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Having pets in NYC is challenging, rewarding and a huge sacrifice in terms of apartment options. However, it's all worthwhile for the unrivaled loyalty and companionship they give (which, frankly, we could sometimes use a lot more of in this city). Pet-owners are a specific breed (no pun intended) for whom adopting a furry being shapes their experience of New York in a very specific way. So, for all you pet parents out there, here are a few things only someone who owns a pet in NYC will understand:
1. If a restaurant/bar is dog-friendly you automatically get 3 stars on Yelp, even if the service is terrible and the food arrives freezing cold.
2. If use the non paw-friendly salt on your sidewalk to melt snow you are the actual WORST.
3. Constantly thinking, "If a pregnant person gets a seat on the subway, why don't I get one for having a dog in my purse? How is that not pretty much the exact same thing?"
4. That feeling when you find the apartment of your (and your cat's) dreams, only to find out the "pets allowed" part of the listing only really applied to fish.
5. Having to explain over and over again that, "She IS a therapy dog. Why do you think I named her Xanax?"
6. Limiting clothes shopping for yourself to your birthday and clothes shopping for your little one to every other Friday.
7. Never needing a Tinder because your French Bulldog puppy is a giant magnet for attractive strangers.
8. Trying to fit a baby Halloween costume on a cat.
9. That feeling of joy prancing through the city streets on a spring day with your dog, ending in a round of fetch at Prospect Park.
10. But also that feeling in winter when it's 10 degrees outside and they just....won't...pee.
11. When you have play dates with people you don't even really like just because your dogs get along so well.
12. A secret burning desire to have your pets Instagram go viral that now mildly informs most of your life choices.