Portraits by Photographer Shannon Johnstone ‘Landfill Dogs’ save them from getting put down

Photographer Shannon Johnstone is on a mission to save dogs from death. After shooting widely published photos showing the realities of animal shelter euthanasia, she began working on a new project called “Landfill Dogs.”

Each week, Johnstone take one of the most overlooked dogs at the Wake County Animal Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, and does a photo shoot with them at Landfill Park, a former landfill that has since been turned into a public park.

“The location is used because the dogs will end up in a landfill if they do not find a home,” - tells Johnstone. “These photographs are their last chance. They will be euthanized and their bodies will be buried deep in the landfill among our trash. Below the surface at Landfill Park there are more than 25,000 dogs buried. I think of this park as a burial ground.”