You can learn much about a person’s character by the way he or she treats animals. It’s not the only method you should use, of course, but it is a good litmus test. That’s why Top Dogs and Their Pets—which collects striking black-and-white photographs of 90 notable names and their animal friends, from dogs and cats to goldfish and iguanas—is so useful. By getting these “top dogs” to pose with (and talk about, in Q&As that accompany each photograph) their pets, Dallas Morning News photographer David Woo and his partner David Pruitt remove the filters and biases, until all that is left is a pet owner. There are no complicated gray areas. Only black and white. What follows is an excerpt featuring some of those images, compiled over four years of coast-to-coast travel. More information, including videos from the shoots, is available at www.topdogspets.com.
There will be book signings, featuring some of the celebrities included in Tops Dogs and Their Pets, at Legacy Books on November 7, 4–7 pm, and Ken’s Man Shop on November 21, 1–5 pm.
