Denton Taylor came upon a bizarre scene on Amsterdam Avenue and 69th street in front of the old Lincoln Square Synagogue last week.
Denton was standing on the opposite side of the street from the synagogue when he saw one woman struggling with another woman for control of a dog. From some angry comments at the end of the video, it appears that the dog had been tied up nearby, and the women who took the dog away felt they were rescuing it. The video is below.
The woman yells: “You f—ing idiot! Leaving a dog alone for over 20 minutes? What are you, on drugs? Loser!”
This is how Denton explained it:
“A group of women came upon a dog tied up somewhere, in a way that they disapproved of. But instead of calling the cops or animal care, they basically dognapped the dog. The owner appears on the scene, engages in a tug of war with said group of women, emerges victorious, dog in hand.”
Has it really come to this?
Alas, it has. I’ll admit that I will leave my two beasts outside a a couple of places near my apartment where (1) I can see them clearly and/or (2) there is someone outside who I know….flower guy/produce guy/whatever.
I have had more than one well-meaning but ultimately judgmental and overstepping person (usually a lady of a certain age…and I say that as a member of that demographic)….who will comment loudly and shout about how horrible I am at a volume and urgency that is usually reserved for emergencies (muggers….whatever).
I respect their opinions….but I would hope they would also respect mine….and the right to disagree.
@Young Sally. — I totally understand. A woman started screaming at me, completely unhinged.
I just started crying. I had just gone through my second round of chemo and was just tired and feeling bad for myself. I live alone and just had to run into Duane Reade for toilet paper and then blammo- a woman screaming at me.
I know, I could have a dog walker, or some delivery service, but I’m also human. I just didn’t have the energy at 9 at night to go on two runs.
I know dognappers work fast. And I could have lost my dog. Someone could have stolen him within the 5 minutes I was gone.
But people have different reasons for what they do. At least start out *nicely* before you go straight into screaming.
@Jennifer – How awful. But I get your feeling. The ones that start out nicely are the worst….they give you the “Oh your dog is so cute….where did you get it?” before doing a 180 with the “do you know what happens to dogs that are left outside….” It’s almost as if they learned tactics from the pro-life folks…and soon they will be whipping out photos with something heinous written on them.
Hugs to you Jennifer. You are going through a very tough time, and even if you weren’t–what you did wasn’t wrong in the least. Duane Reade won’t allow dogs and, come on…there’s no way you should have to pay extra for delivery to placate someone with limited social skills.
if you are feeling truly alone, might I suggest Gilda’s Club on West Houston. It is an amazing cancer support organization that is completely free. You can find them at gildasclubnyc.org
I don’t want to start controversy here but I am truly curious. Let me preface this by saying I have two rescue dogs and am an animal rights supporter. I have volunteered with various animal rights organizations, including local rescues and pro-bono veterinary clinics.
Anyway, why is is bad to leave your dog tied up outside for 20 minutes? I know the dog must be well hydrated but other than that what is the danger? I do this if I am grabbing a coffee or a quick bite. I do keep a very close eye because I am worried about dog nappers but I don’t see any danger. My dogs love being outside and people watching. It is clear they enjoy being tied up…not to mention all of the attention they get on the street. If someone could answer in an informative way it would be much appreciated.
Also, it is clear from the video that the dog is in distress. How do those people think yelling and stealing a dog is humane?
Hah, the dog was in distress from being in the middle of a tug-of-war
I know that people want to “just run in for a second” but it is never a second. I have witnessed dogs left for up to half an hour.
Dognappers are quick and sometimes work in pairs. They don’t always take the dog for ransom, but use them as pit bull bait. Should a dog lose its life in that horrible way for convenience?
Naturally there is a portlandia sketch about this exact scenario…
https://youtu.be/TCDbY_lXS5A
That sketch was right on point! Hilarious????
Very well said Young Sally. The same thing has happened to me–and I’m talking about 5 minutes into a building and out yet there is a woman freaking that my dog is dehydrating and will die (in 70 degree weather).
People need to realize that A) not all of us have endless amounts of leisure time to walk our dog, then leave them at home to run a quick errand.
B) It actually would be more miserable for my dog to BE left at home than come along with me, but I guess out of sight is out of mind for many.
C) There is a huge difference between leaving a dog tied up for hours (or leaving a tiny, defenseless dog alone) and leaving a heavy dog who can’t be swooped off.
Welcome to the Upper West Side.
I have an Idea… Lets leave your kids out on the street in front of Duane Reade for 5-10 min while I go grab some toilette paper. It would really free up a lot of space in the store and I wouldn’t have to hear them screaming.
If your too lazy to walk your dog home and you leave your dog tied up outside your not only and idiot but you shouldn’t have a dog. Jennifer, Young Sally, and Steen you should feel bad. It’s not the dogs fault when they get dog napped and put into a dog fighting ring. Everyone has crazy schedules. It’s not a good excuse.
Dogs aren’t livestock.
Bottom Line… Don’t Be Lazy!
Dogs aren’t livestock, true. Nor are they children, though. C’mon.
I was thinking that not so long ago…and yes in NYC….parents would leave their kids outside a store or in the car while they ran into a store/post office/whatever…it happened to a friend who grew up in Sunnyside, and I am pretty certain my mother did it as well.
In Brooklyn in the 60s we certainly were left in cars or outside by we were 8 or the oldest one in the group was 8.
Yes there are neighborhoods where you won’t do that now, but the UWS comeon.
UWS-er, Mark wasn’t suggesting leaving kids outside; he was making a comparison.
Sorry, but Mark WAS comparing dogs to children. Dogs are not children except to certain mentally unhinged people.
You don’t leave your dog out in this hot, humid weather for 20 minutes…especially if the dog has separation anxiety. (It’s a real thing, esp among rescues.)
I get chronic illness. I get going for treatment. I get having no energy. I get wanting to have a dog. I get having a dog.
But what I don’t “get” is not asking someone for help instead of leaving a dog tied up for 20 minutes.
BTDT, and have been on both sides of this. And I appreciate how people actually care about others in this neighborhood…and that includes rescuing a dog if need be.
Thank you, woman in tie-dye, for standing up for the dog who can’t speak. If you’re reading this, I would like to buy you a cup of coffee to say THANK YOU.
That woman in tie-dye deserves to be publicly shamed. There is no need to hell and curse in public. She looks like the loser.
Anyone who would leave a dog, large or small, on a day like Wednesday where it was 90 degrees with about 80% humidity deserves to have their pet “liberated” by good-deed-doers. This weather isn’t fit for a farmyard animal, let alone an apartment-house pet. Animals get heat exhaustion/heat stroke too, not just humans. They need to be hydrated often, remember they’re wearing fur coats in this awful weather.
This video was taken on the weekend. It was a nice day and it was neither hot nor humid.
You can leave a dog outside if you need to run in to get something, However these women had no right to take the dog. They should’ve called the police. Who do they think they are? Now I know I can’t leave my dog outside the store for 5 minutes because these psychos will show up. Be careful dog owners!
FYI, there is now only ONE police unit which handles cases of neglect or abuse…the old system is gone. As such, you have 10 folks going through calls from all over the city. They’d never make it out to investigate; they mostly respond to reports of chronic animal abuse or neglect.
I’ve often stopped and waited with a dog–gotten it water, comforted him, etc. and when the person comes out, share what I did and how they might consider acting differently next time. I once had a guy curse me out—only to return ten minutes later to shake my hand, apologize, and say thanks for caring about his 4-legged friend.
We really ought not make judgments about this particular case, as we don’t have a full clip, but this is a relevant discussion nonetheless.
In the zany, twisted, upside-down world of the liberal UWS, where the life of an African lion elicits more empathy than the murders of over 50 million helpless unborn children in the womb……Does this type of story really shock anymore?
I’m afraid your observation is all too true, Off Duty.
Even the plight of flora elicits righteous indignation from individuals who champion the murder of the unborn (and even the partially born) as a sacred right. Remember the thread about the tree that had its bark stripped? In at least two of the comments posted there, I sensed a vengeful, disturbing disregard for civil liberties and the principle of innocent until proven guilty.
(Lest there be any doubt, let me state that I absolutely do not condone cruelty or neglect to animals or unnecessary harm to any living thing.)
And yet again, the replies to Off Duty’s post reveal a great deal about those who made them, while revealing nothing about OD, his posts or those who share the views that he expressed.
