The volunteers who commit their time to Zani’s Furry Friends rescue group may share their devotion to animals, but they themselves cannot be pigeonholed. 

They come on Sunday mornings, bags in tow, to the PetCo on the Upper East Side. They assemble and stack crates, pull cats from meowing, thrashing bags and set up camp. They bicker over which cat goes where and who gets what blanket until everything is meticulously in place.

Michelle, a regular volunteer, ties ribbons around the cats’ necks. She calls it the “beautification process.”

“The ribbons can be controversial,” she says. “I think ribbons are the least of these cats’ worries.”

Then they spend the day trying to get the cats adopted.

They are an NYU professor who speaks six languages, a trained psychoanalyst, a CEO of a high finance company and students struggling to afford college or even make it into the city to volunteer their time. One woman works in fashion, another works in a government office, one is a hospice nurse, one a former journalist. They worry about their children and have passions unrelated to animals, they discuss the significance of astrological signs and planetary activity, they pride themselves on being good judges of character.

One volunteer, Jacqui, who regularly shows up in heels, smelling of honeysuckle or jasmine, says: “I can’t paint or draw, so I dress up.”

But don’t ever ask these women how many cats they own at any given time; they won’t tell you. They’ve learned the hard way. When you’re in rescue, you don’t tell people how many cats you have packed away at home, rotating in and out of the fickle system.

You get strange looks, people shy away and the neighbors in your co-op start to wonder. As one woman says, when you work in rescue — with groups like Zani’s, which take pets off the euthanasia list — you do not choose which pets to adopt. You adopt the un-adoptable.

And yes, for the most part, these volunteers are all women. Several note they got involved at a point when they felt they needed a change in their lives.

Tiffani, a 17-year-old volunteer with Zani’s who commutes from the Bronx, explains: “There are a lot of volunteers who come and go, but no guys. I think we freak them out.”

She adds: “I saw a guy volunteering one time. I came back and he was out the door.”

Valerie, Zani’s expert on cat behavior and nutrition, explains women tend to be more drawn to cats in general.

“Women, especially older women, get into cats, when they’re not valued by society in the same way,” she says. “Cats are warm and affectionate — they fill a void.”

Valerie is careful to distinguish between those who hoard cats as they might other material possessions — the stereotypical “crazy cat lady” — and many of the women in rescue.

“I’m not a crazy cat lady,” she emphasizes.

Valerie, who originally got involved with rescue because she was looking for something to do, says she keeps her place clean and wants few possessions. She concedes sometimes, however, she finds herself wearing a “blanket of cats” while watching television.

Further, Valerie explains there’s an adage that tends to ring true — when you’re young you want a dog, when you mature you want a cat. Despite any stereotypes, cats, like one or two of Valerie’s, still have the potential to be incredibly needy. Cats are very social creatures, just not perhaps in the way we understand — or desire — socialization.

They may have prodigious knowledge of the animal world, but Jacqui says Zani’s volunteers are really just regular people.

She describes a fundraising benefit Zani’s threw the night before our interview, complete with cabaret acts. “Someone called us the prettiest girls in rescue,” Jacqui says.

A few other volunteers scoff at this remark, betraying their no-nonsense attitude. “There’s a reason we’re no-nonsense,” says Valerie, when I point this out. “We go through hell.”

“I don’t know, Anjellicle [Cats Rescue] is very pretty,” offers another. Anjellicle, a “competitor” to Zani’s, occupies the temporary PetCo home on Saturday afternoons. Unlike Anjellicle, Zani’s also rescues dogs and the occasional rabbit or bird.

Dismayed perusers often come in looking to hold the cuddly kittens Anjellicle shows. Zani’s peppers their cages with signs forbidding all but the most interested from touching their cats, as illnesses are easily spread to the stressed animals.

Young people, who adopt from shelters, tend to enjoy the playfulness of a young kitten, but sometimes they return the cats when the animals age and lose their liveliness or when the pet would rather play with another kitten and have nothing to do with its owner. Zani’s does everything in its power to combat this mentality.

