Adorable Adoptable Pets of the Week!

 

Responsible Pet Ownership

Responsible pet ownership shows an owner having love toward their animal. One of the important aspects of ownership, is taking care of their animal physically. A well control diet and  taking a dog out for regular walks is very important. Another entilement is showing that you love your animal. for example playing with your animal and cuddeling with it. If it is all day in the cage than it will slowly become depressed. Having time to spend with the animals is essential because animals should be treated like humans because they too have emotions. Since I went to the animals shelter today, I ask people what they thought was the meaning of responsible pet ownership. A staff member told me, "Taking care of your pets is not only a matter of food, shelter, and love, it is about having a friendship that will stay beside you forever"-anonymous. I also asked a visitor and they responded, "Have a good diet, and shelter"-Alejandra DeLaRosa. I agree with both of these responses and I think that most importantly, your pet should depend on you just as you can depend on them.

Rosemary

I chose this photograph because I think that the animals will show if their owners are responsible. Seeing an animal that is happy, health, and enlightened shows how the owner has taken great care of their animal. Animals that have not been treated with love or respect will tend to be aggressive and will be frighten with everyone. 

Reasons for Surrender

It is sad to say that some dogs and cats are surrendered at the Wake County Animal Center because their owner can not take care of them. Although this problem is more common than what people think, it is important to be understanding and help these animals find a better home.

Boo
CamID#883065

Boo was surrendered by his owner because his is a puppy. Although there is not much information it is apparent that a puppy not only takes a lot of attention, but can become expensive as vaccinations add up. I am positive Boo will not stay in the shelter for so long, but it is sad how he was left in the shelter. 

Karmin
CamID#88710

Karmin is such an adorable dog and was surrendered because her owner could not take care of her any more. She is an older dog that is very playful and is super sweet with everyone. There is also not much information left in the surrender sheet but the family tried to find the best place to leave Karmin. It is only a matter of time before she is adopted. 

Oliver
CamID#88785

For cute golden Oliver, he was surrendered without much explanation. Although his background was unknown Oliver is such a wonderful loving cat. His owners left a "Because" explanation, however Oliver will soon have a home and be a wonderful pet to a loving family.   

Observations

Although I have been going to the Wake County Animal Center for only three weeks I have noticed that numerous dogs and cats come every single day. Most of these dogs are puppies and get adopted very quickly. However many of the older dogs suffer because adopters are more interested in puppies, than in older dogs that have less chances of finding a home. This does not surprise me because I am guilty of this myself. Knowing that puppies are so cute makes lots of people more attracted to them, leaving the older dogs alone. I did see a wonderful couple take an older dog for protection and companionship. I thought that was wonderful and was significant people if you think about it a puppy or kitten will not be good protectors like an older dog or cat.

Remy
CamID#72851
Photo Taken By WCAS Volunteer
5/28/2013

Overall I think Remy has not yet been adopted because many people are scared of Pit Bulls. Also being a female, many adopters do not want to deal with having babies and potentially having more expenses. Although Remy has not yet been adopted I think she will be adopted because she is a wonderful companion that will protect anyone and with her joy brighten anyone's day. 

Best of Week Two

Out of my first fifteen photo's of last week this photograph was not my favorite. One area of improvement is, the shadows needed to be highlighted. For example the shadow highlights would bring out the cats features instead of hiding them. The second is the cat needed to be more in focused. For example having a better focus for make the image seem more eye-catching. The third is maybe playing around with the contrast because the cat seems to be too bland.  However, the image works well because of the depth of field. Also I brighten the eyes slightly to bring his eyes out a little. Lastly, I cropped this image to eliminate a distracting background. Overall having a range of photographs really helped me understand my weaknesses as a photographer so that later I will improve, and strengthen my images.

After volunteering at the Wake County Animal Center I have been around a lot of adoptions as well as people surrendering their animals. I was able to witness three different stories of people giving up their animals. The first story, was about family problems that involved getting rid of the animal because one spouse did not like the animal. The second story, was people finding the animals like for example in the road and calling the police to get the animal out of the neighborhood or street. The third story, was about the Animal Control taking animals that are either in inhuman situations or have been on the lose without a tag. Although these are stories I have experienced I still think there are so many other reasons for why people decide to give up their animals. However after volunteering for a week I have realized that many people have different reasons for letting the animals go, but the one's that are are mostly harmed are the older animals that have less chances of getting adopted.

