Droopy dogs
By Mark McConville
BASSET hounds are proving once again how hilarious this breed of dogs can be as they pull the funniest expressions while running towards their owners.

The side-splitting pictures show the basset hounds pulling all sorts of funny faces as their droopy skin struggles to keep up with the rest of their body.


Other shots show the dogs playing fetch and fighting with one another as their skin tries to envelope them.


The images were captured by Russian student and photographer Ksenia Raykova (22) from Nizhny Novgorod as she took the dogs for some playtime in a local park.

“I am extremely lucky with my models,” she said.
“Most of them are from dog sports, so they are well behaved. They know different commands, and they have powerful and loving bond with their owners.

“We play and improvise, while looking for the best shot and it brings a lot of smiles and sincere happiness to the pictures.
“Animals are so open, so natural and they don’t play any roles.
“I fall in love with each little character I work with. There is no easy way to describe the happiness you feel when you communicate with them.
“And when I see previews in my camera, magically drawn by light, and I see that I managed to capture something really personal in the character of my model, it’s close to euphoria.”

Ksenia started out by photographing her own dog but was soon getting requests to take pictures for other people of their pets.
“I started taking photographs of my dachshund and then I got a border collie named Kim,” she said.

“I taught him many tricks and we compete in different dog sports such as different frisbee disciplines, agility where we meet different owners.
“I started shooting dog sports events, touched by the eagerness of dogs to please and the emotions. Many owners wanted photos of their dogs to frame.

“They liked my style, so at some point they started to ask me to make individual photo sessions for them.
“So I try to bring out some special character trait that will identify this particular dog’s soul.”

Click to licence images.