“People don’t really understand cat behavior,” says Valerie, “but once you get it, you get it.” She explains a cat’s head-butt is the ultimate sign of love and respect.

Valerie points to a statistic about Americans: approximately 70 percent of Americans say they prefer dogs, while something like 25 percent prefer cats.

Yet cats have overtaken dogs statistically as pets in the United States. The seeming discrepancy is explained by the fact that cat-owners tend to own more than one cat.

The hands-on experience of showing the cats in-store is essential, as rescue groups like Zani’s have saturated the internet market. Pictures and bios of the animals, written and rewritten tirelessly by volunteers, also play a critical role in whether an animal will be placed. Valerie says people respond best to visual depictions.

Sometimes which cats will get adopted — if any — just depends on the day.

One woman browses the cats while I talk to the volunteers. I ask if she’s interested in adopting. “I’ve got eight animals,” she says, sheepishly, “but it’s so hard not to look.” Others meander by and stuff dollar bills into the group’s donation jars.

Jacqui says the group is financially indebted to their veterinarian. Besides squatting at PetCo once a weekend, Zani’s operates entirely out of volunteers’ apartments.

The founder and executive director of Zani’s, who asked to remain anonymous, started volunteering at the ACC of NYC shelter years back when she realized “the real need is in rescue.” While working at the shelter and for a rescue group, she was told she was too good, and needed to form her own organization. Allergic to cats at the time, she began her own dogs-only group, and says Zani’s grew from there.

She adds cat rescue is like the mafia. “Once you’re in, you can’t get out,” she says, while clipping a cat’s nails. (She often clips the nails of passersby’s pets or offers up solicited — or unsolicited — pet advice.)

For all its struggles, Zani’s has just as many success stories, including adoptive parents who write in to thank Zani’s, saying their newfound pets have been more therapeutic than they could have imagined.

“They rescue us more than we rescue them,” explains Jacqui.

Bruno, one of Bidawee's dogs looking for a home

Bideawee, an animal welfare organization that has been helping pets find homes for over a century in New York and Long Island, is struggling to recover from the damage of Hurricane Sandy.

From Bidawee’s website:

Despite all of the prior planning and precautions for Hurricane Sandy, we will be feeling the impact of this historical storm for a very long time. Bideawee in Manhattan has been on the edge of the East River for more than 100 years and suffered heavy flooding when the storm surge pushed the river over its banks. The rush of water swamped the isolation units and holding areas and destroyed the elevator that is used to transport animals from the adoption center to the animal hospital to receive their life-saving medical care. Due to this damage, Bideawee is still not open in Manhattan and can’t serve the needs of the animals and people that rely on us. 

Checkers the cat

Thankfully, all of the animals were evacuated safely to our Wantagh facility on Long Island that has been relying on generator power since the storm first hit metropolitan New York. Our dedicated staff was working around the clock with the aid of the generator until it failed after 11 straight days of use. Undeterred, the staff continues to care for the animals by using flashlights and extra blankets, ensuring the health and safety of every animal in our care. We are working to secure a large portable generator, but as you can imagine in the midst of all the destruction generators are in very short supply. 

To help the recovery efforts at Bideawee, you can donate through their website here. The adorable puppies and kittens will thank you.

Edie Falco with the 30-pound cat Sponge Bob

Zadroga Bill to Cover 50 Types of Cancer
Fifty types of cancer have joined the list of covered conditions for the World Trade Center Health Program linked to the Zadroga Bill that was passed in early 2011. The coverage comes after Dr. John Howard, director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, reviewed the link between exposure to the toxins at the World Trade Center site and cancers affecting the digestive and respiratory systems. He recently issued a proposed rule to accept all of the Science/Technical Advisory Committee’s recommendations.

