This little rescue dog is connecting with others through photographs, and sharing her zest for life one pose at a time!
Aptly named, Nola the Chihuahua was rescued from New Orleans, Louisiana. Due to housing restrictions, Nola’s original owner was forced to rehome her. Refusing to let another animal end up in the shelter system, Nola’s current “mom”, Dev, jumped at the opportunity to take Nola in. Ten years have passed since that fateful day, and Dev couldn’t be happier about her decision. Nola has enriched the lives of Dev and her family, and is using her charm to steal the hearts of thousands of others on Instagram.
A model at heart, Nola has always loved posing for the camera. Coincidentally, Dev is a professional photographer who loves snapping pictures of pups. Some might call it a match made in heaven. “Nola became my best, most patient and cooperative model out of two children and four other fur babies,” says Dev. “My kids quickly became uncooperative with my photography practice, so I knew I had to find something else to work with.” After growing bored of stationary objects, Dev started taking pictures of her pets – and it didn’t take long to figure out that Nola was the superstar of the family. In fact, after a few sessions, if Dev tried to get her other animal companions in front of the camera, Nola would come running and push them out of the frame!
On Nola’s 10th birthday, Dev posted a photo of Nola in a large photography group on Facebook (see image at left). To her surprise, the feedback was amazing. As a result, the group featured the photo on their website. Around the same time, another image from the same series was published in a Buzzfeed article. Soon, Nola’s growing fanbase began asking Dev for more photos of her loveable pup. An Instagram account, says Dev, was the next natural step. As Nola continued to pose, Dev set up @nolaandcompany to showcase all her images of the photogenic canine. “She has the perfect little model face along with a few little quirks which I think adds to why people love her,” says Dev. “And we’ve been having so much fun! We have met so many amazing new friends from all over the world.”
Today, Nola is frequently featured on other Instagram accounts and websites. She’s also been recruited to model for several different product companies, and is part of a greeting card line set to be released later in 2018. Nola is also Dev’s inspiration for fostering more dogs in need! But despite a full house and a busy schedule, Nola and Dev make time to volunteer at local shelters whenever they can. “I’m currently gearing up to start photographing shelter dogs and doing photography work for various rescue organizations to try to help get their pets adopted out to good homes,” says Dev. In the meantime, she’ll continue using Nola’s Instagram platform as a way to promote animal rescue.
When asked what she loves most about Nola, Dev has a difficult time deciding. “I love lots of things about her! But most of all her loyalty and unconditional love. No matter what, she’s there. Who would have thought our little rescue would become this tiny, but fierce little model?” she adds. “We get messages daily about how much our photos make people smile and make their day… and that alone makes it all worth it!”
