By Alison Harris
Published September 2023
I have a huge passion for pets, and have been witness to them bringing people together in magical ways on many occasions. When I first started working at the University Avenue (UA) interim housing project, one of the things I absolutely loved was that folks were welcome to bring their pets to live with them. Knowing how deeply attached many community members are to their pets, it brought me immense joy to know they didn’t need to be separated from them or choose to remain on the street to stay with their pets.
Fast forward, I am now working at the King Street Shelter, which is also pet friendly.
Many pet owners at the shelter don’t have the luxury of photographs of their pets, their phones are often stolen or lost, and they lose any pictures they may have.
I also work at Community Justice Initiatives. On Saturday, May 26th they held their annual fundraiser, The Super Sweet Stride Retreat for their Stride program.
Stride helps women at Grand Valley Federal Prison build informal networks of support that assist them as they reintegrate back into the community. The program also helps the community to receive the women safely and supportively.
The fundraiser is a spa day offering a wide range of services. Women from the prison are able to attend and donate their time and services for the day, along with service providers in the wider community. All proceeds raised go to support the Stride program.
This year, they decided to offer Pet Photography!
My friend Ashley, who owns Happy Tails Ayr, didn’t hesitate one bit when asked if she would be interested in donating her time and offering up her creative photography skills.
I began to think that this could be an opportunity for the pet owners at the King Street Shelter to have their loyal companions photographed. We switched gears, two sessions were booked and paid for which allowed every pet at the shelter that day to be in the limelight.
Ashley brought along a great selection of accessories for the dogs to wear, and some delicious treats. The pet owners were thrilled to hear they could get free photos of their pets. The owners were also invited to be photographed with their pets and gladly accepted.
The fun took place at beautiful Rockway Gardens, on a sunny Saturday morning.
Their owners were so engaged in the whole process, and stuck around to chat and get a sneak preview of the pictures through Ashley’s camera. The pets brought the event together in such a beautiful way, everyone was happy with how the day turned out. The pet owners were also really happy to learn that this initiative would support women from Grand Valley Prison.
Each pet owner will receive all of their pictures emailed to them, and they can choose their favourite one to be printed and framed.
A little idea that grew brought much joy and support to the shelter residents and the Stride program.
A big thanks to Ashley, all the pet owners and pets for going with the flow and making the day so fun and meaningful.