Sens. Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand released a statement Friday following the decision. “We thank Dr. Howard and the Science/Technical Advisory Committee for their hard work and diligence, which will get more of our 9/11 heroes suffering from cancer the treatment they deserve,” they said.

Two more peer-reviewed scientific studies will be done to determine if any additional cancers should be included in the list.

“We are confident that with the benefit of new peer-reviewed studies to come, we will be successful in ensuring that first responders and community survivors suffering from other cancers will also get the access to the program they so desperately need,” said Schumer and Gillibrand.

City Has Too Many Bee Hives, Say Experts
If dodging speeding cabs, wayward cyclists and lost tourists on the city’s sweltering streets this summer isn’t enough, here’s another thing to look out for: bees—a whole freakin’ lot of them.

Honeybee swarms of cinematic proportions have terrified citygoers this spring from Brooklyn to the Bronx. They have bombarded a fire hydrant at the South Street Seaport, crowded the Bowery and even trapped a family in a Volvo at Pier 92.

The source of these swarms is one of the city’s fastest-growing hobbies: beekeeping. Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani banned honeybees from New York City back in 1999 along with cheetahs, elephants and other exotic pets, but the relegalization of beekeeping in 2010 ushered in a new trend. The New York Post reports that since the ban was lifted, the number of registered hives in the city has increased from three to 161. Hives range in size from small rooftop collections to the Brooklyn Navy Yard, which boasts the city’s largest habitat with 20 hives and 20 million bees.

Andrew Coté, founder of the New York City Beekeepers Association, said. “There are too many hives right now. As it increases in popularity, it will be more and more difficult to control.”

Sponge Bob, the 30-Pound Cat, Finds New Home
Sponge Bob, the 30-pound feline media sensation, made his debut with his new owners last week on the red carpet at Animal Haven’s second annual Performance for the Animals benefit concert and auction at City Winery in Tribeca.
Two months ago, Sponge Bob’s previous owner went into hospice and left the nine-year-old cat with Animal Haven, a nonprofit cat and dog shelter on Centre Street in Soho. The shelter started a blog about Sponge Bob to aid his adoption that won him instant fame last week, including press coverage in the UK and an appearance on the Today Show. He is likely the world’s largest living cat.

Sponge Bob now belongs to Courtney and Matthew Farrell, a young newlywed couple who live on the Upper East Side. They hoisted Sponge Bob up for the cameras on the red carpet—no easy task.

Courtney Farrell said she and her husband had occasionally talked about getting a cat, but did not want to bother with a kitten or anything too out of control. When she first read about Sponge Bob, she sent her husband a picture as a joke. A few conversations later, they knew they had found the perfect match.

When asked about the cat’s health, Matthew Farrell promised, “We’re going to whip him into shape.” He and his wife both exercise regularly and believe in promoting healthy lifestyles.

“He’s already on a no-carb diet,” he said with a smile. “Catkins.”

Compiled by Paul Biscegio and Adel Manoukian

Most elected officials and animal rights advocates agree that New York City’s public shelter system is desperately in need of reform. Shelters are grossly overcrowded and understaffed, the city spends only 10 percent of the Humane Society’s recommended $8 per capita on its animal care, and an average of 54 animals are euthanized every day. What politicians and advocates cannot agree on, however, is how to fix this broken system.

City Council is expected to vote this week on Intro Bill 655, sponsored by Speaker Christine Quinn and Upper East Side Council Member Jessica Lappin and supported by the mayor and a cadre of prominent groups like the ASPCA, the Humane Society and the Mayor’s Alliance for Animals. Council Member Dan Garodnick is also one of the bill’s 15 sponsors.

The bill would infuse Animal Care and Control (ACC), a division of the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, with a $10 million budget bump to fund expanded hours and staff at existing shelters and receiving centers, create a field service division and regulations for Trap-Neuter-Return programs. It would also repeal a law passed in 2000 that requires the ACC to build and maintain a full-service shelter in every borough, a requirement the city never fulfilled, and would negate the city’s obligation to operate shelters in Queens and the Bronx, where there are currently no city-run shelters.