Such vicious (and vacuous, reflexive, lowbrow) snipes, directed not only against OD but against all those who share the views that he expressed, can surely be expected to arouse the sincere concern and righteous indignation of those who have complained about “vitriol” and “venom” in the comments. I expect that any minute now, we will see posts start to appear from such individuals, in which the hatred and bigotry that has been directed against you will be roundly condemned and denounced. Grave concern will no doubt be expressed over the implications of such ugliness for this web site and the neighborhood it represents. Any minute now…
You’ll note that no one piles on you. I would hazard a guess that this is because although you often take a contrary position in these comment threads, you do so without the invective, childish name-calling, and rudimentary grammar displayed by Officer Krupke. No one like Officer Krupke should be expected to be taken seriously if they consistently refuse to make an argument in a serious manner. It’s as if Sarah Palin herself comes in here from time to time to spew her word salad.
@bumac – I probably shouldn’t be responding to you as you have obviously become a relentless stalker on a self-appointed crusade of defending the absurdities…well, which you defend. It must be very disconcerting for a low-life troll, like you, to have to confront the reality that your “politically correct” universe is falling apart, and in desperate gasps of somewhat amusing invective, you lash out at me, accusing me of the very things in which you engage…..and excel.
Name calling indeed. I’m just merely identifying you, admittedly in a pointless redundancy, as you yourself identify yourself much better than any descriptive that I could possibly use.
Indeed. The irony is rather incredible.
It is hardly an anomaly, though, for the comment sections on this site. A place where more than a few times now, I have seen individuals exhibit the very hatred, bigotry, “venom”, “vitriol”, vindictiveness, ill manners and ignorance that they have decried in others (often with more than a whiff of self-righteousness, I might add.). Granted, not all of these voices of moral indignation (and, in some cases at least, self-appointed enforcers of acceptable thought) are guilty of that degree of hypocrisy (i.e., hurling the very invective that they denounce). Perhaps not even most. But whenever the target of a vicious and ugly verbal attack has been anyone who happened to have been on the wrong side of the political or ideological sympathies of said moralists, the best I have seen from any of them has been a deafening silence. Nary a word of the type of complaint or protest, often quite zealous, that seems to flow so freely from their fingertips elsewhere. This sub-thread being a case in point.
This is also a place where I have, on more than one occasion, witnessed individuals who themselves post anonymously somehow find the nerve to castigate others for doing the same. A place where at least one individual regularly accuses others of exploiting threads in order to promote a “political agenda”, apparently oblivious to the distinct political agenda that nearly every one of his own posts reeks of. (At least one time, this individual actually went so far as to post a link to material that promoted a distinct and highly tendentious particular political and ideological agenda, with the comment, “If you’re open minded on this — some people here are not, but many are — you might be interested in the “right to the city” movement.”)
No more than two weeks ago, we were treated to quite a spectacle in a portion of a thread that began with a post that was made here. In the course of echoing complaints that had been made about “vitriol” and “hate”, etc. in comments, individuals lamented the presence, both on this site as well as in the neighborhood that it represents, of individuals who are not “native New Yorkers” or “native Upper West Siders”. Yet, those expressing such complaints, as well as most of those reading them, were almost certainly the same individuals who would not hesitate to dismiss Trump supporters, derisively, as “nativists”. Can anyone really doubt that much?
And that is not all that stood-out as representative and instructive in that part of that past thread. See it here. Look for a response of my own, which I have just submitted there.
Then, of course, there is the example that I cited in this post of mine from September 4th.
Don’t everybody chime in at once now….
I think I speak for many when I say: “Huh?”
Just when you thought the Krupkebot 3000 had finally turned off his creaky old PC!
@ scooperstain & bigmac – It’s ridiculously easy getting leftie-loons like you two to reveal yourselves for being the intolerant sociopaths that you so eagerly are.
What makes this blog your exclusive echo chamber? Can’t handle a different perspective?
Re: “…leftie-loons like you two to reveal yourselves for being … intolerant sociopaths ….
ACK-SHOOLEY, this particular Leftie-Loon is a fairly TOLERANT sociopath…who also thinks Donald Trump is not only hysterically funny but also a great disrupter of the past-its-prime G.O.P.
I’m not sure I’d call “crayon scribble on the back of the early bird menu” a “perspective”, but have it your way, Officer Krupke.
Re: “…than the murders of over 50 million helpless unborn children in the womb….”
Uh-Oh!
Does anyone else smell RABID RIGHT-2-LIFE REE-PUBBLY-CAN here?
Who let them in?
Okay, so if the tie-dye lady is so concerned, why didn’t she just get a big bottle or bowl of water for the dog and leave it at that? The world would be such a better place if pro-animal rights folks expended even half as much of their concern, funds and energy on impoverished and mistreated two-legged creatures as they do on four-legged, furred and feathered ones.
