All posts tagged: Pets

I Loved My Dog, But Do I Really Miss Having a Pet?

By Amy Barr

A couple of years ago, my friend Susie and I were strolling along the Riverside Park promenade with our elderly dogs, Lucy and Daisy. “So,” Susie whispered, as if she were afraid the dogs might overhear, “when Lucy dies, will you get another dog?” After a moment of self-reflection, I whispered back, “I love Lucy. But when she’s gone, I’m done.” “Thank god!” said Susie. “I thought I was the only one.” Apparently, we both felt some degree of shame over our willingness to relinquish our status as dog people. After all, we’d both taken great pleasure in our dogs over the years and showered them with love in kind. So could a true dog lover really turn her back on all the wonderful things dogs bring to our lives? Perhaps she could. [pullquote]Lucy died a year ago, and I miss her every day. But she was also a pain in the neck –nippy, ornery and expensive.[/pullquote] Lucy and Daisy had entered our respective households more than a dozen years earlier when we both had …

Silly Things People Have Said to Me When I Tell Them I Don’t Want Pets

By Susan Linney

I know, I know, you think I have no heart. Everyone does when I tell them that I don’t have (or ever want to have) a pet. But I do have a soul, I swear. I’m just not that into four-legged, furry creatures, and I certainly don’t want one running around my cozy one-bedroom apartment. Listen, I never said I don’t like pets. And I don’t think I’ve ever implied that I’m “anti-animal.” I’m just not a “pet person” (and neither is my husband, thankfully). But still, people just don’t get it. Recently, when I told a friend that my husband and I were thinking about starting a family next year, she said: “Get a pet first. That way, you’ll know you if you can handle kids.” When I told her no way, and that I’d take a baby over a dog any day, she looked at me as though I had just murdered a bunny rabbit. To me, a pet is just as much of a responsibility as a baby, maybe even more of …

My Dog Became My Jersey Ambassador

By Courtney Colwell

When I first moved to my neighborhood in Jersey City, I knew it was something on the edge of “up-and-coming,” kind of like “slowly approaching” or “looking forward, sometimes.” But I figured with the stop before mine on the PATH train improving so quickly, it was just a matter of time. It turned out it would be a lot of time. I moved in as the housing bubble burst, and what had been transitional turned into a standstill. It wasn’t as bad as in unsafe, but it wasn’t good as in somewhere you wanted to explore, either. The only retail options have questionable inventory at best. I mean, these aren’t even dollar stores.These are like stores filled with crap typically found for sale on sidewalk blankets. An indoor yard sale. The dining options are equally lackluster. Technically, we have everything — McDonalds, Burger King, Blimpie, White Castle, Subway — everything you could want in fast food. If it isn’t represented within my ten-block radius, it must be on a lower, less-recognized rung of the value-meal …

I Had a Pet Psychic on Speed Dial

By Erica Reitman

I don’t use the term “fur baby mama” non-ironically or own a collection of seasonal holiday dog sweaters. My pup doesn’t have an Instagram account or eat small-batch, home-prepared foods. But, true confessions: I’ve had my animal communicator on speed dial for the better part of ten years now. They tell you when you rescue a dog that it can take up to six months for their true personalities to come out, and boy was that true with our basset hound, Oliver. My husband Greg and I brought this little dude home to our overpriced Manhattan apartment 13 years ago feeling excited and determined. The first few months were pure bliss. Cue the gauzy slow-mo video in my head: walks to the local dog park, fun conversations with strangers on the street, trips to Petco. Oliver was quiet, loving and shockingly obedient. His sole purpose in life seemed to be pleasing us in any way he possibly could. I guess the changes started happening slowly: an unexpected pull on the leash, a barking session that …

This Story May Actually Make You Want to Buy a Pet Rat — or Two

By Annette Earling

Annette’s son giving air kisses to their rats (Photo: Annette Earling) Here is a tale about two tails. Two long, scaly grayish-pink tails that skeeved me so hard I could barely look at them the first time I saw them. Two hairless appendages that caused me to backpedal furiously on my promise to my son that today was the day that he could finally choose his very own pet rats. We were at the pet store, thanks to my cousin, whose son had a rat of his own. When he showed me a photo of it, I drew back a bit, gave a sidewise look at my cuz and said, “Really? A rat?” She nodded firmly and said, “Annette, it costs six dollars, lives three years, and eats whatever you have lying around in the fridge.” Hmmmm. My son was nine years old at the time and aching to take on the responsibility of a pet. We already had a dog, but she’s always been my baby and barely gives him the time of day …

