I really like the first shot, and the B&W conversion - it fits your pup quite well.
To my mind the first shot is exceptionally well framed (cropped?), exposure is snap-on (at least on my monitor), and I really like the use of the aperture/depth of field to control the point on interest on the portrait.
great job.
Second one uses an off center technique that is not my favorite, and the highlights burn out a bit above the eyes (again, on my monitor). Also, the nose is going OOF, which detracts from the image for me.
