Since we moved to New York City three years ago, I have been surprised by all the dogs living their best lives. I was always wondering, why would you have a dog while you live in a tiny apartment and have a busy job? How can your dog be happy living without a backyard or being surrounded by forest or land? In the meantime, I got fascinated by how eager dogs got treated by their owners as little human babies. It made me happy to see all the dogs running in the park, strolling through the city, or enjoying the sun on the terrace while humans enjoy their Sunday Brunch. New York City is very dog friendly; the only thing is you need to think about what's possible rather than what is not possible to do with your dog.
Pandemic Pup and WFH.
Fritz is a Pandemic Pup. He got lucky being born in the middle of Covid; as most of you remember long waiting lists to adopt a pup. I always wanted to have a dog, and during the lockdown, I realized that we would probably never work fully from the office again. Well, I guess this turned out very well. Most companies offer a hybrid co-working version to their employees. I hear from my fellow dog park community that they hit the office once or twice weekly, and the rest work from home. I also refer to a recent article in the New York Times, writing about all he puppies that bounded with their forever home and helped them mentally through the pandemic and they gave each other so much love and happiness.
Community and Friends.
Talking about our dog community, we got to know so many new people since we got Fritz, from all the amazing people in the park to our neighbors we met because our dogs wanted to play with each other. Making new friends in the city can be hard sometimes, but life with a dog makes it much easier to connect. We have learned so much from our dog friends, and it's nice because everybody likes to keep talking about dogs.
Keep on training in the city that never sleeps.
The city is full of loud noises and smells and is never boring. This means that this could be something challenging for some dogs. Fritz became scared of loud noises on the 4th of July, and we are training hard to work on his confidence again. This reminded me to keep training my dog to enjoy city life as much as possible. We understand that the city is not for everybody and can be very challenging for some dogs.
Dog Friendly.
Although dogs are not allowed in restaurants and certain facilities, I feel there are still so many things that welcome your dog, from off-leash hours to many great dog parks to shops and boutiques that welcome your dog with a nice treat or a freshly filled water bowl. Walking Packs and Dog Trainers - Don't let us start with dog-friendly cafes, breweries outdoor restaurants, and hotels we have seen. We also see more social canine members clubs opening in the city and the rest of the country.
Pet Services.
We don't have the grand pet parents hotline we can use to watch Fritz when we are away. We always have to consider that we can not let Fritz alone for too long, or we need to find a solution. Luckily, New York offers so many boarding, daycare, and walking services like Rover and Trusted House Sitters that there is always a solution. But doing research and knowing who is taking care of Fritz is super important to us to make sure our fur kid is in good hands.