Because of this provision, some animal rights organizations are crying foul on behalf of their four-legged charges, claiming that City Council is trying to abrogate its responsibility by throwing cash at a broken system. They are supporting an alternate plan put forth by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer—a viable rival of Quinn’s for the 2013 mayor’s race—that would spin off the ACC into a quasi-independent not-for-profit organization, much like the Central Park Conservancy.

“We are currently in an emergency situation,” said Lappin. “If we can get this money now, if we can hire staff for this now, let’s do it. That does not mean that we can’t get more in the future.” She is pushing hard to get the bill passed on the basis that she’d rather take whatever resources the city can offer and put them into the system now than wait to perfect it. “I do think we would like to find a way to reform the system. We are looking at ways to do that,” she said. “That’s not what this bill is focused on—it’s about improving service and putting more money into our ACC system.”

Opponents have seized on just that fact, alleging that putting more money into ACC is exactly the wrong prescription to fix an ailing shelter system that can barely handle the animals it takes in.

“There are inhumane conditions. There are healthy animals being put down, animals sleeping in their own waste,” said Stringer. “We have members of the board who have absolutely no experience in fundraising and no experience in animal control. It’s a disgrace.”

“My view is that New York City can become a national leader in humane animal care through sensible reform. The root of the problem is that ACC lacks the funding and expertise to live up to its name,” Stringer said. He has put forward a proposal to take the ACC out of city control and require the city to comply with the existing laws mandating a full-service shelter in every borough.

So far, a petition supporting Stringer’s plan has garnered 8,165 signatures and the backing of many animal welfare groups, like Stray from the Heart, the nonprofit that sued the city for its breach of the shelter law, claiming they incurred financial injury as a result of picking up the city’s slack. The court originally agreed and ordered the city to set up a timetable to build additional shelters, but the city appealed on the grounds that Stray from the Heart had no standing on which to sue, and won. In a rare move, the appellate court ruled in favor of a motion from Stray from the Heart to reconsider the appeal based on legal errors in the interpretation of standing.

Toni Bodon, executive director and founder of Stray from the Heart, has worked on the lawsuit for three years. She is confident that their case will ultimately triumph in the court system and is dismayed that it may be voided by the passage of Intro 655.

“They’re running scared, so now they’ve fast-tracked the bill,” said Bodon. “Let the court of appeals decide this very important decision.” She said they had already won on the merits of the case, and that all the city had to fall back on were technicalities. “They called minivans that are parked in depressed neighborhoods receiving centers,” she said. “We said no, and the judge agreed.”

Assembly Member Micah Kellner, who has sponsored state legislation that would set minimum standards of care for shelters, said the Department of Health should be taken out of the equation entirely.

“Over the last decade, you’ve seen the private sector step up to the plate when it comes to saving animals,” said Kellner. For example, “There’s the ASPCA, which has provided free and low-cost spaying and neuters for people’s pets, particularly ones coming from rescue groups. So you’ve had all of this private investment in saving animals’ lives so we can have a no-kill city—all you’ve seen is the city under the Bloomberg administration take a step back.”

Fellow Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal, who also has a legislative history of working to protect animals, has been urging City Council to vote no on Intro 655 and supports Stringer’s alternative.

“This current bill to put more money into ACC, while it’s commendable,” said Rosenthal, “doesn’t address some of the essential problems of homeless dogs and cats out there.”

Some of those problems include a lack of capacity and high rates of euthanization at shelters. Richard Gentles, director of development and communications at ACC, said they will euthanize sick animals at the requests of owners, if they have severe behavior problems and can’t be placed in adoptive homes and for simple illnesses they can’t afford to let spread.

“Our isolation wards are very limited,” said Gentles, an animal lover who is about to add a rabbit to his roster of adopted pets that at one point included goats. “We don’t have a lot of extra space for animals, so if they’re sick and contagious,” even with just an upper respiratory infection like a cold, “they’ll have to be put down.”

