He Photoshopped His Dachshund to a Size that Fits Her Personality

Growing up, Mitch Boyer‘s family moved around. A lot. So the illustrator and art director was inspired to create a picture book to help children deal with the big changes that come with moving to a new town. And who better to help him do it than his sassy, larger-than-life dachshund, Vivian?

Mitch’s dog became his muse for the book. Using Photoshop, he blew her up to an epic six feet tall. In each image, Vivian exemplifies the struggles of ‘fitting in’ to a new environment.

How the composites are made

Spoiler alert, I’m not actually a giant ???

A video posted by Vivian (@iamvivianthedog) on May 31, 2016 at 3:48pm PDT

Due to the expense and labor involved in a project of this scope, Mitch and his collaborator Valerie Navarro decided to use Kickstarter to fund the creation of the book.

Selfie with the human. New York is okay, I guess. #viviandog #vivzilla

A photo posted by Vivian (@iamvivianthedog) on May 11, 2016 at 5:50am PDT

To no surprise, they exceeded their goal of $20,000 in just under a week! (If you want a copy from the first batch, you can still become a backer.)

Mitch and Vivian (actual size)

Owner: Mitch @mitchwayneboyer Dog: Vivian @iamvivianthedog Breed: Miniature Dachshund I was there the day that Vivian was born. My sister’s dog (Go Go) was pregnant with a litter of puppies and I got a call from my parents saying she’d delivered them. I went over there and instantly fell love with Vivian. I had to wait until she was old enough to take her with me but I was there pretty much every day playing with her. Vivian @iamvivianthedog is my first dog. I’m always taking pictures of her, as all dog owners do, but I also wanted to create a story with them. My girlfriend helped me refine ideas until I eventually settled on making a photo-illustrated children’s book. I’ve moved around a lot and as a result, Vivian has too, so the book is about moving and dealing with the changes associated with relocating to a new home. Vivian has a large personality and thinks she’s much bigger than she actually is, so in the book, she’s huge (over six feet tall). I’m hoping the story will help kids feel like they’re not alone when facing big changes like moving to a new place. It’s funny when I think about it because that’s exactly what Vivian has done for me. While everything else in my life has changed over the last few years, she’s been something constant. She has a very strong personality and a bit of an attitude, but she’s fiercely loyal, and very loving. We are currently searching for Vivian’s costar in the book, “Lulu.” She’s very important to the book because Lulu acts as Vivian’s mentor and guide. She is also a little bit goofy and not used to being the smaller dog. If you know a dog in New York that would be the perfect Lulu please email us their info at findlulu@vivianthedog.com or use the hashtag #vivianneedslulu To pre-order Mitch and Vivian’s book please visit either bit.ly/viviandog or vivianthedog.com

A photo posted by Dog Project Brooklyn (@dogprojectbrooklyn) on Jun 14, 2016 at 3:40am PDT