I am so proud of this photograph because it was one of the first photograph's I edited on Photoshop,
and I was really impressed with the quality of this image. I also love the position of this cat
since I struggled to have a perfect focused image. 

 

This Week's Adoptable Pets!

What Is Meta-Data?

During today's lecture I learned about meta-data. Meta-data is basically information about a photograph. This information can range anywhere from the date the photograph was created to the email and address of the photographer. Meta-data is very important, for example when someone downloads your photograph with meta-data they know all the information about the photograph and the photographer. Aside from having personal information to refer to, it is also important for correct citation if you are planning to use the image. For me the most important aspect of meta-data  is being able to correctly cite an image being downloaded. This process also makes the digital image much better than it would have previously been.

For this photograph I set my camera to a fast shutter speed because
 the cat was moving a lot and the high shutter speed made me take the picture
fast and still aloud me to snap the picture fast enough and still be focused. The image works well because the cat's face
is in focus and the background is not distracting. 

Before and After Photo's!

After watching the NOVA'S Dogs Decoded Video I was amazed at the new technology used to detect how dog really think through their own eye's. I also was surprise at the bone structure that has changed dogs from wild animals to animals that can detect emotion and have physically changed. This changes my perspectives on dogs because I do not personally own one so I had no idea they could detect your emotions. For example if you are feeling sad the dog will comfort you. This shows that dogs are not only good pets but also great friends. Today as I went to the animal shelter I was able to understand how animals can detect your emotions and therefore know if you are dangerous. I was taking a picture of an older dog and at first she was barking and did not want me in the cage with her and after a couple minutes of petting she calmed down and allowed me to take her photograph's.

Before Photograph:
Cam ID#87541
Photo Taken by a WCAS Volunteer
5/21/2013

This after photograph increases the cats adoption potential because Meme's faced is focused and the high ISO makes the light give her a glow. Also the adopters are focus on her only without distraction in the background. 

Photographic Language

For today's lecture the most important think to remember when photographing an animal is to have a close up of the animal with little distraction and a full body image. This will make sure your image's are clear, sharp, and a clear representation of the animal. Having a clear image of an animal will give the adopter a clear picture of the pet they wish to adopt. Having little distraction in the background makes the adopter only focus on the animal. In the image below Percy is a smiling dog that has a focused face and most of his body in this image. Also little distraction makes the adopters only focus on him. The Brillance of the Dog Mind, by Gareth Cook, THE SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, February 5, 2013, http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=brilliance-of-dog-mind&WT.mc_id=SA_Facebook  is a article I read and I thought it was very interesting because we are explained that does are not geniuses but that each do is good at certain things. For example police dogs that get trained to find illegal substances and then your regular house dog that just stays with the family. I think all animals are smart therefore this article does not change my opinion but does support what I think about police training K9 dogs.

Cam ID#26984
Photo Taken by WCAS Volunteer
Copied 5/20/2013

This image works well because the cat is in focus. Also the intensity of this cats eyes
draws the adopter to only focus on the cat and look at its features.

Week One Day 4

I will be volunteering at the Wake County Animal Center. To adopt an animal there are small fee's that have to be paid when you adopt the animal. Since there are different animals the adoption of a dog is $45 and $50. For cats the fee is $15 and $30. The diffidence in those two prices are if the dog or cat has been spay or neuter the price is increased. The fees for dogs include the pet's first shots for general dewormer which is a heartworm test (DA2PPV or FVRCP), a flea and tick treatment, a microchip, and a rabies vaccine. For cats the same flea and tick treatment, a microchip, and rabies vaccine apply with an added FIV/FELU test for cats. The adopter can always return if their pet was under four months at the time of adoption for a rabies inoculation for no additional cost. However, for small critters and exotic animals it ranges anywhere from $10 to $45. Rodents are $10, Guinea Pigs are $15, Rabbits and Bird are $20, Reptiles are $30, and Ferrets are $45. The reason I think the shelter does not give the homeless pets free, is because the county spends a lot of money taking care of these animals that a small fee at least covers some of the expenses. I asked a visitor who ended up adopting a bird about this question and he told me, “The fee is for a donation to the Wake County Animal Center—Abel Martinez”. I also asked a staff worker and he said, “We do not have an application process so there is a fee and that fee causes a second guess before really adopting an animal—Richie”. These answers can be positive because people need to be serious about adopting an animal. The negative parts of these answers are not everyone wants to pay that small fee.  However I had an amazing time volunteering today because I was able to translate for a family and a pet got adopted.  

