Art for Dogs

T-Shirts, Pet Portraits, and More...

Here are the portraits I painted from the winning photos in my Rescue Dog Photo Contest:

See the TWO winning photos.

The portrait on the right is of a shelter dog named Mickey. After months of waiting, this 10 year old dog was recently adopted into a loving home just days after someone saw his portrait. This is why I started artfordogs.com. I plan to paint and donate many more portraits of dogs in the future. It's such a great feeling to change the lives of people and dogs with art. But there seems to be too many dogs to save, and not enough time to paint. So I do what I can. Of course, maybe I can't change the world for dogs, but I can help change one dog's world, one dog at a time.

(Scroll down to see a slide show of how I created Mickey's portrait.)

You can help support my efforts to inspire people to see the love in a dog's eyes, and how dogs and other pets of all ages are waiting to be found at shelters all over this county. Now, I'm offering portraits like Mickey's to the public at a special price: Just $99 gets you an original 12"x12" acrylic painting on stretched, wrapped canvas, ready to hang without a frame. (Framing is optional.) Plus FREE SHIPPING in the continental U.S. Your satisfaction is guaranteed.

Currently, I'm already working on portrait orders for Christmas. If you email me one or more good photos, I will create a FREE digital mock-up of how your pet portrait will look, and get back to you with prices for other sizes, before you decide to order. No deposit required! Payment is due only after I finish your portrait, email a picture of it to you, and you LOVE it. For your convenience, I accept payment through Pay Pal. Please contact me to find out how soon your portrait can be finished. Your painting will be shipped after payment is received.

For more gift ideas, you can also get t-shirts and other gift items in my Cafe Press gift shop. This is a great place to get inexpensive gifts for dog lovers, who also want share the message of responsible pet ownership.

Let's all work to change minds and save lives. There's a lot of love and joy waiting for someone at the local animal shelter. I know, because that's where my precious dogs came from.

Please choose to adopt.

-Ara Witmer

Send your photos and comments or questions to: artbyara@aol.com

New Design: "Canis Lupus"

Personally, I think it's pretty cool that the dogs I share my home with are a subspecies of Gray Wolf. In fact, all domestic dogs are. "Canis Lupus" is the genus and species of both the Gray Wolf and your best friend. Dogs are further classified as "Canis Lupus Familiaris." So if you love dogs or wolves, here's your shirt. This design is now available on many more products in the Art for Dogs Gift Shop.

Peace, Love, and Adoption Spoken Here

Here's a fun design I've just added to my shop. It's available on several different products. See this and much more in the Art for Dogs Gift Shop.

Save a Friend...

The same quote as before, in a more simple style. It really says it all, doesn't it? This is one of my favorites. Please adopt, and spread the word. Available now in the Art for Dogs Gift Shop.

Change a World...

Ever since I adopted Odie and Ginger from the Ramona Humane Society, I've been very inspired to promote dog adoption with my art and graphic design. Even dogs that are not cute little puppies any more, are eager to bond with a new human family. This is what Odie and Ginger taught me. So to help spread the word about dog adoption, here's another new shirt design I've just created. This design is available now on a variety of other apparel items in my Art for Dogs Gift Shop at Cafe Press.

Dog Portraits: Inky and Ms. Einstein

I just finished two new portraits of rescued dogs. Each painting is 8 x 10 inches, acrylic on canvas, and created from photos supplied by the dog owner.

"Inky"

"Ms. Einstein"

Anyone interested in having a portrait painted of any pet, may contact me at: ara@artfordogs.com. I donate 15% of the purchase price of each custom portrait to the ASPCA.

New Painting: "Adopted Friends"

Happy New Year, Everyone! We all have resolutions, right? So we might as well make them fun ones to keep! I want to take more dog photos, paint more dog portraits, design more t-shirts to promote dog adoption, and make more donations to my favorite animal charity.

Let's get started with a painting I recently completed. I often use photography as a reference for my paintings. Sometimes it's difficult to get just the right photo of a dog, especially when two or more dogs are interacting in the same photo. Since I purchased a digital camera, I now enjoy the luxury of taking as many photos as I need to get just the right one. One day, while sitting at my computer, I heard licking sounds behind me, and turned around to see that Odie was trying to give Ginger a kiss, and she was just goofing around and wouldn't let him kiss her. I grabbed my Canon Powershot A85, set it to "auto" and the flash caught these pics. Below is an example of how I got the right shot after nine photos:

The flash made Ginger look very orange, so I adjusted the colors when I created the painting below:

If you're interested in having your own dog (or any other pet) transformed into an original painting, just send an email to: ara@artfordogs.com to get my current prices and answer any questions you have. I donate 15% of the purchase price of all custom portraits to the ASPCA, a charity which helps all animals.

Helen Woodward Animal Center

I thought I'd share a homeless dog story with a happy ending. Many years ago, I rescued a young German Shepherd mix from a dump at an Indian reservation. I nursed him back to health, which included getting him some surgery for an injury he had, possibly from a barbed wire fence. I was unable to keep him, so after he was healed, I got on a waiting list at the Helen Woodward Animal Center in San Diego. A couple weeks later there was an opening for us, so I took "Bruiser" down to the Center. These people really LOVE animals, so I felt good leaving him in their care. In just a couple of days, I got a phone call letting me know that Bruiser went home with a happy family. What a relief!

