how to do.

As I was getting ready to leave, I called her over, secretly wishing that she would comply with all the regulatory rules provided for service dogs (which, I’ll tell you a secret, I never taught her). My clever heard and decorously approached when called, performing a classic army walk around from behind, and sat down evenly at my left leg. The leash dragged along the floor funny.

Wow, it works no worse than a shepherd dog! - the guard admired.

Yes, she is a shepherd, only tiny,” I joked in response.

Stop mocking! I see that it's Fox.

Fox is a Fox, but he likes a Shepherd. Just as disciplined, self-possessed, just as energetic and quick-witted. And only one ineradicable trait of terriers remains in her under any circumstances. This is the same unshakable loyalty to the once and for all learned rules of behavior, which many, out of ignorance, mistake for stubbornness.

When we walk in the courtyard, especially in the evening, she, on her own initiative, takes a position so that she can see all the approaches and approaches, all the arches and front doors, of which there are plenty in our nine (!) adjacent courtyards of four old houses on Nevsky. She, the first fox terrier known to me, the first, besides shepherd dogs, began to carry out the rather complex command of patrol border dogs “Listen!” At this command, a dog that has discovered a stranger does not burst into desperate barking, does not rush headlong into the path of the enemy, as is typical for many dogs even more serious than a Fox, but remains in place and only by turning its head, alertly positioning its ears, and the direction of its gaze makes it clear to the owner where to go. where the outsider is moving from and what he might be up to. Can you imagine what it costs a restless Fox not to burst out with good obscenities and rush into a reckless attack? But, looking at Jinka, my other foxes learned to work the same way. And let cowardly, suspicious and excitable dogs of all breeds, who have learned this command, which makes life easier not only for them, but also for their owners, say thank you to her, my Dzhinechka!

She hears my “inner voice” no worse than a shepherd dog. I don’t have to explain to her what I want from her; she, like her mother, knows everything without words. That’s how she learned to climb trees, later passing this skill on to her children. Well, not steep, I won’t lie, but about sixty degrees - he climbs without batting an eye.

Once, while walking in a park with my husband and three dogs, without thinking, I placed Jinka, then still very young, in the fork of an old poplar tree, at a height of more than two meters from the ground. In any case, she had to push herself slightly away from my outstretched arms. There was no point in even thinking about getting her out of there, but she was quite capable of jumping off.

She could have, but she didn’t want to! Once at the top, noticeably above my head, Jinka looked at me with her usual bright and calm gaze and tried to determine which of the two thick branches would be easier for her to climb to the top. Fortunately, she was not able to climb further - after the fork, the branches grew almost vertically. Then, calmly sitting down in the fork, she began to wait for me to figure out what I wanted from her. I got lost. She knew for sure that since I had put her there, she had no right to jump off without doing anything good for me. Otherwise, why would she be there at all? She was clearly going to sit in the tree until I told her definitely what she needed to do. And she understood my confusion quite clearly: people are slow-witted, the housewife needs time to invent anything. After all, we improvised a lot before, coming up with exercises as we went along.

My husband took it off by placing some kind of log under a tree. At the last moment, when he was almost reaching out to her with his hand, my dear little dog decided that at least she had to jump according to all the rules, and pushed off strongly from the tree with her hind legs. They fell like that - in an embrace. And I reproached myself for the stupid prank, fearing that after this Jinka would stop taking my orders seriously. What is it! Gee has not lost faith in me!

Now, of course, I would do things differently. I would be able to form a clear mental order.

Our relationship with her has nothing in common with the training everyone is used to. There were two significant features in her upbringing, which, I believe, will surprise experienced trainers a lot. Firstly, she was brought up and studied without traditional “pieces”, and secondly, completely without punishment!

I simply forgot to take the “pieces” with which I usually stuff my pockets when going for a walk with a young dog. Having independently learned everything that a decent service dog should know, having developed her own rich arsenal of technical techniques, Dzhinechka only learned during my work with her own children that this, it turns out, also comes with a tasty treat! At first she was amazed and looked at her two sons and daughter disapprovingly: it’s not enough for you, they say, to have a good opportunity to please the owners, should you also serve some delicacies? Then, however, Jinka and Bambi, who demonstrated various exercises to the puppies, became disobedient for a while in the presence of the children - until they had eaten their fill of crackers. And again we made money, teaching the kids all sorts of things from our half-play, half-work repertoire. By the way, here I have something to brag about: at a time when no one in our country had ever heard of this type of competition with dogs called “agility,” my foxes and I ourselves invented many of the exercises included in this program.

