For as long as I can remember, before I had the words for it, I understood something instinctively – dogs hold you in a way the world sometimes can’t. As a little girl, when things were hard and the noise was too loud, I had dogs. And many times, they were the only ones I could lean on. They never asked me to explain. They just stayed.

It started with Calvin – a gangsta cat who arrived before anyone else and somehow made it to 22 years old, utterly unbothered by the world. Then came Danny, Jonno’s Labrador, who quietly became the love of my life. Then Bailey – cream-coated, sunset-chasing, soul-defining Bailey. Then Jessie, my golden retriever, steady and everything good. And now Reef – one year old, black Labrador, pure chaos – who came when we all desperately needed something to be alive for.

Jonno and I share this life. This beautiful, muddy, dog-hair-covered, completely unique life that I would choose a thousand times over.

Dog Meets Girl began in 2013, born from love and a camera that couldn’t stay still. From the floor covered in dog hair to boardrooms for Tame pretending I knew what I was doing — this is the life that dogs built.

DMG Photography gives families memories that outlast the years. Tame, co-founded with Kyne Lupini in 2020, gives South African pet parents 24/7 access to qualified vets. And Soul Dog — The Coastal Dog Society — is my playground. Born in Bailey’s honour, rooted in Melkbosstrand, spreading along the coastline.

Not a farewell. A celebration of everything she started.

With love and dog hair , Shan

For Calvin. For Danny. For Bailey.

Always Bailey.