I have painted a lot of dogs.
Each one carries a story. Each one represents a bond between an animal and a human that words rarely do justice to. It is why I started Wet Nose Creative. I believed that bond deserved to be captured, preserved, honored.
This weekend, I had the honor of visiting the Michigan War Dog Memorial for the interment of three remarkable working K9s: K9 Mattis, K9 TTirado, and K9 Kurt.
But nothing I have painted, and nothing I have experienced in nearly four years of doing this work, prepared me for what I witnessed at the Michigan War Dog Memorial in June.
The Michigan War Dog Memorial
Tucked into a serene park setting in South Lyon, Michigan, the Michigan War Dog Memorial is one of the most meaningful places I have ever stood. It is run by a dedicated non-profit organization with a mission as simple as it is profound: to restore and maintain this hallowed ground as a final resting place for retired Military Working Dogs and retired law enforcement Service Dogs. The memorial also provides interment with full military honors at no cost to the handler or owner.
Let that sink in for a moment. These dogs gave everything in service to this country. Working alongside soldiers in combat zones, sniffing out explosives, tracking criminals, protecting federal agents and this memorial exists to make sure that when their service ends, they are honored in a way that reflects the magnitude of what they gave.
They are not forgotten here. They are remembered forever.
K9 Mattis, K9 TTirado, and K9 Kurt
The June 27, 2026 ceremony at the Michigan War Dog Memorial honored three remarkable working dogs.
K9 Mattis served as a police K9 and holds a place in my heart that I cannot fully put into words. He was the very first portrait I ever painted as Wet Nose Creative — created during National Police Week to honor his life and his service alongside his handler Mark. Mark is the reason I was there this weekend. The connection we built around that painting brought me to Michigan, to this memorial, to this moment.
K9 TTirado served with the TSA — one of the thousands of working dogs who stand quietly between us and danger every single day in airports across this country, largely unseen and rarely thanked.
K9 Kurt served with the FBI. A working dog whose nose and instincts contributed to federal investigations and kept people safe in ways the public will likely never fully know.
Three dogs. Three careers of service. Three lives that deserved to be honored.
The Ceremony
The interment was conducted with full military honors and I mean that in every sense of the word.
A formal ceremonial procession brought the handlers and their K9s to their final resting place. An Honor Guard stood at attention. Taps was played. The American flag was folded with precision and presented to each handler with the gravity that moment always deserves. Handlers and fellow officers stepped forward to share stories of bravery, loyalty, and the kind of partnership that only exists between a working dog and the human who trusts them with their life.
Nearly 100 to 150 people were in attendance. Law enforcement. Military. Families. Fellow handlers. And their dogs.
So many dogs.
Which brings me to the moment I will carry with me for the rest of my life.
The Howl
Where a traditional military funeral includes a 21 gun salute, this ceremony had something different.
Something I had never seen before. Something I never could have imagined.
The service dogs present began to howl.
All at once. In unison. For 21 seconds.
And then one by one, and then all together, every dog in attendance joined them. The pets. The civilian dogs people had brought to pay their respects. Every single one.
For 21 seconds the only sound in that entire place was dogs.
No human voices. No music. No ceremony. Just the dogs, lifting their voices together in a way that felt ancient and sacred and completely right.
I have been to many moving moments in my life. I have never experienced anything like that. There was not a dry eye anywhere in that crowd. People who had held it together through the entire ceremony, hardened law enforcement officers, military veterans…openly wept.
Because the dogs knew. Somehow, in whatever way dogs understand the world, they knew.
My Paintings at the Memorial
I was deeply honored to learn that two of my hand-painted digital portraits of K9 Mattis were displayed as part of the official ceremony on his remembrance table.
To see a portrait that began as a National Police Week tribute—the very first painting I ever made as Wet Nose Creative—displayed at his interment alongside the flag and the honors he deserved is something I cannot adequately describe. It felt like the work had found its true purpose.
Why This Work Matters
I started Wet Nose Creative because I believed that the bond between dogs and their humans deserved to be honored through art. I believed that a portrait could capture something that a photograph sometimes cannot, the soul of an animal, the weight of a relationship, the story behind the eyes.
This weekend confirmed everything I believe about why this work matters.
These dogs do not serve for recognition. They do not choose to even serve. They do not serve for medals or ceremonies or memorials. They serve because of the bond they have with their handler a bond built on trust, training, and something that goes beyond what we can fully explain.
The least we can do is remember them. Honor them. Make sure their names are not forgotten.
That is what the Michigan War Dog Memorial does every single day. And that is what I hope every portrait I paint does in its own small way.
Thank You!
To Mark and to every handler who said goodbye here at this place, thank you for your service, and for the extraordinary animals you partnered with. The bond you shared with your K9 is something most people will never fully understand, and I am grateful you let us be there to honor it alongside you.
To the Michigan War Dog Memorial: Thank you for this sacred place. Thank you for the dignity you give these heroes and the families who loved them. What you do matters more than words can say.
Run free Mattis. Run free TTirado. Run free Kurt. 
At Wet Nose Creative, I create commissioned hand-painted digital oil portraits of dogs, with a special focus on honoring police, military, and working K9s. If you have a dog whose story deserves to be remembered, I would be honored to paint them.