As for punishments, until about three years ago, Jinka didn’t understand the idea at all. Is it possible that I would want to do something bad to her?! Even if I happened to spank her or pull her with a leash, she would look at me condescendingly and slightly mockingly: what, they say, did my hand go wrong? She considered it an accident, or at most a mistake, which, in her nobility, she easily forgave without holding a grudge against me. And I gave up, instantly forgetting about any and all pedagogical considerations. And only after one incident, when I got really angry (it was worth it!) and gave her a good beating at the withers, did she understand how and why dogs are punished. Which she proved to me - once again! - that the dog reacts to our true emotions, and not to their external expression. And along the way, she taught me to raise dogs not with the poorly understood “methods of Grandfather Durov” - indulgences and concessions - but with real, effective kindness.

And until now, for many years now, I don’t have to, as with other dogs, utter a reproachful: “Gina, you again...”. She may make mistakes out of ignorance, but she never repeats her misdeeds. Maybe fights with my sister... but this is nothing more than a protracted educational process. It’s me who doesn’t have enough endurance to let them “fight” to the logical end.

However, what can be done with males is fraught with troubles with females. Dog ladies, regardless of breed and age, fight without declaring war and without mercy - this is due to their hereditary species characteristics. And my girls, who have been adapted for centuries to take the beast dead, “hunt” each other in the same way. And yet, although I try to be professional about it, their fights are extremely tiresome. They flare up even without a reason, as soon as they become overexcited, say, from the presence and impudent behavior of a third dog. And only I, shouting: “The next fight will be with me!”, can cool their fighting fuse.

Now it’s very hard to believe that Gi-Gi for a long time was not so much my dog ​​as Rolfina’s. In our pack, all the young people, without exception, go through this, and I do not interfere in their relationships, knowing from experience how much communication with the Leader, with a magnificent, strong and very smart shepherd dog, gives children.

However, Jinka treated me much longer than others as an incidental circumstance, a kind of element of the environment. No, no, she loved me more than anyone in the family, and obeyed without fail, and sought protection from her husband’s righteous indignation, and with her puppy troubles, she, taught by her elders, came to me and only to me. And she knew perfectly well about my love for her. But she didn’t look for joy in me. I simply relied on her “by position”, being as integral to a normal dog’s life as a full bowl, like a roof over my head, like a cozy place. And she had enough joy in the pack. Proud and independent, she was pleased to accept my selfless love, as if all the time making it clear to me that it would not be so difficult for her to get along without me, if something happened. It is unlikely that I will be able to convey this feeling in words. It seems that everything is as it should be, by all the most demanding standards - my dog, and no one else. But shouldn’t I know, not feel that - not completely!

And for me she became the embodiment of all the joy of life - carefree, playful, active and unusually bright in all her manifestations. The year ninety-three turned out to be very, very difficult for our family, as for many others. And amid all the turmoil of life, among the innumerable worries and difficulties of everyday life, Gee became a life-giving light for me, that very Sparkle-in-the-Fog that remains to this day. Having called her that for the first time because of the white “star” on her dark back, behind her right shoulder blade, I did not suspect that this name would take on a symbolic meaning.

My men say that I was “holding” them then. And I was “held” by Dzhinechka, a tiny dog, still very young. Just looking at her warmed my soul. My Bambi has the ability to calm down no worse than valerian, but it was not calm that I needed then. I can’t help but admit: there were moments when I managed not to despair, not to lose heart, solely thanks to Gee-Gee.

Here she is playing with her mother and her stern teacher. The mother tirelessly practices hunting techniques with the heiress of military glory, and Rolf fusses with his beloved adopted daughter rapturously and selflessly. Jinka, playful and mischievous, jumps around the giant lounging on the floor, and he, purring blissfully, pretends to be desperately catching her with his terrible teeth, but he still can’t catch her.

So, while walking, they teach her to fight, forcing her to fight off each one in turn, then both at once, and retreat when she, tired of the fuss, presses herself against my legs. They know that being able to protect the rear is almost more important than bravely going on the attack.

And I watch the cheerful bustle and my heart goes limp and warms. Everyday worries and troubles fade away and fade away. It was as if I was jumping up and running, charging with incredible foxy energy. So Jinka grew up adored by both people and dogs, a child spoiled beyond all measure.

I have always loved her, loved her selflessly and devotedly. I didn’t know how to be angry with her, and I still haven’t learned to.

Time passed, and Jinka grew up. It was time for her to become a mother.

When I knit Bambi, I am one hundred percent sure of her absolute trust in me. She will endure all the quirks of even a very difficult partner (anything can happen during mating!), bears children without whims, will always tell me if, above all expectations, what is wrong, and she will give birth as a gift. With Ji it was impossible to predict anything. She perceived pregnancy as exclusively her own, deeply personal matter. She lay thoughtfully for a long time, “talking with the children,” and did not really want me to interfere in this intimate process.

And how she was afraid of childbirth! A month earlier, when Bambi’s mother gave birth to Kaska, G saw everything and, it would seem, should have understood everything. Bambi showed her the nest and taught her how to care for the puppy. But then Jinkin’s time came - and for almost two days we couldn’t find a place for ourselves.

I tried very hard to be afraid only in secret from her, I deliberately walked away when I felt uneasy. It’s always like this with your own people - with your mind you understand that there is no reason to worry, but your heart is consumed by doubts: what if I don’t see something? But next to her, I had to radiate calm and confidence in a happy outcome. For almost two days I kept telling her, with or without words: “Don’t be afraid! I'm with you all the time! You can’t take us together with your bare hands!”

When her first child, Lars, was born, this event shocked her so much that she forgot to give birth any further. Lord, there are three more children, the main thing is yet to come, and my Gina keeps licking her son, not allowing me for a minute to put him in a specially prepared box on a heating pad next to the nest. New contractions begin, I, as expected, put the baby aside so that the mother does not accidentally touch him in labor spasms - and the contractions immediately stop, she rushes to look for the baby. So she didn’t trust me with a single baby; I had to leave them in the nest and vigilantly monitor their safety during the next birth. I never knew such troubles with Bambi!

But then, as soon as she came to her senses after giving birth, Jinka began to cling to me like never before. It was as if she completely stopped separating herself and me, we finally became one. And I was infinitely glad to do for her everything she wanted, I spoiled her more than Bambi (although I spoil my first girlfriend outrageously), so long as she, in turn, never ceases to tell me: “I always I will be with you!".

Now she is always nearby, a couple of meters from me. Very restrained in all manifestations of feelings (her kisses, which Bambi and Kaska are so generous with, still need to be earned), taciturn, she sometimes cries openly when I, leaving home, cannot take her with me. In fact, they always know where I’m going, but there are times when I myself hesitate whether to take her - then she, having hoped and disappointed, becomes infinitely upset. And then she greets you first at the door and grumbles if someone else tries to greet you more gently than she does.

My men tell me that without me she seems to fade away, falls into a kind of emotional suspended animation. I know that at this time she literally accompanies me with her soul, wherever I am. Dogs travel in the astral plane much easier than ours.

Not so long ago, when she was about four years old, we separated for the first time for a few days. I had to leave for an urgent matter, and there was no way to take her with me. The separation cost us both considerable experiences, but the most important thing, it turns out, awaited me after my return.

My husband and I came home early in the morning - fortunately, the Moskovsky train station is very close to us. The dogs greeted us joyfully, as always, but Jinka was a little colder than usual. It was as if she had caressed me and said hello, but there was no trace of the wild joy that I expected. I wasn’t offended, I generally rarely get offended by her, but it seemed strange to me. We lay down to take a nap after a bad night on the train. Jinka, as usual, settled down under my side. I felt some strange numbness in her, as happens in dogs under light anesthesia, and in her aura all emotions were suppressed by will and discipline.

Having rested from the road, I went to the store for a while, and when I returned... That’s where Gina met me for real! There was everything here: jumping, caresses, and a joyful, gentle, special dog “purr.” I think our return this morning was such a surprise for her (although I told her on the phone from Ryazan that I would be back soon, and she answered me with a gentle purr) that she did not have time to recover from the very “anabiosis” in which she ordered herself to be during our separation. Or maybe she was afraid that I was about to disappear again. And only after I arrived from the store did she finally believe that I was truly at home, that I would leave and return again, as always.

Perhaps I should tell you exactly how we communicate with her. Here is an episode that happened recently and would not have caused me any surprise if a friend who was present had not been amazed.

My son is dressing the dogs for a walk, but Jinka, who is comfortably sitting next to me on the sofa, doesn’t want to go. Getting ready to bake a cupcake or cookies for evening tea, I say:

You will take a walk with Yura, and then I will go cook, and you will help me.

Dogs' help in cooking usually consists of "pre-washing the dishes", and therefore I clearly imagine the yellow pan in which I usually knead the dough, standing on the floor and made for licking.

Jinka asks again: looking intently into my eyes, she slightly sticks out her tongue and imitates licking. I confirm:

Yes, delicious!

