Put the Camera Down

I’ve been writing the Puppy Press for about three months now, and each time I write a post, I always make sure to include plenty of photos and videos to help you visualize my experiences. I capture images of sleeping puppies, cuddling puppies, and playful puppies, but photos don’t tell the whole story.

Photos may not tell the whole story, but they’re still pretty darn adorable.

The best times I’ve had with the wolf puppies have occurred when I’ve put the camera down. When I’m not concentrating on image sharpness, lighting, and guarding my camera from inquisitive puppy teeth, I experience each moment more deeply and intimately.

Cameras can never fully capture the emotions and thoughts behind the images. The past three months, I argue, are not the sum of the photos you see. They are the sum of countless emotions, anecdotes, and experiences that didn’t make it into the photo albums because we were too busy living those experiences in the moment.

To show you what I mean, I’ve asked a few Puppy Parents to share their stories.

Photos can’t express the emotions this Puppy Parent felt when she was accepted into the pack:

“I felt a tiny cold wet nose touch my hand. I look down and it’s Unalii. I won’t forget that moment, cause when I had looked down at him, he looked up at me while nipping at my palm and at that moment, I forgot basically everyone else, heard no one else, and saw nothing else. I wanted to protect these guys no matter what it took. I knew that instantly at looking at him, and when they all came running over it only made that feeling a concrete one.”

Unalii, the shy puppy, made the first move.

One of our Puppy Dads has fully embraced the role of “Wolf Mom.”

“I’ll always look back on this summer fondly as “The Summer of the Wolves”. It’s been a life changing experience. Like the fact that I’m okay with being called a wolf mom. Now tell me what red-blooded man wants to do anything to be labeled as a mom? But you know what, I wear that badge with honor. I’ve said it over and over, each visit is like therapy, even the rainy ones where they do nothing but sleep in the pen. Howling with them and hearing their music never gets old.”

And while we often photograph the puppies howling, an image can’t capture the soul-to-soul connection that occurs when we join in the song:

 “There ain’t NOTHING in the world like looking into a wolf’s eyes while it’s howling with you.”

Truer words were never spoken.

And speaking of howling, here’s a story from the Alpha Mom herself, the head of the wolf program at Bays Mountain Park. She received a rare honor while communing with the pups that none of us had ever witnessed:

“While in the pen last night with the Pups and some Puppy Parents, we started howling.  I started, they all came running and Ela came to my lap and began to howl the most amazing howl.  The other Parents followed suit and pups went to howl and greet others….EXCEPT Ela.  She stood on my lap and howled touching my face, then she howled in my mouth, stopped for a few seconds, lightly touching me all over my face with her lips, and she howled in my mouth once again.  I felt the howl down deep in my soul, my lips were tingling, so enthralled with the howl that entered my body!! I have never experienced this before raising three packs…this brought me almost to tears.  I am still in awe….”

Another Puppy Parent shared about the less glamorous aspects of the gig. Cameras can definitely capture the “dirty” moments, but I have yet to find a Puppy Parent who complained about any of it:

“Puppy parenting… Dirtiest experience of my life. Covered in dirt and mud, being peed on, having bones brought to your lap, being rubbed on after the wolf rolled on a dead rotting carcass of some type, being licked in the face/mouth/ears/eyes and every other area of the body not covered in clothes right after the wolf consumes raw meat, having my hair pulled, being scratched, mouthed to the extent my hand/arm is covered in saliva, and lastly getting a big kiss from one of the puppies right after they regurgitate and then eat it again!

Yep, dirtiest experience of my life but also the very best experience of my life. I wouldn’t change a moment of it. My only wish is that I could’ve spent more time with them.”

Takoda isn’t shy about licking our faces right after eating fresh rabbit.

Personally, I’m glad no one has invented a camera that captures smell, and we all consider it an honor when the puppies bring us their prized bones and sticks or use our laps as a table.

Now don’t get me wrong. I love capturing memories through photos and will look back on my massive album of puppy pictures for years to come. And I’m definitely keeping this professional photo as my Facebook profile picture for a long, long time:

It took me all summer to get this photo, and it was well worth it. Photo Credit: Jay Huron and Case Sensitive Photography

But these short months with the pups have not been about taking pictures or writing blogs.

It’s about the rainy afternoons when four warm furry puppies cuddle with you in the den…

The sloppy puppy kisses when they’re so excited to see you…

The laughs over watching them race across the pen and occasionally trip over their massive paws…

The quiet hours watching over the pups while they sleep…

The goosebumps you feel when they look into your eyes while they howl with you…

The belly rubs. So many belly rubs…

And the bittersweet tears we will shed when the pups begin the next chapter of their lives with their adult pack.

Technology is wonderful for helping us capture memories and solidify fleeting, moments in time. But don’t forget to put the camera down sometimes and simply live for the present.

Comment Questions: What are your thoughts about cameras and memories? Do you notice a difference in your experiences when you bring a camera versus when you put it down? For the Puppy Parents, what have been your favorite experiences? Share your thoughts below!