Confessions of a Serial Dog Lover

By Lauren Young

A photo collection of Lauren with dogs. (Graphic: Helen Jane Hearn/TueNight.com) I have an abnormal love of dogs. At least that’s what a former boyfriend told me when he broke up with me. (see the video evidence.) Which is funny, since I didn’t have a four-legged friend of my own at the time, and I still don’t have one today. But, I have to admit, it is true. I love dogs too much. I am – according to those who know me – the person who loves dogs the most despite not having one. I am obsessed with dogs the way some tweens are obsessed with Taylor Swift, or how the Jennifer Jason Leigh character in Single White Female fixated on her roommate (minus the homicide.) I attribute my affinity for dogs to the fact that I was probably was one in another life. Never, ever walk down a street with me and expect me to ignore a dog. In fact, I can spot a pooch from a block away. My ears prick up. My …

How I Became a Professional Cat Lady

By Lauren Oster

(Graphic: Nancy Gonzalez/TueNight.com) My college roommate and I met our cats at side-by-side animal shelters in San Francisco. Her tabby, Zeke, went home with her that very day, and my black cat, Chuck, also went home with her, as I was still scrambling to get into an apartment. (Here’s to you, Jen, for letting my cat crash with you for a month; thank you for keeping your cool that time he peed on your duvet.) Thus began 15 years (and counting) of what my husband calls “My Cat Goes Mrow” — that is, long conversations in which Jen and I mostly swap Zeke and Chuck stories. You could argue, and I do, that they’re the beast-shaped filters through which we tell each other about all aspects of our lives, but I can admit that they tend to follow the format he identified (“My cat goes ‘mrow’!” “My cat goes ‘mrow’!”). My Cat Goes Mrow is having a moment — call it a decade, really — right now, as you may have noticed. (Robert De Niro …

The Dog My Mother Never Wanted

By Shelly "Splinters" Rabuse

Shelly with her pup. (Photo: Shelly Rabuse) “I’m sure I have eaten dog.” That’s what my mother, the World War II survivor, told me one day. My jaw dropped, so she quickly clarified by saying, “Well, when you got meat on the black market, you didn’t ask.” Needless to say, my parents, who were both young Germans growing up in frequently bombed Cologne in 1942 and didn’t have the luxury of pets. But as a typical American middle-class kid in suburbia, I wanted one — badly. I grew up in Ambler, PA in a split-level-filled neighbrhood as, essentially, an only child; my brother was 13 years older and out of the house by the time I was six. There were lots of other kids on the block who had a dog and I yearned for a fuzzy friend who would sleep on my bed and be my best friend and companion. My parents weren’t keen on the idea of a pet, however. It wasn’t a necessity and possibly created more problems. For a short time, …

Training El Diablo

By Courtney Colwell

I’ve known a few friends who put a lot of thought into getting a pet. They research breeds to the point of becoming experts, citing life expectancy and typical health issues at the drop of a hat. They investigate the lineage of prospective pups with a thoroughness that I’d expect one to interrogate a surrogate mother for their child. They spend days, even weeks thinking of names. I, on the other hand, rolled into a pet-store two years ago during an adoption event and walked out with a scrawny, pee-covered little Westie-poo that I wasn’t aware I even had to name. “We need a name for the adoption papers,” the volunteer told me as the puppy squirmed in my arms, alerting me that bio action that might soon take place on my jacket. “You can’t just put ‘TBD’?” “No.” “Puppy?” Dead stares. So I walked around for five minutes, texting friends and family for their votes on some hasty options and came back with “Ollie.” Soon after I got him home, a better name came …

Puppy Love Landed Me in the Doghouse

By Jennifer Ha

As soon as my kids knew what a puppy was, they wanted one. What began as a simple campaign of begging and tears evolved into a sophisticated multi-year mass operation. Sweet crayoned drawings of floppy-eared pooches began to come home regularly in school projects, and Christmas lists for Santa all had one major request: P-U-P-P-Y. My husband and I talked it over. I was for getting one; he was against. After years of asking, the kids started to step things up. In desperation, they began to leave pictures of puppies on the fridge on the shopping list, hoping that if they threw “puppy” on there, something might happen. -Milk-Hoisin sauce-Puppy They brainstormed and decided that maybe enlisting the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy as magical soothsayers on puppy progress would get them some answers. After a lost tooth or on the night before Easter, succinct notes were often accompanied by this question: “Will I get a puppy?” [Check yes or no.] “When? -3 months-6 months-1 year I was in a bad spot. I wanted …