She, having calmed down, goes for a walk, but as soon as she returns, she teases me until I interrupt the fascinating chatter and go to the kitchen. But if she didn’t understand and just asked for something tasty, she wouldn’t have left with her son, but would have dragged me, as happens, straight to the refrigerator. Needless to say, she didn’t share the pan with anyone after that and licked it conscientiously.

This is how we talk to her, and to other dogs, in any situation. This way I can explain to them what they didn’t know before, and I can get something out of them.

However, our conversations alone, no matter how interesting they may be, would not be enough to be called a Magic Dog. We must finally tell you about how and why she earned the right to this truly proud title. However, I’m not the first to talk about the magical capabilities of our dogs. Let us at least remember Papus, the most famous researcher of Magic, one of the Great Initiates of the early twentieth century. And, no matter how careful I am when touching on this topic, it is impossible to do without it in a conversation about Ji-Gi.

It is Ji-Gi who serves me as the most reliable protection not only in our real dark alley leading from the depths of the courtyard to Nevsky, but also in the nooks and crannies of the Subtle Worlds. Where Black gives me independence and only looks after me from the side, exactly like in real life, G is always together, always nearby. She is with me in all my “astral escapades”, she will always monitor my condition and warn me when for some reason it is better not to meddle in the Worlds. Why, she won’t even let you lay out the Tarot cards if something doesn’t go as it should.

She told me a lot of interesting things, completely different from Rolf, including about her reincarnations. It is from her that I know how and why a person can be “degraded to a dog” - so that, having gone through the harsh school of the pack, he better understand the essence of relationships with his own kind. Oh, what a temptation it is to tell you her secrets! But, sorry, I don’t have the right. Yours, please, but not hers.

Thanks to her constant presence and help, I never experienced in the astral the characteristic, as experienced people assured me, unpleasant sensations associated with the entities of the infra-astral. Apparently, she is leading me along safe paths known only to her. And I try to justify her trust.

It also happened to me that I really helped her out. This story is in two acts.

Jinka was a little over a year old when we went together to visit a friend who was then living with his dog kennel on a state farm near St. Petersburg. The happy dogs frolicked in the fresh air, romped in the green grass, enthusiastically tormented our friend who was training the foxes to kick - he, taught by his army and police experience, quite rightly decided that no one would fight off a small dog with his hands and that for effective protection they need to “take the blow” from the attacker’s legs. But now, after his “intensive course”, my girls can even be hit on the nose with a boot. In the meantime, we had the pleasure of looking at his Caucasian and South Russian shepherd dogs, and then he showed us his horse.

The amber stood in the barn, where, for convenience, a hatch that hinged outward was made in the wall. The bay stallion was visible up to his chest, and I took Jinka in my arms to introduce her to the unprecedented beast. She is a very determined girl and, seeing horses and cows from the car or grazing in the distance, she only turns to stone, preparing for the most desperate bullfight. Here Gee calmly sniffed the huge horse's muzzle sticking out from behind the folded hatch cover. But the horse leaned forward a little...

Gina recoiled as best she could in my arms and froze in a stunned stupor. Even I, with all my love for her, was unable to appreciate the strength of her shock, and the men simply burst out laughing: just a couple of minutes ago, this same girl fought fiercely with a strong and trained man, he groaned and screamed, then dodging her teeth, then freeing himself with my help from the tenacious grip of the fox. And then - I was dumbfounded!

On the way back, G seemed to calm down. Rolf and Bambi did not see the horse; they sat in the car all this time. She told her mother and uncle about an incomprehensible and terrible monster. And, as it seemed to me, I forgot about him forever.

But no, I remembered! And how! More than a year later.

Then we already had Kaska, and G raised her younger sister, teaching her the wisdom of pack relationships, which Kasya had to master with considerable difficulty. The eternal and unchanging reason for their fights was their relationship with me - not jealousy, but the different rights of members of the pack of different status. Sometimes Kaska, falling into a quarrelsome and quarrelsome state of mind, is rude to her sister without any reason. What can Jinka do but teach the impudent person a lesson?

In one of the tense, conflicting moments, Yurka, who was sitting in a chair, took Kaska on his lap, and she grumbled at her older sister who came up to them from below. And my adult son, getting naughty, began to squeeze Kaska’s chest with sharp thrusts, forcing the puppy to make strange, abrupt, grumbling sounds that do not exist in dog language. Gee, not understanding Kasya’s unusual words, initially narrowed her teeth, but immediately became numb again. If she had been at least a little more emotional and spontaneous in her external manifestations, she would have barked and growled back, and thus would have gotten rid of the stress. But this is Ji-Gi!

I, busy at that moment with something of my own, only asked my son to stop, but did not attach due importance to what was happening. Of course, I felt Jinkin’s fear, but - a mistake is a mistake, that’s why I’m talking about it - I didn’t get down on all fours next to her, didn’t growl at the hooligans, didn’t help my favorite, my lifesaver, understand what had happened and react correctly. Everything became completely clear only at night, when we went to bed.

Gina always sleeps with me. With her appearance in my life, Bambi gave her daughter the most honorable and sweet place at my side, and she herself moved closer to my feet. That night Jinka could not sleep properly. She restlessly turned from side to side, every now and then opening her uncomprehending, frightened eyes, her paws twitched desperately. I decided that something was hurting her (she would endure it until the last moment, so as not to disturb me again in the middle of the night!), I tried to help her with methods that would give general calm, but she, who usually sleeps completely serenely, was now very uncomfortable. Even measures that most often reliably put the dog into a mild narcotic state did not produce any results.

And then for the first time I dared to look into a dog’s dream on my own initiative. Now I have completely mastered this method of studying the dog’s psyche and influencing it - thanks to Jinka! At the time, this was a novelty for me. Well, what experience did I have of “spying” on their dreams - that first hunting dream of Bumby and a couple of visions of Rolf that were interesting in content, but had no practical consequences. But at that moment I understood perfectly well: this is the only thing I can try to do for my beloved. In such cases, by daring into something unknown, I take measures to prevent possible harm from invading the psyche. I have my own ways of installing protective blocks.

Gina imagined... a horse's head! A little sketchy, like all objects in a dog’s imagination, as if devoid of unnecessary details, but no less terrifying for that. Huge yellow teeth, almost a fire-breathing mouth - this is how the good-natured Yantarka appeared in the vision of the stunned Gina. Only then did I realize how intense the stress she had experienced was, if it returned like a nightmare more than a year later, with another shock.

She needed urgent help, and had to invent means on the fly. I protected her with all my love, I tried to put her into a light and medium trance - all this helped for a very short time. After pushing around like this for an hour or two, I suddenly realized: I need to replace this terrible picture! And I tried to send her another dream, not at all sure that I would succeed, hastily praying to the Lord to help me and her.

And she saw my “man-made” dream! It was a picture of a peaceful summer walk: Jinka was playing in the green grass, the warm, kind sun was shining. I'm near. Somewhere nearby there are older dogs. And we are all ready to help her out at any moment, to protect her from anything, but there is no danger at all...

She calmed down and fell asleep. I stayed up for some time, I think until about five in the morning, maintaining this serene picture at the first movement. I won’t describe in detail how I worked with her in the morning, when we both woke up, it’s enough that by the evening my recklessly brave Jinka became herself again. The fears never returned.

Furthermore! Jinka, apparently, adopted my own defensive techniques and had already managed to use them more than once. Now do you understand why Jinka and I prefer to work together with particularly fearful dogs, those subject to constant stress or those that have experienced severe shocks?

By the way, now, when I’m telling you about Jinka, she came in person to “scratch” me from behind the desk. We walked the dogs not so long ago and not so little, so there was no need for her to ask to go outside. Although... there are all sorts of emergency needs. I look into her eyes: the look is calm, but with a slight hint of request. Yeah, I realized: “I don’t need anything, but you’ve been sitting here for so long, I miss you!” As usual, I send her my greetings - an instant impulse of love, reminiscent of streams of fresh milk in the aura. I stroke her neck, as she loves, but only my hands are calm, a little indifferent. And I immediately turn to the table: sorry, honey, you see that I have to work. I was upset. But she still moved away, jumped onto the bed behind me and began to sniffle quietly: well, if that’s what you need, work for your health, I understand! This means that she really didn’t come for me. When she saves me from fatigue, from “overheating” - a minute before I myself am ready to give up everything and never return to the table - she is much more persistent.

I confess honestly: I have become different in many ways only because I try to imitate my dogs. They teach me a better attitude towards life, one that people, unfortunately, have forgotten. GG taught me to live boldly and joyfully.

And our story, which I could go on and on about, is far from over. She is still full of strength, she works with me, she still guards me vigilantly. Always, all my life, I will feel the intrepid gaze of her attentive brown eyes.

But I know: that terrible day will come when I miss her. Stronger than I can imagine right now. By this look. By the touch of small warm paws... only she puts her hand on mine...

And after this day I will never have a new Fox again.