Transy has gone to the dogs

There is no denying that dogs have invaded campus culture. The presence of dogs in campus programs and on social media reflects the excitement and comfort they offer to Transy students, faculty, and staff.

Last semester, Omicron Delta Kappa and the Order of Omega hosted a philanthropic “puppy playtime” event where students could play with dogs from the Lexington Humane Society. During finals week, the Student Activities Board threw a Winter Stress Fest and offered “Canine Playtime” to students, who played with puppies and relieved the ruff-er symptoms of test anxiety.

In the spirit of this impact, we’ve featured six very good dogs you may see around campus.

Sarah Teasdale and Bailey

Bailey is a fourteen-year-old Jack Russell Terrier, who Teasdale describes as “an old grandma who is still full of life.”

What is your dog’s personality like?

“She can be best described as sleepy. She mostly just naps throughout the day until she gets the zoomies. If you interrupt her from one of her naps, though, she can be pretty sassy and will shoot a death glare in your direction.”

What is your dog’s favorite activity? What does your dog get excited about?

“Her favorite activity is sleeping, but she loves going for long walks. She has arthritis from being so old, but it doesn’t stop her from getting around, she’s just a little slower than she used to be. Some of my friends have said that giving her some CBD products (Click here to see some examples) could improve her mobility and reduce her pain. Maybe its something we will consider but currently, she seems content sleeping.”

What do you love about having your dog on campus?

“It allows me to get out of my room. Where I would normally hole myself up in my room, she forces me to get out and get some fresh air by walking. She also allows me to meet people or talk to people I don’t typically speak to, she also has the ability to cheer up others and not just myself which is an added bonus I didn’t expect. Everyone knows how much I love my dog, which is why I was recommended to look into buying pet insurance through a company like pet insurance reviews, just in case anything was to happen to her. Dog’s do get sick as we all know, which is why this is the best route to go down. It will provide you with a level of comfort knowing that you are doing what’s right for your pet. “ Some owners even go on a walking holiday with their dog and their campervan! This is a good way to burn calories and see scenes that you wouldn’t normally see walking in your local area! Just remember, if you are travelling around the country in a camper, be sure to check out One Sure Insurance so that you know all the information and benefits of ensuring a camper!

What is one funny or interesting story you have about having your dog on campus? Or what is one funny or interesting thing your dog has done?

“My favorite story of Bailey is probably the time that I found her hidden in my shoe pile. She really likes burrowing in places, so that day I came in and couldn’t find her. After having a small heart attack she peeked her head out and all was well, but it was pretty darn adorable.”

Gracie Howard and Lucy

Lucy is a 7-month-old Toy Aussiedoodle, which is a mix between an Australian Shepherd and Poodle.

What is your dog’s personality like?

“She has a very energetic, funny, and playful personality. She was the runt of her litter, and I’ve been told that runts tend to have the biggest personalities.”

What is your dog’s favorite activity? What does your dog get excited about?

“She enjoys walks, fetch, and belly rubs. She gets really excited for when I come back from class and to meet new people.”

What do you love about having your dog on campus?

“I love having someone that is always happy to see me and that keeps me active. Without having her on campus I would spend way more time in my room. She has to go outside so this makes me go as well.”

What are some common misconceptions from others about your dog and having it on campus?

“Some people think it’s difficult to have your dog on campus to balance between giving it attention and doing your school work, but it isn’t. It’s actually a nice break from my homework to go walk her around back circle or play fetch with her.”

What is one funny or interesting story you have about having your dog on campus? Or what is one funny or interesting thing your dog has done?

“She is very popular on campus. Some people actually know me as Lucy’s owner and they don’t know my name, so that is sometimes funny to me. She also enjoys digging holes in back circle, which I try to make her not do so she won’t get in trouble.”

Hannah Compton and Jack

Jack is a three-year-old Toy Poodle.

Why did you choose the name “Jack?”

“I love pumpkins and I have a pumpkin tattoo. Like Jack o’Lantern, that’s where that came from. My nursery was decked out in pumpkins and I have pumpkins up year round.”

What is your dog’s personality like?

“He’s crazy but in the best way possible. He’ll be shy around people he doesn’t know, but then he’ll be friends with anybody as long as I tell him because he’ll be really wary at first. If I’m in the room and somebody picks him up, he’ll fight them so he can come to sit with me. But if I’m not in the room, he’s fine with everyone.”

What is your dog’s favorite activity? What does your dog get excited about?

“He loves it when people come over because he gets so much attention. He doesn’t like it when I take him outside, I, of course, take him out to socialize him some, but he gets nervous. He likes it when people come in because I guess he realizes that I trust them enough to let them into our space. He doesn’t play with toys, which makes me really sad because I buy him Halloween and pumpkin toys. He ignores them. If you tap your hands on the ground he’ll get really excited and start running around in circles.”

