This photo – “Inspiration: Bud Steps In” –  is now for sale for $125 on Maria’s Etsy Shop. It is very meaningful to me, and I see also to others.

It is one of those lucky photographer shots that touches people in a powerful way.

I happened to have my camera out to shoot the storm, and I turned I saw Liam, the wether (neutered ram) turn towards Red, who was holding the sheep in the barn while we got hay.

The photograph speaks to the love and loyalty of dogs for humans and to each other, from Buck in Call of the Wild to Rose to Red, and to Bud, this remarkable and much battered little creature from Arkansas. Some dogs just have the biggest hearts and great character.

Some people have asked if they can add a short inscription on the print, I think it’s a good idea. Perhaps in the memory of  dog that is gone, or one that is present. (Details below, no more than four or five words, and it must be ordered on Etsy at the time of purchase in a note to Maria).

This photo represents an act of pure friendship and love.

As you know, Red is now blind in one eye, and suffered a serious spinal injury that paralyzed him for several days. So he is on very limited duty. He was focused on his job, keeping the sheep in when Liam, his nemesis, moved to butt him in the head as he has done before.

Since his illness, he and Bud are inseparable.

Bud is never far from Red, and watches him closely, and often sleeps right next to him, curled up in a ball. He is always watching over Red, ever since the first awful day a month ago when Red could only crawl.

But is not a herding dog, but he loves Red dearly. He has never approached a ship, let alone a ram, in that way before.

Red is not as agile or alert as he was, and he has cataracts,  I’m not sure he saw Liam coming. Bud was off investigating something – probably something disgusting to eat – near the sheep feeder, the storm was sending us snow, ice and sleet. I suppose it is risky to work him at all, but neither of us could bear to keep him away from sheep forever.

Liam had his head down and was moving towards Red, there was no time to call him off or stop Liam. I’ve also learned to never step between a ram and a border collie working.

Suddenly, Bud came zooming across the pasture – the snow was a foot high – and got right between Liam and Red. Liam is about 220 pounds heavier than Bud and ten times the size. Bud stepped right in front of Red and then got right into Liam’s face. There was great strength and determination in Bud’s look.

Liam saw it, lowered his head to charge, but Bud not only didn’t back off, he edged closer, nose to nose.

I thought I heard a growl through the wind.

Bud didn’t bite or bark Liam, he was quite composed, he just seemed to be saying with his body, “no way, you are not going after Red.” It was his demeanor that froze Liam, I think, there was no drama for Bud, but this was something he just wasn’t going to permit to happen.

This scene held for about 20 seconds, long enough for me to get this shot, and then Liam broke off eye contact, a sign of surrender for a sheep,  turned away from Red and Bud walked back into the barn.

Red never moved.  He is never distracted.

Bud, seemingly quite pleased with himself, but also quite businesslike, turned to Red, gave him a lick on the nose and then ran back and out of the pasture and towards the farmhouse. He was cold. It didn’t seem like a big deal to him.

So the little dog rescued the big dog, the Boston Terrier helped the border collie in trouble. It’s not supposed to happen that way, I’ve never seen it happen that way. There was no muss or fuss, the minute Liam surrendered, Bud walked away.

Some pictures mean more than they seem. I felt this incident very strongly.

Bud had a nightmare life the first year of his existence, left alone for months in a metal pen with no roof or shelter, and often no water or food. His two pen mates died of heat exposure and starvation in the Arkansas summer sun.

A rescue group, Friends Of Homeless Animals, came and bought him from his owner, a young man known to mistreat his dogs.  On top of many other things, Bud had heartworm.

A dog angel named Carol Johnson oversaw countless trips to the vet.

It took more than $1,000 and four months to get Bud healthy before he came to us, three months ago. His was a spirit well worth saving.

Bud was wary, grim and confused when he came to us, he had never lived a normal life with food and shelter and love, never had regular meals or veterinary care, never even lived in a house. He was almost like a wild animal.  He was completely untrained,  not housebroken and marked every piece of furniture in the house.

Consciously or not, Red showed Bud how to live in a house with people.

Day by day, Bud has come back to life, a beautiful thing to see. He has a great heart to overcome so much, to be such a good friend, to be that brave and loyal.

He is a happy dog now, but something else is evolving: he has a lot of character.

Red is less demonstrative than Bud, but he loves this little dog and is happy to be with him, completely tolerant of him. So this photo is a story of friendship, loyalty, courage and love to me, and I am a well-known cynic when it comes to emotionalizing dogs.

But I know what I saw. And pictures don’t lie, not even to me.

I got many requests from people who want this photo, so I will sell it at a slightly reduced price – $125, on Maria’s Etsy Shop. It will be 8.5 by 12.5 inches, printed in the highest quality archival paper, unframed but signed. The printing is done by The Image Loft in Manchester Center, one of the most highly regarded photo printers in the Northeast.

The photograph is entitled “Inspiration: Bud Steps In.”

They are meticulous, they make me look better than I am.

The prints are custom ordered, it will take about two weeks before they can be sent. People who wish to pay with a check and avoid online marketing can e-mail Maria: [email protected] and she will be happy to help you.

If you wish a short inscription, I’ll be happy to add one (it must be short, no more than four or five words. You must make note of the inscription when you order it on Etsy, send a note from there to Maria. If you prefer to pay by check, send her an e-mail ([email protected]) or written note.)

You can see and purchase the photograph here, and thank you. It is a joy for me to capture a moment like this.