City Dog, Country Dog

By Amy Barr

The double life of a country/city dog. (Graphic: Helen Jane Hearn/TueNight.com) Owning a city dog is very different from owning a country dog. For one thing, city dogs must be walked. A lot. My terrier, Lucy, gets three or four walks a day (the extra walk depends on my mood and the weather,) whereas country dogs head out unaccompanied through any open door and do their business where they please. No schedule. No leash. No poop bag. I know this because Lucy is both a city dog and a country dog. Along with her human family, she spends weekends at our upstate house, morphing from urban pup to rural pup as soon as we pull in the driveway. One sniff of the piney air and she becomes practically lupine. All fifteen pounds of her turn into an amped-up mini-wolf — hunting, chasing, digging, swimming, and occasionally disappearing into the forest. Lucy is not alone in leading a double life. I know plenty of people who wedge their pooches between kids, coolers and duffle bags as they …

Margit’s Note: Woman’s Best Friend

By Margit Detweiler

Here at TueNight.com, we’re a bit pet-obsessed. Dogs, cats, even rats — if they’re furry, feathered, or scaled, they’ve probably earned a place in our hearts. As I write this, my cat Alice sits under my desk, one paw over my foot, snoring loudly. At 17-years-old, she’s a relic from the late ‘90s and more beloved than ever. I’m reminded how lucky I am to hear that raspy wheeze, because earlier this year, she almost exhausted her 9th life. A long haired wisp of a kitty with brown, mottled markings and a scratchy, Marge Simpson-like meow, I got Alice in 1998 from the Camden, NJ SPCA. I’d been seeking a companion for my other cat Moby, and a friend-of-a-friend, a volunteer from the SPCA, brought over two cats to my apartment. One was white with black spots that made her almost a twin to Moby. The volunteer thought that would be the one I’d want. But the other kitty was so tiny, she fit into the palm of my hand. A pile of fur. I couldn’t resist her. Her new …

Gifts For Discerning Dog Owner

By Jody Jones

Janey, my dog, is an amazing beast who has discerning taste. It doesn’t help that her mom has a certain penchant for fabulousness, as well — I always seek out the best of products for the best of friends. I buy Janey gifts so often that she goes nuts when the UPS person comes to the door. Here, I present some of our favorite shipments, which Santa or Hanukkah Harry may deliver if pup isn’t on the naughty list. 1. Tattooed-Inspired Dog Sweater I never thought I’d own a dog who sported outfits. Seemed dumb. But once I moved to New York City and got a little, lean pup with scant hair, I learned that clothing is not optional: It’s essential. Add to that the fact that I like to think that someday I will get a tattoo, and maybe Janey thinks she will, too. So here’s our intermediary endeavor: a comfy and warm sweater with an old-school, tat-inspired logo. Janey shows the world how much she loves her mom, and I share my inky …

What to Get the Cat Lady Who Has Everything

By Lauren Oster

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a woman in possession of a good cat must be in want of a bunch of cat-related holiday gifts. That said, all cat-related gifts are not created equal, and no one deserves a third copy of the Jingle Cats’ Meowy Christmas album. Celebrate the feline enthusiasts in your life with gifts that say, “I realize that if you’re interested in a bunch of Grumpy Cat stuff, you’ve probably already bought it yourself.” 1. Anatomical Heart Cat Toy These organic catnip toys are handmade in England from recycled wool and velvet. If Kate and William ever add a cat to the royal family, I’m guessing they’ll head to London’s Cheshire & Wain for supplies. Semi-realistic organs don’t strike your fancy? The company also sells toys shaped like gingerbread men, lobsters and turkeys — but c’mon, what’s cuter than a cat trotting around with a heart in its mouth? $14, cheshireandwain.com  2. KitNipBox Subscription Each month, the team at KitNipBox sends out a seasonally-themed assortment of handcrafted toys, all-natural treats …

