[Sara adopted Aspen when he was just over one year old. Aspen is mostly Siberian Husky—one parent full bred and the other parent was mostly Husky with a mix of German Shepherd and Akita. Aspen’s personality was fairly typical for a Husky: independent, at times a little stubborn, enjoys having other dogs and people around, but appreciates (and needs) his space. When he was younger he was very vocal (typical of his breed). Sara suspected that Aspen may have been abused or mistreated when he was little, as he was leary of certain people and only liked his head to be touched. Over time, he let Sara touch him more, but his whole life has remained very selective of who gets to touch him. Aspen is the inspiration for Sara starting her own dog boarding business (The Dog Lodge), because she had a difficult time finding options for when she traveled and needed help caring for Aspen. The connection between Sara and Aspen is evident. When we photographed Aspen, along with Mike, Julia and puppy Remy, Aspen was 13 years old and starting to slow down considerably.]