4Paws dogs are a fixture on Wittenberg’s campus; these guide-dogs-in-training lead busy lives.
A video currently being produced by Britta Carson, a senior involved in the Integrated Media Corps, will give us a glimpse into a 4Paws dog’s daily routine using DSLR and GoPro cameras.
The GoPro cameras Carson will be using to film the pups are small and lightweight; they are often used to film first-person views of extreme sports like snowboarding.
GoPro was founded by Nick Woodman, who wanted to be able to capture surfing, in 2002 and is based in San Mateo, California. Woodman changed the industry by producing the first truly affordable video camera for capturing athletes in action.
Carson’s own curiosity was what inspired her to use this new technology to document the active lives of 4Paws puppies.
“Everyone on campus who doesn’t have a dog wants to know what it’s like,” Carson said.
The puppies attend class, accompany their students to extracurricular activities, meet new people and, of course, nap quite a lot.
Carson is planning to film four dogs for the project and is currently working with two Golden Retriever puppies named Bia and M&M. The 4Paws dogs are not exactly the easiest subjects to capture on film, however.
“They all shoved their noses on the lens,” Carson said.
Eight-month-old Bia is being cared for by seniors Allie Ogden and Julie Cascino. M&M is six months old and is being trained by seniors Grace Monahan and Melanie Ellis.
Ogden and Cascino began fostering Bia on Jan. 25. Bia spends her days in class and at the writing center. She also enjoys to partake in a late afternoon nap while Ogden does homework.
Carson approached Ogden about making a video featuring Bia, and several other 4 paws dogs, and filming began later in January.
Ogden said Bia will usually stay when told, but her curiosity about Carson’s film equipment overwhelmed her.
“As soon as the camera came on, Bia wanted to get all up in the camera’s face,” Ogden said.
Carson is producing the video as part of her internship with IMC, a program that gives Wittenberg students hands-on experience in radio, broadcasting, public relations, social media and film.
Students involved in IMC create content for Wittenberg’s Facebook page, film campus events and manage Ezry the Tiger’s Instagram, among other things.
Carson plans on having a dog’s-eye-view of campus available on Wittenberg’s Facebook page sometime in April.
