Big Apple Pittie Pack Update

About a year ago, I was involved in the start-up of a local pack walk called the Big Apple Pittie Pack. We created a meetup.com group, a Facebook page, did research on how other pack walks around the country operated and even had a snazzy graphic designed by our friends at Our Waldo Bungie!

We organized and scheduled a few very successful pack walks, and learned something new from each one, bringing those lessons over to the next until we thought what we had was almost perfect. Then, summer 2012 hit, and it was brutal. Every weekend, the weather conditions were either unsafe for our dogs or unpleasant for the humans. 

We enjoyed our pack walks, and felt like we were having an impact on the perception of pit bulls in the communities in which we walked. We liked being among a group of people who shared similar feelings about dogs and pet ownership, in general. And of course, we loved meeting new people and exposing them to the wonders of a delicious, friendly, adorable pittie. But try as hard as we might, the swing of things just couldn't get back on track and we lost all momentum.

As anyone who organizes a pack walk like this knows, a lot of time, effort and energy go into the planning to ensure that everyone can enjoy the experience in a responsible, safe and pleasant manner. And sadly, we have come to the decision that we will no longer be moving forward with the Big Apple Pittie Pack.

That being said, just because our plans for the Big Apple Pittie Pack have fallen apart does not mean its message is dead. You all can still show New York City that pit bulls, and their owners, are just the same as dogs of any other breed and their owners. And more importantly, that dogs should not be judged based on their breed, but the merits of each dog as an individual.

Thanks to Josh from That Touch of Pit for his assistance in drafting this post.

I'm Five!

G celebrated her fifth (!!!) birthday this past Saturday and I still can't believe that my little piglet is now a bone-afide adult! We spent her special day doing what we do best: walking through Riverside Park with me telling G how beautiful and amazing she is.

G also spent her first few days as a true five-year-old displaying mature pup behavior:

• On Sunday, she came with me to the appliance store on 86th Street to purchase our new washer and dryer. I laid my coat on the linoleum flooring for her and she quietly snuggled up and snoozed while I sat at the desk for about 20 minutes. Precious!
• Last night, in the rarest of the rare - G slept through the night without waking up once! I almost couldn't believe it when I woke up at 6:30am and my little nugget had hardly moved (and frankly, was still snoring). Naturally, I wondered if she was sick or injured, but turns out she was just pooped from daycare the day before.
• Finally, we are in full swing renovation mode on the apartment (ugh, more on that later!). All the contractors complement me on how well behaved G is during the day - apparently she hardly makes a peep and simply sleeps in the living room or wags her tail. Too cute!

How have you see your pups mature over the years?

Thought I'd share the first try at a birthday photo. You can caption this one Fail.

Diet Goosie: Same Pup, Fewer Calories

As today is a bank holiday in observance of Veteran's Day, G and I are parked on the couch trying to catch up on some of the work we missed when Sandy blew through. All in all, G's a pretty good work from home buddy. She takes up residence on the other end of the couch from me and snores through a solid 5-6 hours of me typing away before she's ready for her first potty break.

I snapped this shot of G curled up into a little ball next to me. In the interest of full disclosure, I've been trying to get G to lose a little weight recently as she used to be about 46 lbs. and has spiked to 50 - whoops! In addition to reducing strain on her joints and knees that extra weight adds, when our vet commented that she's starting to look a bit like a square coffee table from the top, I decided it was probably time to go on a diet.

That being said, despite what this picture shows, we've been pretty successful so far. She's lost probably 2 pounds (although we have to go to the vet to confirm this) through reducing the amount of food she gets per feeding (by no more than a quarter cup) and replacing traditional doggy treats with baby carrots in a Kong (she LOVES them).

Slowly, I'm start to see the outline of waist and G even seems a little more game to take long walks.

Any other diet tricks for your pups?

And Now a Word from the Cats: VOTE!

P and M want to remind everyone to vote today!

G Makes her Concerned Face at Sandy Aftermath

Well, things are slowly getting back to normal on the island of Manhattan. Transit is running, trees and other damage are getting cleaned up and power has been restored for most. We are praying for people in New Jersey and the outer boroughs of the city who were not as fortunate as we were. It was a devastating storm that has put a lot of things in perspective and I just hope that everyone stays safe and can get things back to normal as soon as possible.

This past week, I took G out for several walks to burn some of the energy she built up spending hours on end inside during the height of the storm. G was making a 'concerned' face while I snapped some pictures of her in front of some of the damage in Riverside Park - seems weird the way animals know when things aren't quite right! That being said, a few downed trees are nothing compared to what most are dealing with and we truly, truly know how lucky we were to have no major issues.

A downed tree already being cut up and removed on Thursday afternoon.

A tree snapped in multiple pieces due to high winds near 90th Street.

And on the way to get my wisdom teeth out on Friday (fun), I passed by the precariously dangling crane on 57th/7th. Scary!

Our 200th (!) Post: G remains unimpressed

Wow. I simply cannot believe that I have posted 200 times about little old G and our lives together in NYC. This blog is such a great reminder of all the things I've experienced over the past year and a half with my prettie little pittie and I am so glad to be a part of a close-knit group of bloggers who love their pups just as much as I do.

I started blogging after reading a USA Today article that mentioned our favorite Two Pitties in the City and now I've learned so much from blogging and can't imagine not doing this. The chronicle of G's, my kittles and my experiences are priceless.

Thanks to all of you who read and comment - it means so much! :)

Happy Howl-o-ween!!

We're ready for the trick or treaters (even though I secretly think G wants to nose dive into the Reese's herself and P.Kitty could care less!).

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween!