Love Thy Dog with a Portrait by Dean Russo

Five years ago my good friend Emily was on her way to school at USC when she saw a dog lying on the side of the street, under a freeway overpass. He’d clearly been hit by a car. Being dog lover, she stopped to see what she could do. With almost no help from anyone else- sadly people were literally stepping over the dog going about their business- Emily scooped him up and put him in her car. In a panic, she called me and within the hour we met at the California Animal Hospital trying to save his life.

Photo of Rusty that we sent to Dean

Coincidentally my family had lost our beloved dog Byron that very morning, and while our hearts were mourning the loss of Byron, we felt that it was Kismet finding this sweet guy.  Now all we had to do is make sure he survived his injuries. After a few days in intensive care, the dog, now named Rusty made a miraculous recovery and came home to live with my parents.

After living on the streets for what must have been a while, Rusty had get over some anxieties and make some adjustments as he became a spoiled Rosenfeld dog. Rusty had never seen stairs before, had never seen his reflection in a mirror and even to this day he refuses to walk on anything but carpet. (In fact we have lovely runners throughout my parents house to accomodate his fear) But with lots of love from my parents and a few sessions with a great trainer, Rusty has now become the son my father never had.

I might be jealous if I didnt’ find it so adorable. Rusty is so connected to my father. Rusty sits and waits for him to get home, and won’t leave his side from the minute he walks in the front door until he goes to sleep.

So for my father’s birthday last year, I was lucky enough to have the most wonderful artist named Dean Russo create a Doggie Portrait of Rusty. He took the picture above and within a very short amount of time, and for a very affordable price, he created this…

Amazing Painting of Rusty (ink/acrylic on canvas)

Isn’t that amazing????? My Dad was over the moon about it, and he has proudly hung it in his study.

Dean’s work is not only gorgeous, but Dean has a huge heart. He donate his work to raise money for animal rescues on a regular basis.Go to his site, www.deanrusso.com and find out about how easy it is to get your dog’s portrait in living color!

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