A Dog’s Life
Heart-warming stories of everyday New Zealand
dogs
Craig Bullock
Random House
Published 14 August 2015; RRP $39.99
Dogs keep us company when we need it most,
reduce stress in an increasingly stressful world, take us on adventures and
help us with the jobs we couldn’t possibly do alone. We are a nation of dog
lovers and it’s not just the cute little city dogs that capture our hearts.
They may not be on the bed at night, but even working dogs are still very much
a part of the family, as we saw when beloved police dog Thames went missing in
the Tararua
Ranges and how upset the Wakefield family
was. The news media kept us updated regularly until he was found.
Animal-lover and photographer Craig Bullock
also firmly believes dogs make our lives better. To prove this, he’s back with
another collection of arresting photographs, celebrating the very special,
unspoken bond we have with our pooches.
In his acknowledgements, Craig thanks the
dogs for the ‘endless fun and entertainment’ they gave him on his journey
around the country, tracking down some of our coolest dogs for this
heart-warming book. This sense of fun is palpable, as one turns from one page
to the next.
Arranged into 10 groups — working dogs, lap
dogs, adventure dogs, city dogs, country dogs, expedition dogs, culture dogs,
companion dogs, farm dogs and champion dogs — A Dog’s Life lets us see
dogs going about their daily lives. Bullock skilfully captures each dog’s
individual personality as they focus on the important task at hand.
Thorn, a two-year-old British bulldog and a
big Hurricanes fan, will happily slip into his own ‘small men’s’ size team
jersey ahead of a big game and bark along as everyone else cheers a try.
Apartment dweller Biff the bouncy Boston terrier makes weekly visits to Mars NZ
Ltd, just one of an increasing number of corporates who recognise their
positive impact on the workspace. From the bow of the tour boat, Labradoodle
Sidney keeps a watchful look out for Hector’s dolphins around Banks Peninsula.
Bella Tessa, who hails from the well-known Reid aviation family, patiently
waits while her ‘mutt muffs’ are fitted before her regular chopper flight over
the Tasman area. Bruno, the mascot for a Taupo white-water rafting company,
with at least 100 river trips under his belt, stands right up front wearing his
life jacket, loving the adrenalin rush along with all of the other tourist
passengers.
For three families, the book’s publication comes with a heavy
heart. They’ve recently lost their canine companions, but they still wanted
their stories to be told in memory of many wonderful years together. From lap
dogs to working dogs, these are real-life stories of over 60 exceptional and
adorable everyday Kiwi canines.
About Craig Bullock
Craig Bullock has worked as a photographer
for more than 10 years and found his rather unusual niche of pet photography
very quickly because he’s always loved animals. He was the photographer for the
acclaimed books Quake Dogs and Quake Cats, the latter of which he
also wrote. Craig lives in Christchurch with his partner and their three cats:
Jazz, Mr Tinkles and Millefeuille. www.furtography.co.nz
Photographs copyright
© Craig Bullock, 2015.
Check
out the behind the scenes footage: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOCryf9w40A&feature=youtu.be.
Biff
Bruno
Sidney Murphy Hector
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