Rosenthal said the problem of space is her main objection to any bill that allows the city to get out of building new shelters.

“This might increase the number of staff people,” said Rosenthal. “[But] there will be no room. This is sentencing thousands of animals to death by not following up with building new shelters.”

With major support from the council, Intro 655 is likely to pass this week.

“In reality, if the mayor and the speaker support this, the only thing we can do is wait for a new mayor and speaker,” said Queens Council Member Peter Vallone Jr., whose father passed the original bill to mandate the shelters.

“The bill does good things, I’m aware of that, but there’s not reason to let the city out of its legal responsibility to build a shelter in Queens and the Bronx,” Vallone said.

Lappin and other groups supportive of the measure say they’re doing the best they can and would prefer not to let animals languish in shelters for lack of staff and funding while the city fights over how to restructure the ACC.

“There are people who would say, ‘Until we completely dismantle it and start from scratch, it’s not worth it,’” said Lappin. “I don’t agree with that.”

A recent visit to the Manhattan shelter showed the ACC doing its best with scant resources. Volunteers and staff members worked to clean the cages of the hundreds of dogs, cats, rabbits and other miscellaneous abandoned pets—recently, a pigeon and a pig—but many sit in small cages with their own waste precariously close to their food, waiting. What the ACC needs more of, said Gentles, are adopters, volunteers and money.

“We need to supplement our contract money from the city,” said Gentles, noting that the ACC is able to raise its own funds as a nonprofit but still relies heavily on the city, which appoints its board. He couldn’t say whether Intro 655 or an alternate plan would best serve ACC at the moment. “We’re all wanting to do the same thing, to help the animals,” he said, voice raised slightly above the din of howling pit bulls in cages a few yards away.

By Louise Murray

If you’re a pet lover, chances are you know someone who’s had a diabetic cat. Diabetes is a real problem for cats in this country, but the good news is that we now have a much better understanding of this condition, and even better, we can cure it in many cases. Best of all, we are learning how to prevent it, which is the ideal strategy for a healthy, happy cat.

Cause: It’s now believed that many cases of feline diabetes are caused by excess carbohydrates in the cat’s diet. Cats are nature’s true carnivores, unlike dogs and humans, who are omnivores. Cats are also uniquely unable to manufacture an amino acid called taurine, found in animal tissue. Cats have many such nutritional differences setting them apart from humans and dogs.

Many cat foods, particularly dry foods, contain carbohydrates. Cats are not designed to properly metabolize carbohydrates, and thus cats on dry food tend to become obese. Additionally, the excess of carbs forces the pancreas, the organ that makes insulin, to overwork. Over time, the pancreas can become exhausted, and lose the ability to make enough insulin. This lack of insulin causes diabetes.

Not all cases of feline diabetes are caused by carbs in the diet. For example, in some cases, the pancreas becomes inflamed and suffers damage affecting the ability to produce sufficient insulin.

Treatment: Most diabetic cats have not permanently lost the ability to produce insulin. Their pancreas is simply worn out. In order to rest the pancreas and allow it to return to normal function, cats are treated with insulin injections.

Several studies have shown that the most effective type of insulin for treating, and hopefully curing, feline diabetes is glargine insulin (Lantus®). This insulin was developed for humans, but has been revolutionary for cats. Due to its formulation, it has a slow, steady action that is safer and less likely to cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Additionally, it has a longer effect once injected, so the cat’s blood sugar does not bounce back up before the next shot is given.

For the best chance of remission, Lantus® should be given twice a day, and the cat’s diabetes closely monitored. This can be done with blood sugar levels measured at home with a drop of blood taken from the ear, using the same kinds of monitors that human diabetics use. It can also be done by measuring the urine sugar at home, using dipsticks called Ketodiastix, which are purchased at a pharmacy. It is essential to tightly regulate diabetes; only by giving sufficient insulin to truly rest the pancreas will the cat regain the ability to manufacture her own insulin.

