Shelter dogs before their final moments

In an ongoing project, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang has been taking portraits of shelter dogs in the final moments of their lives before being put down by lethal injection. Tou has been visiting dog shelters for 2 years, making portraits that have given a sense of dignity to some 400 canines in hopes of educating the public on the proper care of pets. This year Taiwanese authorities will kill an estimated 80,000 stray dogs at 38 shelters scattered throughout the island.

Tou's photos will be exhibited in a full-scale show in southern Taiwan in Aug. 2012. He says that while some of his friends refuse to even look at his photographs, others say the images taught them to take pet ownership more seriously. In this photo taken on April 9, 2012, puppies beg for attention at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang calms an excited dog before trying to make a portrait in his makeshift studio moments before the dog is to be put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang calms a puppy before trying to make a portrait in the final moments before it is to be put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, in a makeshift studio, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang tries to make a portrait of a dog in the final moments of its life before being put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, in a makeshift studio, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang and his assistant steady a scared dog for a portrait in the final moments of its life before being put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog begs for attention at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog is taken to be killed by lethal injection at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog is tranquilized before taken to be euthanized by lethal injection at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog looks for attention at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog sits in a cage behind his paperwork before being put down by lethal injection at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang tries to make a portrait of a dog in the final moments of its life before being put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang greets a dog scheduled to be euthanized later in the day at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a dog is taken to be euthanized by lethal injection at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang identifies dogs on a manifest that are to be killed later that day at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, a nurse prepares the room used to euthanize dogs at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Wednesday, April 25, 2012, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang hangs his portraits of the final moments in the lives of shelter dogs for a public exhibition in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, the leashes of dogs put down that day hang from a metal fence at a government-run shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Friday, May 11, 2012, government dog catchers ensnare a dog on the streets of Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.

In this photo taken on Monday, April 9, 2012, in a makeshift studio, Taiwanese photographer Tou Chih-kang tries to make a portrait of a puppy in the final moments of its life before being put down by lethal injection at a shelter in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan.