By A. Campbell

Good morning! I’m Luca, a five-month-old miniature dachshund who loves to explore every inch of the Upper West Side. When my dads began dating a couple of years ago, one of their earliest conversations focused on a love of dogs. A few months into their relationship, my dad was presented with a special birthday gift from my dad – a silver name tag engraved with “Luca”. While they weren’t quite yet in a professional and personal life stage to embark on joint pup ownership, the name tag was a special memento. Fast forward another year, and after moving in together and decorating a new apartment, my dads agreed the one missing piece was a pup. In June 2023, I arrived! I think it’s safe to say the two of them “manifested” Luca – a happy little glossy-coated, floppy-eared pup.

During my first couple of months in the city, I traveled in style in a cozy fabric sling. It’s important that puppies receive all of their vaccinations before touching the city streets so they don’t risk becoming sick from diseases like parvovirus and others. The three of us didn’t mind though. Turns out, the secret to making friends and winning over seen-it-all New Yorkers is carrying a miniature dachshund puppy around town. Suddenly, everyone we passed was all smiles!

Once our veterinarian gave the green light, I started exploring the neighborhood as fast as my little legs would carry me. Dogs! Birds! Leaves! Squirrels! Acorns! So much to discover. Fellow Upper West Siders have described me as “brave” and “fearless” for playfully approaching any dog or person I encounter. So far, I’ve only made one frightening discovery and that’s the garbage truck. The sound it makes when it’s compacting the trash – yikes!

My days include walks in Riverside Park along the promenade, poking my nose between the iron posts to gently sniff the flowers of the 91st Street Garden, relaxing in my cozy crate, and enjoying an al fresco meal at dog-friendly neighborhood haunts like Fred’s. Each day is bookended with morning and evening snuggles with my dads. We’ll wind down at night with an episode of a show like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel – love it! – or And Just Like That – very mixed feelings.

We live on W. 87th Street and it’s one of the Upper West Side blocks that hosts a big neighborhood Halloween celebration each year. My dads and I are already working to pull together my costume. Keep an eye out for a long, floppy-eared bumble bee!

Read all of our Pupper West Side interviews here!

If you think your pup deserves a shot at neighborhood fame, we encourage you to reach out to pupperwestsideuws@gmail.com to be considered for a future profile on West Side Rag and follow your fellow Pupper West Sider’s adventures on Instagram at @pupper_west_side_uws

If readers are interested in becoming pet owners, we encourage you to consider adopting or volunteering to be a foster parent with one of the many shelters and nonprofits based in and around New York City. These include but aren’t limited to Muddy Paws Rescue; Animal Lighthouse Rescue; Animal Care Centers of NYC; NYC ASPCA; Humane Society of New York; Bideawee; Social Tees; Badass Brooklyn Animal Rescue and Animal Haven.