In veterinary medicine, as in human medicine, there are many types of specialists. For diabetic cats, it may be advisable to consult with a veterinary internal medicine specialist (acvim.org). The success of initial treatment will determine whether the cat’s diabetes is cured, or whether the cat will need lifelong insulin injections.

The second essential component of treatment is the cat’s diet. For the best chance of curing diabetes, cats are fed a canned-only diet (or balanced homemade diet formulated by a veterinary nutritionist). Any dry food, even a prescription diet labeled for diabetes, may reduce the chance of getting the cat off insulin injections. Ideally, most cats should eat a canned diet formulated for diabetes, or a canned kitten food. Be sure to consult with your veterinarian regarding the best diet for your own cat.

Prevention: We all know that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Clearly, we would prefer that our cats not become diabetic in the first place. The keys are to avoid obesity and excess carbohydrates.

For diabetes prevention as well as urinary tract and digestive health, I advise feeding cats canned food in meals, rather than allowing them to graze on dry food.

When attempting to make any change in a cat’s diet, such as from dry to canned food, patience and caution are essential. Never allow a cat to “hunger strike”; this can lead to serious liver disease.
_
Louise Murray, DVM DACVIM, is vice-president of ASPCA Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital.

Ah, the warm air of spring. New Yorkers celebrate by opening their windows wide—and veterinary hospitals brace for an influx of severely injured felines.
In New York, a city of few mosquitoes and an abundance of rental apartments, many dwellings lack window screens. Unfortunately, a misconception exists that cats’ instincts will protect them from falling from high-rise windows. Nothing could be further from the truth, and “curiosity killed the cat” is far more accurate. Cats focusing on the sights and sounds of the city often jump or tumble from sills, suffering devastating injuries or even death.
Yes, cats are skilled at righting themselves mid air, and some survive a fall that would have been fatal for another species. However, they do so at a price: multiple bone fractures, ruptured lungs and head trauma are often seen. These injuries can be crippling, and may require long periods of intensive hospitalization as well as complex surgical repair. Similar injuries are seen in cats that have fallen from fire escapes or balconies.
And, of course, kitties that fall and find themselves on the streets of the city often become lost and may not be recovered. Any home with a cat should have screens in all open windows. Adjustable screens are inexpensive, easy to use, and can be purchased at most hardware and home supply stores.
Another myth is that cats who have fallen once have learned their lesson—any New York City vet can tell you of cats who have fallen two or three times, and finally met their demise. And yes, dogs fall too. Pooch owners need window screens as well!

Louise Murray, DVM, DACVIM, of ASPCA Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital, is the author of Vet Confidential: An Insider’s Guide to Protecting Your Pet’s Health.

Shredded newspaper makes a great cat litter. It’s the ultimate in recycling.

Not buying one box of litter a week can save you more than $600 a year. That would pay for cleaning a lot of cat teeth or other vet bills, maybe cleaning your own teeth, too.

Other benefits include no cat litter on the floor, carpet, under your feet, between your toes and tracked under your sheets, and no dust on the shelves in the bathroom or wherever you keep the litter box.

It’s surprisingly simple to make the change. Start by putting several—enough to be absorbent—large pages of newspaper in the bottom of the litter box to act as a liner. Then put a couple of handfuls of shredded paper on top (if you don’t already have a paper shredder, you can get a really inexpensive one at Target). Then pour some of the litter your cat is used to on top of the shredded paper. You can even sprinkle a little baking soda for extra odor control. At the end of the day, just lift the ends of the newspaper at the bottom of the box and toss the whole thing out.

Start by lining the box with folded sheets of newspaper, then fill with shredded paper. Photo by Jane Warshaw

Put new paper in every day, gradually using a bit less cat litter until your cat is used to just the paper. It should take less than two weeks.