What do you love about having your dog on campus?

“I would not have been able to come to school without him. He’s my best friend in the whole world.”

What is one funny or interesting story you have about having your dog on campus? Or what is one funny or interesting thing your dog has done?

“He does something interesting every single day. [Compton’s boyfriend] drove to Louisville to pick up some clothes and left them in my car for so long I got annoyed and brought them in and left them on my floor. Jack peed on them thinking they were a pad. That happened just now.”

Is there anything we haven’t discussed that you would like to include in this feature? Anything you want other students to know or understand?

“Everyone should know that Jack is the best dog ever. That’s kinda controversial, but it’s straight facts.”

Rachel Gordon and Weenie Beanie Eddie Gordon

Weenie is a two-year-old miniature Dotson.

Why did you choose that name?

“You know the show, Oswald? He had a little wiener dog named Weenie. That’s what I named him after. My mom has a dog named Junie which is also my grandma’s name and we thought we should name him Eddie after my grandfather, so it would have been Junie and Eddie. We just added another name to it.”

What is your dog’s personality like?

“He’s very curious. He really likes attention, but he likes some dogs and thinks he’s the boss man. If people try to touch him and crowd him he gets freaked out. He seems to like guys more than girls. Girls are very persistent about wanting to pet him and guys are not so much. He’s very wild, I think mostly because he’s young. He’s very stubborn.”

What is your dog’s favorite activity? What does your dog get excited about?

“He loves playing fetch in the dorm with his little-stuffed squirrel. He loves it because it’s small enough for him to squeak the toy but it’s getting a bit old and raggedy now so I might have to go to DogProductPicker.com to find another one. I never taught him to fetch, he really just loves to play and run around back and forth. It’s a mixture of fetch and tug of war. We played fetch one time for three hours straight.”

What do you love about having your dog on campus?

“He’s here as my emotional support pet. Last year I didn’t have him. He is my baby. He’s my boyfriend replacement. I love having him here. It’s so much easier falling asleep because I’m so used to having him at home.”

What is the ‘reality’ of having your dog on campus?

“It’s a lot of work. You have to worry about feeding him and taking him out. It’s like taking care of a child. You have to clean up the poop out of the grass, even if there are people walking. There could be a cute boy walking by and you’d have poop in your hand, but it’s fine. But, really, it’s a lot of fun.

What is one funny or interesting story you have about having your dog on campus? Or what is one funny or interesting thing your dog has done?

“I took him up to Pio on the 4th floor to study. He likes to explore, but he doesn’t want people to acknowledge him, he likes to be very ‘fly on the wall.’ He would walk around while people were studying and lick their toes. People would say ‘Your dog is licking my toes,’ and I was like ‘I am so sorry!'”

Is there anything we haven’t discussed that you would like to include in this feature? Anything you want other students to know or understand?

“I’m just going to put this out there. If anybody does meet him and he runs away, I’m sorry. If he does bark at you, I’m sorry. His bark is really annoying. It’s really high pitched. He’s sweet, he just likes to act like he’s not.”

Madelyn Frost, Assistant Director of Residence Life, and Buddy the Residence Life Dog

Buddy is one year and four months old and is a Beagle mix.

What is your dog’s personality like?

“He went to daycare the other day and they wrote that he loves to play with other dogs, which is true. He’s happy, friendly, outgoing, and energetic. They said he was fantastic during group play and had puppy pals. I love that.”

What is your dog’s favorite activity? What does your dog get excited about?

“He loves water, he loves to go to the lake or the river. We go to Cave Run Lake and the Kentucky River all the time. He loves it. He will just jump right in. He used to be hesitant about water, but now I’ll throw a stick in and he’ll go get it.”

What do you love about having your dog so close to campus?

“I love the fact that I can walk home and get him and also the fact that when he walks into back circle he knows that people will pet him. So we’ll go on a walk around campus and we’ll go over to Gratz Park and play in the water for a second, and he’ll come to back circle and he gets so excited. It’s nice to have people who know me and know Buddy.”

What is one funny or interesting story you have about having your dog on campus? Or what is one funny or interesting thing your dog has done?

“He experienced his first snow on campus! One day we went out to the tennis court and blocked it all off and let him run. He wore himself out so much he had to lay down because he was so excited running around and eating the snow.”

Is there anything we haven’t discussed that you would like to include in this feature? Anything you want other students to know or understand?

“If anyone ever needs a dog, don’t bring an illegal dog [on campus]. Just ask and I’ll bring him over.”

Sarah Ripplinger and Baby Bean

Baby Bean is a two-year-old Chihuahua and Toy Cairn Terrier mix.