This image works well because it shows how in order to adopt,
you have to think twice about an adoption. This will provide the best
loving home. 

This image reminds me about the fee
being  part of a donation that takes care of the expenses to care
for these animals. 

Wake County Animal Center Orientation Photo's

Based on my first day of orientation I was able to sit at the Wake County Animal Center lobby and observe animals such as cats and dogs being adopted as well as people taking their animals because they were unable to take care of them. This experience helped me understand why some people cannot take care of their animals and would rather see them happier in a better home. When going through a walk-through I could smell the animal's food but overall there were areas of the center the smelled very clean. The sounds changed from animals such as dogs mostly barking and then getting increasingly high. The cats and small critters did minimal noises and really just woke up when the class was walking by the area. One dog in particular, her name is Joan Rivers caught my attention because when I stepped in the dog's room everything was quiet until Joan Rivers barked and than every other dog started barking. Almost to show she was the boss and I really thought that was showing the dog's personality. My first day was amazing and I recommend anyone who wants to adopt animals, or just help to volunteer at Wake County Animal Center should do so because just with one more volunteer that could make a big difference in a animals life.
 

This image works well because the
viewer's focus only at the cute rabbit
and are not distracted by anything in
its cage. Also the high ISO makes the
lighting appear brighter on the photograph rather
than being really dark. 

This image works well because you can see that there is a depth of
field because this cat's face in in focus and the rest of the body and background are not, making the viewer only focus on the animal.
Also it makes the viewers have an awe moment while looking at this photograph. 

Week One Day II

I currently do not own a personal camera but I have rented a Meredith College camera. The camera is a Nikon D70 digital camera. I am very excited to have the opportunity to use this camera because I have taken a photography class in High School and used Photoshop to develop a better photograph. Although I am not an expert I have at least some experience. The positive thing about this camera is the ability to control the depth of field which means you have the control on what is and is not in focus. Another positive aspect is a higher quality lens making your images sharper in some areas as needed. Most importantly having a high ISO which makes the images better for low light conditions. However, the negative aspects about this camera is bulky and will be more challenging to take pictures of cats and small animals. Also trying to come inside the dogs cage will take a little more time because the camera is very fragile and can be damage easily.

This image works well because of the depth of field
since he is in focus but everything else around him is not in
 focus making the viewer only focus on him

This image works well in the depth of field because
we focus on his face. However, this image does not
because his glasses have a glare and a distraction.

This image works well because the focus goes straight to the middle
where we need to focus.

This image does not work well because the fishes are not in focus. This makes the image look
unprofessional and look as if the image was taken by a cheap camera.

This image does not work well because of the flash
used. The flash makes the viewer lose focus and it looks unprofessional.

This image works well because the high ISO makes the fish scales look bright and for
a fish the eyes are not the best angle of the fish.

Hello,

My name is Britany Fernandez Mar. I am planning to get a Criminology major with a minor in Chemistry and will be graduating in the class of 2016. I decided to take this course because I needed an art class for general education but I also wanted a class that would be challenging but overall very fun. I hope to become well educated about animals in need of help and to possibly adopt an older animal to provide a home with lots of love. I cannot wait to start the orientation and begin my journey as a photographer so that with my photographs animals can be adopted. I can honestly say I am intimidated on any scary situation that can happen at the Wake County Animal Shelter that can put in harm any animals or staff for example a disease epidemic. Since this is my first year in college I have not had any experience with online courses however, I do expect to have challenging expectations mixed with easier assignments. I also think the professor is very understanding and will push us to be challenged but not let us fall. I cannot wait to start taking pictures of so many adorable animals so that they can find a loving home.