Shelters often use shredded paper in litter boxes for cats that have had surgery so the litter doesn’t get into their stitches and cause irritation or infection.

Dr. Louise Murray, chief veterinarian for the ASPCA in New York City, confirms the practice.

“Vets use litters like Yesterday’s News after surgery because there is a feeling it will stick less to incisions and perhaps be softer and less traumatic than clay,” she said.

But you don’t have to buy Yesterday’s News, which can cost around $9 per 15-pound bag. You’ve probably already got yesterday’s Times, Post or Daily News.

I have three cats ranging in ages from 2 to 9. They all made the transition easily. Even cats that I’ve fostered for various rescue groups accepted the shredded paper—from day one.

In other words, you don’t have to have a kitten for this to work. Nobody ever said, “You can’t teach an old cat new tricks.” 

I am the sort of person who lurks at the pet store on Lexington Avenue at 63rd and convinces other people to buy the puppy they’re cuddling. Gentle reader, I confess, I also say hello to a cardinal and a raccoon in Central Park.

My first pet wasn’t a pet at all. He was a bushy, feral cat who lived on my aunt’s dairy farm 20 minutes from my house in Philadelphia. I passed intense afternoons trying to pet him. Farm cats frequently aren’t allowed in the house. They’re mousers whose rich coats are a result of hanging out in unheated barns. I’d toss food near the cat, and after he wolfed it down, I positioned tidbits nearer and nearer to myself. He inched over and ate. This went on until one day I was happily stroking him, and then he scratched me and ran.

Indeed, many pet stories aren’t cute. My first boyfriend gave me two ducklings that we eventually set loose on my aunt’s pond. After dinner one night, my aunt said I’d eaten my pets.

My next cat was a sleek Siamese with huge apprehensive blue eyes. He’d been abandoned in an apartment I rented one summer near Columbia. At night, he’d sleep curled into my neck. We were two of a kind. I remember our bus ride to graduate school in Philadelphia, the cat meowing nervously in a supermarket carton. (Siamese are big talkers.) I whispered back that things were going to be fine—and they were—even though I soon started wheezing when he settled into my neck to sleep. We compromised: he slept between my ankles.

When, I learned poodles don’t cause allergies, I bought a black standard puppy advertised in the Times. Rocky laughed by lolling his tongue foolishly out of one side of his mouth. He danced on his hind legs to Ray Charles. When we played hide-and-seek, I’d say, “stay,” and hide in the closet or shower until he found me.

I found my next dog Rocky 2 at the Harlem ASPCA. Every part of him was wriggling, but the manager said he was totally adoptable and promised to the North Shore Animal League, the Cadillac of adoption centers. When Rocky 2 (a poodle-schnauzer) got indigestion, I began cooking chicken, brown rice and vegetables for him. This diet, plus the fact that he was a small mixed-breed (now named a “schnoodle”), helped my companion live for 20 years. Your longest relationship, said an ex-boyfriend.

These days I live with a man and a fancy, silvery white Maltese named Tootsie. Tootsie had looked miserable, pacing in his cage at the Lexington Avenue pet store. (I now know little white dogs often have leaky sad eyes.) But when I asked why he was unhappy, a wily salesman said his brother’d been sold.

I brought the man I live with to meet Tootsie, but Joe Weintraub stormed out, saying anybody who pays this much for a dog is nuts.

Weeks passed. Every day Tootsie tugged like a pit bull on my sneaker laces. I finally paid two months’ rent to liberate the sad puppy.

In our apartment, he transformed into the happiest, most loving creature.

Here’s the twist de resistance. He’s a one-person dog—and his person is Joe. Tootsie’s bliss is sitting on Joe’s lap, his expensive chin hanging over Joe’s bare wrist. Maybe it’s male bonding, but I know Joe owes me big time.
–
Susan Braudy is the author and journalist whose last book, Family Circle: The Boudins and the Aristocracy of the Left, was nominated for a Pulitzer by publisher Alfred Knopf.