Photographer Pete Thorne Turns Older Dogs' Photos Into Beautiful Portraits

It's time to stop looking at puppy pictures and show some respect to some older dogs.

In "Old Faithful," a photo series created from portraits of older dogs, Toronto-based photographer Pete Thorne captures pets toward the end of their lives, complete with all the wisdom and stories they've gained through the years.

"I find there's so much more character to these shots," Thorne told The Huffington Post Canada. "You see these lives lived. When people approach me about the project, I get them to provide a testimonial or a bio. I'm looking for telltale features in the face."

He was inspired to start the series after photographing his grandmother's 100th birthday last year and realizing the incredible possibilities in photographs of older subjects. He started putting posters up around the city and was swamped with emails almost immediately.

"I've had a few of the dogs pass away shortly after getting their photo taken and it was a part of this project that I wasn't really anticipating," he says. "I realized how personal it is for these dog owners when they started expressing their gratitude for taking the photo in such a way that honours [their dog's] life while they got the chance."

Take a look at Thorne's stunning portraits here, and visit his Facebook pages for more stories about the dogs featured:

ALSO ON HUFFPOST: