Zeno (2005-2022) was born outside of Rio, in Teresópolis, and was a very Brazilian dog: full of life and very sociable.  He also was a literal gift, after some friends in Tiradentes learned of his predecessor, Atlas’s, early death at age 5.  One of their daughters has a kennel in the mountains of Rio, where a litter of Labs had just arrived.  I hesitated: it was too soon after Atlas’s sudden death.  But I had a business trip, to Fernando de Noronha, for which I needed to catch a flight out of Rio, so I stopped by the kennel out of curiosity.

I kept my distance from the energetic litter and let Alessandra, the kennel owner, suggest which puppy, if any, was for me.  Familiar with my past experience with Labs and outdoor activities, she suggested the litter’s dominant pup.  I agreed to pick Zeno up several weeks later, after his second round of vaccinations.

This album tracks Zeno’s tropical puppyhood through a well-formed young adult, with many images not previously published. [please hover over images for captions]