That’s a good approach: You stick around, bring the dog water, protect the dog from any dog nappers, but don’t reproach the dog owner. Let the person know what you did and frankly, be prepared to maybe being cursed out. Doesn’t matter. You care for the dog and suggest the person not leave it alone even for the fabled 5 minutes, but that’s it.
This isn’t that an unusual thing to see. Having a dog in NY makes you open to all sorts of crazy people telling you what to do.
Don’t steal.
Should you steal, expect repercussions.
Repercussions from your victim and ultimately the Law.
I know people love having their dogs around and taking them on errands etc but if I have to go shopping I never take the dog. Not worth the risk of stealing. It happens all the time. Some stores like Westside Market have accommodated customers – sometimes the guys outside will watch the dog if the person needs to go in a second. LEAVE THE DOG AT HOME WHERE IT’S SAFE WHEN YOU HAVE TO GO SHOPPING. THIS IS NOT SURBURBIA IT’S NYC WHERE THERE ARE LOTS OF CRAZIES.
Proof of these constant dog-nappings please? I just did a search of all area papers on dog-nappings being reported, let alone endemic as you imply, and the only news I can find goes back to 2008-2009. Then there’s this, which makes it sound like a bit of an urban legend: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/01/05/shaggy-dog-story
Hopefully this will encourage dog owners to stop dragging their dogs around everywhere. I wish all stores would ban dogs from entering to discourage this habit of treating your dog as your errand-mate/child. If the only time you have to walk your dog is to take it into a supermarket (gross) then you probably shouldn’t have a dog – doesn’t sound like a good life for them.
The tie-dye lady clearly feels passionately about the dog’s well being, and I can appreciate that. But screaming obscenities, with no thought particularly to the children within earshot, suggests she doesn’t have the same regard for the parents of humans in her neighborhood. The altercation was over at the point, and her blue-tongued parting shot only made her sound like a crass lunatic.
She was feeling passionate. It happens. I’m sure she’s not proud of what she said, but I admire how her **intention** was good.
it’s very simple. The woman screaming at the end is out of her damned mind
+1,000,000 for adam
Bingo.
As an UWS dog owner I am going to throw my two cents in.
1) If you leave your dog tied up outside and you cannot visibly see them through the window of whatever store you are in, even for 5 minutes you run the risk of someone taking the dog. It happens, and yes they are used as bait and practice for dog fighting rings. These exist in NYC and it is more common than you may think. I realize it is your dog and your property, and not a child, but I am sure you would feel like crap if that happened to your dog. I personally tie my dog up outside at least once a week, but never let him out of my visibility, ever.
2) Assuming you can see the dog the entire time and it is not distressed by being tied up what difference does it make what the temperature is outside? It’s the same temperature if you were walking the dog down the street as it is if its tied up outside of birdbath.
3) For people that dont like it when non food stores are dog friendly, get over it.
Oh please. If you need to run into a store for a moment, look for somone with a friendly dog out for a walk and ask them to assist. Then play it forward.
Yesterday I saw a fairly large dog tied to a sign, but his leash was so long that he was sitting on the street in the bus lane. I I stood in front of him so he wouldn’t get run over but didn’t attempt to touch him or pull him back on to the sidewalk. When the owner showed up (approx 10 minutes) she angrily asked what I was doing with her dog, but there was no reasoning with her even though we were clearly standing IN THE STREET, lol. I mentioned that it would be a good idea to keep the leash shortened if she was going to leave him unattended and she flipped out on me.
Anyway, I continued up the block and there were two kids, approx ages 2 years and 18 months sitting in a double stroller outside of a nail salon while their mother was inside picking out nail polish. Apparently she couldn’t get the double stroller through the door. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen this happen with kids and I usually just hang back and wait for an adult to show up but I never say anything. I see a lot of messages here referring to this being the UWS, but I’m not sure if everyone means ‘it’s safe to do these things here,’ or ‘anything goes on the UWS.’
I know everyone is debating the virtues of tying you dog up, And at least one person seems to be siding with the people trying to take the dog, but has anyone considered that maybe this woman is actually a dog napper, of the nefarious type, ie looking to use the dog for dog fighting and didn’t notice the owner was actually watching, then pretends to be a concerned citizen to cover her but… Quit frankly from the video and everyone’s comments about dog napping that seems like the most likely scenario here… I mean who goes around trying to “libefate” tied up dogs? I hope the owner went to the police and is able to use this video to help apprehend the dog napper…