Here's a video explaining more about what this wonderful place does. Much more than adoptions, as you will see here:

Pet Photography Saving Shelter Dogs

I was recently asked to recommend someone who photographs dogs, and during a search for Los Angeles photographers, I found Seth Casteel of Little Friends Fine Art Photography. I'm so very impressed with his professional photography AND the volunteer work he does for dogs with uncertain futures, I just had to share it here. I also found this video on Youtube, which shows what Seth Casteel is doing to make shelter dogs more appealing to people looking for a dog, and this video illustrates the incredible difference a good photo can make in getting a shelter dog adopted.

Dancing Dog

Just for fun, check out this video!

Art for Dogs at Oktoberfest

Here's the Art for Dogs booth at the recent Ramona Humane Society Oktoberfest, celebrating National Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog month. I offered t-shirts for sale and met so many like-minded people who care for the dogs and wanted to do whatever they could for them. Many people came for the free spay/neuter vouchers and, of course, to adopt dogs and cats.

Also at Oktoberfest, was Coyla Angeloff of Royalty Arts. She offered some beautiful digital dog portraits on canvas and takes a special interest in helping pitbull terriers.

Soon after these pictures were taken, the Shelter opened to the public and there were hundreds of people everywhere. It was great to see so many families interested in the cause of helping shelter dogs, and so many people choosing to adopt dogs into their own homes. I look forward to next year's Oktoberfest!

October - Adopt a Shelter Dog Month

October is Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog Month. Learn more at the ASPCA website. Also, my local animal shelter, the Ramona Humane Society in San Jacinto, is putting on their 8th annual Oktoberfest. (Odie and Ginger came from this shelter just over a year ago, and together they have brought so much joy into my life. In fact, Odie and Ginger were the inspiration for this blog!) Oktoberfest fun starts on Saturday, October 18, 2008 from 9am to 4pm. Pet adoptions are just $25 on this day only. See some of this shelter's adoptable pets. FREE spay/neuter vouchers will be available at this event. This will be a great time for the family, with entertainment, crafts, jumpers, carnival games, dog agility shows and more. Entry is FREE! The Ramona Humane Society is located at 690 Humane Way, San Jacinto, CA. For more info call: (951) 654-8002.

The Joy of Adopting Older Dogs

The Humane Society of the United States has a really nice article about adopting older dogs that's worth reading, so I thought I'd share it with anyone considering adoption: HSUS.

Animal Rescue - Hurricane Gustav

Hurricane Gustav is all over the news this morning as the storm prepares to make landfall on the Gulf Coast. We all remember how so many people stayed behind to watch their property, and to keep their pets with them. Rescue efforts for animals is much better cooridated this time, as people have been allowed to evacuate with their pets, and as many animals as possible have been helped into shelters. You can check out the Noah's Wish website to keep up to date on what volunteers are doing right now for the animals involved in this current disaster.

Be the Solution... New Shirt Design!

I've just created a new design for t-shirts, which is already starting to sell on Cafepress! I want get the message of responsible dog ownership out there, in a way that appeals to people. It's a matter of saving the lives of dogs.

I have dog shirts available in a variety of sizes, and men's, women's and kid's shirts too. Check out my new shop at:

www.cafepress.com/artfordogs

(The dog in the photo, is one of the standard models for Cafepress clothing.)

Learn more about why you should spay or neuter your pet here: http://ramonahumanesociety.org/why.html

1000 Dogs Rescued

I wish more people knew where pet store dogs come from. Too many come from places like this. The HSUS has just rescued 1000 dogs from a puppy mill in West Virginia. Watch the video!

Cockapoo Scares off Bears

A mother bear with 2 cubs strayed into a New Jersey family's backyard, but was scared off by a fifteen pound mixed breed dog who took on the bears with his fierce barking. You can see a picture of this brave little dog and read the full story here. One more vote for the value of the mixed breed dog!

My Dog, Odie

I've decided to share more photos of Odie. I adopted him from the Ramona Humane Society at the same time I got Ginger. They shared the same pen, and it was actually Odie who got my attention first. Before I went to the shelter, I knew it could be difficult because I'd want to take all the dogs home. But I prepared myself by knowing the kind of dog I wanted: medium sized, short hair, fawn to brown color, and neutered male. Breed was not important to me, but I mainly looked for a certain personality, a dog who greets me for the first time with ears folded down, showing respect and submission to humans. That's an easily trained dog, and that was Odie.

Odie had been at the shelter just two days, and was surrendered by his owner. He seemed like an old dog, and was very thin at 35lbs, with his ribs showing and a sunken face and dull coat. His teeth were bad too, from a poor diet. I was surprised to learn he was only 4 years old! I decided to adopt this beagle mix for his very gentle personality.

Well, after coming to my home, Odie has gained over 7 lbs., and he now has a shiny coat, and is getting his teeth cared for. He gets lots of exercise and has finally become the dog he was meant to be. I'm so happy for him! Odie has also overcome a bad habit of stealing food off the table, now that he gets enough to eat. There's hope for all those poor dogs, like Odie, sitting in shelters just waiting for someone to love and understand them. It has really been so rewarding to bring happiness and hope to this dog.

Here he is again, resting under a park bench after one of our many hikes at Lake Hemet. He really likes to get out and hike! I don't know if he ever got this kind of exercise before, but it's been good for him now.

Here is Odie at rest, sleeping on the sofa, a far cry from a cold shelter floor, surrounded by barking dogs. Welcome home, Odie!

For anyone considering getting a dog, please consider a shelter adoption, or if you desire a specific breed, check out the many organizations who specialize in rescuing those dogs. And don't worry about getting an older dog. They're often less trouble because they've had some training. Also, read my earlier post about adopting adult dogs.

Great Website for Dog Lovers

Here's a link to a site I recently found. Lots of info on dog breeds, and choosing the right dog.