Late Night Snack: “Loss” — Our Very First Podcast

By Margit Detweiler

Well it’s appropriately and officially “Late Night” (almost midnight, here on the East Coast) and we’re posting our very first podcast. Back in October when we had professional actors read some of our stories aloud at our TueNight birthday party, we realized how fun it was to hear our words aloud. And, since we Google Hangout (amongst ourselves) each week to plan upcoming issues, we thought we’d also share a bit of that behind the scenes with you, dear reader. So HERE. WE. GO! This week: We discuss this week’s theme and our own forms of “Loss” — from loved ones to cats to heck, virginity. We read an excerpt from Wendy Goldman Scherer’s piece, “The Inlaws: The Collateral Damage of Divorce“ Rebecca Soffer, co-founder of Modern Loss talks about her own grief, and why she started a site all about loss. Have a listen, and please tell us what you think in the comments below. Production Notes: Adrianna Dufay did an amazing job producing this whole shebang. Much love friend. Special thanks this week to Ben Patterson, from HeresTheThing.com for the mic loan and more. …

What to Get the Dog Who Has Everything

By Teresa Misagal

Last week, we shared all the reasons why our furry friends mean so much to us. They’re family, so naturally, they also deserve some holiday cheer (even if they don’t really know what it is they’re getting). Nevertheless, we’re sure your dog will love one (or all!) of these five canine Christmas gifts. 1. Yum Gift Pack I feed my dogs Dailo and Lola mostly raw and all-natural food, so why shouldn’t I wash them the same natural way? Y.U.M.’s Gift pack contains a dog wash made with essential oils such as citronella, lavender and cedarwood, plus a cleansing spray infused with lavender and lemon patchouli. I secretly want to spray this on myself. $24, indigowild.com 2. Filson Dog Shelter Cloth Dog Coat with Wool Lining This dog coat is cozy, warm and reversible! The otter green side is made of water-repellant waxed-canvas, while the classic Filson plaid side is a sporty and hip (a perfect to match for your Filson Double Mackinaw). $75, Filson.com 3. Bark Box Join this subscription service and each month, …

Moby Might Have Been a Dick, But I Loved Him

By Margit Detweiler

Moby, up to no good. (Photo: Margit Detweiler/ TueNight.com) Moby loved curling up in cardboard boxes and cold ceramic sinks. He had a habit of biting shoes and biting people, especially an ex-boyfriend or two. He had a protruding chin like a little man, and a marking on his side that looked like a broken heart. He’d snuggle and spoon with me at night. When I met my husband-to-be, Moby gave me his own personal nod of acceptance by not biting him. Moby would regularly knock things off shelves to wake us up, so often that we installed new cabinet doors to deter him. A big white whale of a cat, Moby was alternately named for Moby Dick or ’60s psychedelic band Moby Grape but not the electronica musician, as many suspected. His nicknames included Little Man, Mister Man, Mobius Strip, Mobus Operandi, Moby the Dick. Funny thing is, I grew up with dogs and never thought about getting a cat until a fateful day in 1995, when a crazy-seeming old lady on a street …

Just Like People: Dogs & Cats Get Bookish

By Bethanne Patrick

Jon Katz writes books about dogs — lots and lots of books about dogs: Soul of A Dog, A Dog Year, A Good Dog, Dog Days and many more. He lives at a place called Bedlam Farm (also the name of his web site), sharing accommodation there with numerous dogs, a variety of livestock — and his new wife, an artist named Maria Wulf. Her intensely loyal but troubled dog Frieda is the subject of Katz’s latest book, The Second Chance Dog: A Love Story (Ballantine Books, November 12, 2013). Despite Frieda’s initial erratic behavior and refusal to go near Jon, the author used patience, determination, and “five hundred dollars worth of beef jerky” to convince his wife’s beloved canine to accept him. Katz believes we over-anthropomorphize our pets (or “companion animals,” to use the latest parlance). By attributing too much emotion and soul to domestic animals, Katz thinks we fail to understand and respect their animal nature — their real reason for being on earth. I highly recommend The Second Chance Dog to anyone who …

A Mutt (and an Aunt) Named Edna

By Rachel Aydt

(Photo Courtesy Rachel Aydt) I brought home Edna, a Chihuahua/terrier mutt, when I was 12 years old. She’d been living with a punk rock boy named Clay who hung out where I did on the Santa Fe Plaza. We were called the Plaza Rats (in our thrift store creations and Violent Femmes-blasting boomboxes), but this Edna “thing” was rattier than any of us put together. Clay had been stealing Mighty Dog food from the Woolworth’s on the corner and didn’t want to get busted. I agreed to take her home for one night, and if my mom didn’t allow her to stay, I’d bring her back the next day. She was handed to me on a ratty rope used as a makeshift leash. I slowly rode my rusty brown Huffy bicycle home to Alto Street; she trotted along beside me. “Don’t name her!” my mother implored, knowing that to do so would be getting Edna one step into our little rental apartment, and into our lives, for good. I can’t remember whether it was my …

The Dogs I Have Loved: Although None of Them Are Mine

By Lauren Young

I have an abnormal love of dogs. At least that’s what a former boyfriend said when he broke up with me. (Also on the list — which you can review here — is that I’m not political enough, and that I’m a loud clapper.) I do, admittedly, have an irrational love of dogs. I love them more than humans. My favorite movie is Best in Show — and I actually go to the Westminster Kennel Club Annual Dog Show in New York City every year. (The movie ain’t too far from the truth.) I must have been a dog in a former life: I sense them from blocks away. If I had a tail, it would start to wag when I saw a furry friend on the street. I know my dog breeds cold, but please don’t ask me to pick a favorite. Although, if pressed, I’m partial to the following: Puli (Rasta dogs), Poodles (the may look wussy but they are super-smart) and Poodle mixes, along with any shaggy-looking mutt. I also know how …

Married, With Pets: Opting for a Furry Family

By Daniella Latham

(Photo: Trace Nietert/Flickr) As I’m writing this, my 11-year-old son and five-year-old daughter are fighting over toys and running around the house. They stop and look at me, then at the cupboard where we keep the snacks. Those little faces know that I’ll give in and give up soon, meaning it’s cookie time. They’re average kids, with the exception that that they’re of the furry kind with four paws. More and more, I’m meeting like-minded marrieds in their 30s and 40s who have chosen to adopt rescue dogs — and love them just like family. You know how moms post endless baby pictures on Facebook? I love to see them and adore my friends’ children. But my own bragging is about PetSmart Basic Training graduation and how well behaved my dog is around the larger breeds. There is a special camaraderie among this group of people that are owned by their dogs. Our conversations at the dog park are very much like the mothers at the playground, except we’re exchanging training tips, discussing the latest …

Dog, Divorce, Do-Over: Meditations on Momo

By Teresa Misagal

A year after I got married, rather than having a baby, we got a puppy. Momo. A Miniature Australian Shepherd. Momo was the first dog I’d ever raised on my own. I’d grown up with cats, I’d inherited a rabbit named Mr. Bunny, I’d lived with dogs before. But Momo was the first pup who was all mine. A year later, we got another puppy, Dailo, also a Mini Aussie. My husband didn’t really want Dailo, but I went ahead and got him anyway. Funny enough, Dailo turned out to be a guy’s dog. And Dailo and Momo got along famously. They were like a cute little couple. And then, six years later, my husband and I got divorced. Irreconcilable differences. I decided it was best to just start fresh with a clean slate. Perhaps if we’d had had kids, we would’ve tried harder to make it work, but no matter. I made the decision and I got to keep Momo and Dailo. Divorce was sometimes difficult. What happened? Maybe I should have just stayed? Why …

Just A Moment: Ok Doggies

By Teresa Misagal

Ok, ok, I’ll get up to walk them, feed them, bathe them, pet them. Ok, ok, I’ll bundle up when I’m sick with a fever to take them out. Ok, ok, we’ll go for a walk even in a snowstorm or a downpour. Ok, ok, because no matter my mood, my health, my energy level, Dailola is always there for me, unconditionally. Dailo makes me feel ok and Lola, she makes me feel pretty damn ok, too. (More on Dailola)

My System: The Crazy Songs I Make Up For My Cat

By Margit Detweiler

Who: Martha Sullivan Job: Designer for Hounds of Hell, clothing for dogs that rock. Hair stylist. Animal lover. System: It has come to my attention that many of us have thoroughly embarrassing pet-feeding songs we sing to our animals. Martha Sullivan, pet clothing designer extraordinaire, is no exception. Here’s her pet-feeding-song system: “I wake up. I put on the coffee, I open the can and Harry comes running. I let him sniff the food and lick it in the can while I sing a special song, which is all about his favorite flavor of Fancy Feast. It goes like this: Ocean Whitefish Tuna Feast/ Is what Harry likes to eat/ Classic. I say ‘classic’ because that’s the only one he likes.” That’s quite an advertisement for Fancy Feast! Have you always had songs for your animals? “Oh yeah. I remember hanging out under the dining room able with my brother and our dog and singing to the tune of Paradise City, “Take me down to the Paradise City where the grass is green and the Billie is Chilly.” Cause our dog’s name …