1) More neighborhood walks. This is hardly a hack, but since a lot of people rely on the backyard to give their dogs exercise, I wanted to include this as a highly recommended alternative. Jeannie and I are eyes-on-the-street for over two hours almost every day. We know the ins and outs of every block within a mile radius. We know where the stray cats hang out, where the rabbits are thick, where the garbage cans are and how often they’re emptied, which houses are neglected, which streets have speeding problems, where there are drainage issues, which people shovel their sidewalks, which homes are having renovations done, and how quickly a house goes from Open House to Sold.

I have never been more in tune to my neighborhood and I can think of no better preparation to becoming a small scale developer / “farmer” in the words of Monte Anderson. In my pre-dog days, I’d feel safer walking at night when I saw dog-walkers out and about. I’m happy to now be one of those folks on patrol - Jeannie will tell off any rabbit who's causing problems.

2) Friends. Our dog makes friends easily. She is soft and gregarious and everyone wants to pet her or tell her she's pretty. I’m so grateful for this because we did not pick a great time to move house. All winter, the porches have been barren and the days short, so having this little friend-maker attached to me every time I walk out the door is a benefit. Through Jeannie, I’ve connected to other neighbors who love animals - people of all ages who tell me about their furry little one and inquire about mine. We don’t need as many trips to the dog park when Jeannie can play with a buddy down the street instead. Based on my unscientific measure of barks per walk, I’d estimate there are probably about a dozen other dogs living on my short street, half of which have fenced yards to play in, so I hope we can phase out the dog park entirely before too long.

3) Rituals and traditions. I’ve written in the past about the role of traditions in the social strength of a place. Being inducted into the local dog-owner community has introduced me to traditions I would have never known about otherwise. The other week, I was invited by a neighbor to a Sunday afternoon ritual - walking at “Snyder’s Flats,” a disused quarry so popular with dog-walkers that my neighbor recognized almost everyone there. I’ve met a few folks in a sort of young-dogs-club who meet up to play frisbee in the early light at a green behind our home. One of the local pet stores hosts monthly socialization walks, a parade of dogs along our crosstown trail. And of course, I now have a very compelling reason to join the thousands of people who regularly walk the loop around our local version of Central Park.

4) Feeding the neighborhood side-hustle economy. Turns out, there’s an AirBnB for dogs. You can find local people with fellow pets or backyards who will look after or walk your dog when you’re not available. This puts less stress on me and less stress on my dog, all while keeping money circulating in the neighborhood. We’ve already found a pet-sitter through this service and I’ve even considered starting offering walking myself once my own dog learns to be a little more chill on leash.

A couple years ago, I made the video below about dogs in the city, and how they tend to bring out our better selves and combat the isolation designed into our lives. We are training every day so that Jeannie can someday join us on walkable errands and relax on a patio too.