They say, ‘I never saw a Jew with a dog before!’
August 4, 2015 12:36 PM Subscribe
Meet Brooklyn's Fearless Hasidic Dog Walker
“The business, for me, is 30% rebellion, 30% comedy, and 30% for money,” said Gedalya Gottdenger. He was wearing a yarmulke, peyos, and a t-shirt screenprinted with an ostentatious cat in mirror shades. Gottdenger stroked his client for the day, a shy red-hued Retriever named Tuppance, and reconsidered his math for a second.
“I want to say the remaining 10% is my love of dogs, but really that’s the overarching reason, much more than 10%.”
“The business, for me, is 30% rebellion, 30% comedy, and 30% for money,” said Gedalya Gottdenger. He was wearing a yarmulke, peyos, and a t-shirt screenprinted with an ostentatious cat in mirror shades. Gottdenger stroked his client for the day, a shy red-hued Retriever named Tuppance, and reconsidered his math for a second.
“I want to say the remaining 10% is my love of dogs, but really that’s the overarching reason, much more than 10%.”
I...had no idea that was a thing, about not liking/fear of dogs??? Huh. Thank you, learned something new today.
posted by Windigo at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Windigo at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
D-g is great.
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [15 favorites]
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [15 favorites]
oh my god his business card says "special rate for pugs and other flat faced friends"
posted by griphus at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [19 favorites]
posted by griphus at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [19 favorites]
I will move to NY just so my flat faced dog can be walked by him.
posted by peripathetic at 12:47 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by peripathetic at 12:47 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
offer some explanations from a Kabbalah assertion that dogs have demonic powers
This is true.
“Yeah, even cats,” he says, adding, “but to be fair, cats are assholes.”
This is also true.
posted by GenjiandProust at 12:49 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
This is true.
“Yeah, even cats,” he says, adding, “but to be fair, cats are assholes.”
This is also true.
posted by GenjiandProust at 12:49 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
These pictures are absolutely charming.
He was able to break this pattern through prolonged exposure with his secular friend’s affectionate and clingy chihuahua who demands endless games of fetch and occasionally demonstrates affection through urination.
“The more time I spent with her, I realized that not all dogs are scary and want to kill me,” Gottdenger said.
Definitely true. Some of them just want to pee on you!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 12:55 PM on August 4, 2015
He was able to break this pattern through prolonged exposure with his secular friend’s affectionate and clingy chihuahua who demands endless games of fetch and occasionally demonstrates affection through urination.
“The more time I spent with her, I realized that not all dogs are scary and want to kill me,” Gottdenger said.
Definitely true. Some of them just want to pee on you!
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 12:55 PM on August 4, 2015
I...had no idea that was a thing, about not liking/fear of dogs??? Huh. Thank you, learned something new today.
There's an awesome dissertation about non-Orthodox Jews becoming Orthodox ("BTs"). One of the things the author notes can make somebody clearly a BT (as opposed to "Frum [Orthodox] from Birth") is having a pet.
It was a stereotype I wasn't really consciously aware of until I read the dissertation, but it dawned on me how few of the people I knew even from my non-Orthodox synagogue growing up had dogs.
I always figured part of it was the trickiness of balancing various laws with pet ownership. Like, you're not supposed to derive pleasure from chametz (stuff with wheat, etc.) in it during Passover, and I think there's some debate if feeding your pet counts. Ditto "work" on Shabbat-- walking a dog carries a surprising amount of issues since (1) "carrying" things outside of certain areas is prohibited, as is (2) tying knots and (3) tearing things; see here, for example.
posted by damayanti at 12:57 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
There's an awesome dissertation about non-Orthodox Jews becoming Orthodox ("BTs"). One of the things the author notes can make somebody clearly a BT (as opposed to "Frum [Orthodox] from Birth") is having a pet.
It was a stereotype I wasn't really consciously aware of until I read the dissertation, but it dawned on me how few of the people I knew even from my non-Orthodox synagogue growing up had dogs.
I always figured part of it was the trickiness of balancing various laws with pet ownership. Like, you're not supposed to derive pleasure from chametz (stuff with wheat, etc.) in it during Passover, and I think there's some debate if feeding your pet counts. Ditto "work" on Shabbat-- walking a dog carries a surprising amount of issues since (1) "carrying" things outside of certain areas is prohibited, as is (2) tying knots and (3) tearing things; see here, for example.
posted by damayanti at 12:57 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
Such a weird cultural thing. On my secular Jewish side of the family, there is absolutely no interest in having a pet. What's the point? It doesn't serve any purpose, or something like that.
posted by Melismata at 12:57 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Melismata at 12:57 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
I always thought it was a generalized ashkenazi* thing and not a specifically orthodox thing because my mom was terrified of all things that moved which were not human or mechanical, but then my aunt and uncle got a dog and the PUPPY SCALES FELL FROM MY EYES.
*admittedly i only know like 3 sephardim and they're all related but they all love pets.
posted by poffin boffin at 12:59 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
*admittedly i only know like 3 sephardim and they're all related but they all love pets.
posted by poffin boffin at 12:59 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
Not quite the same thing, but there was a I Want To Touch a Dog campaign that took place in Malaysia last year where a young Muslim activist organized a mass dog-petting event to get over his fear of dogs. It was quite well received, but it also ended up Touching A Nerve, and I don't think there'll be anything of the sort ever again.
posted by peripathetic at 1:01 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by peripathetic at 1:01 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
omg it's like that one dog is their portkey to the quidditch world cup
posted by poffin boffin at 1:03 PM on August 4, 2015 [10 favorites]
posted by poffin boffin at 1:03 PM on August 4, 2015 [10 favorites]
In my secular Jewish family, we always had dogs - collies to be precise -- and actually even raised a litter of purebred puppies for sale, though we kept 5 of them.
My father broke the dog barrier. He was an only kid, and was in college. He ordered a collie mix puppy and had it delivered to his home in NYC -- the Riverside Drive area, of course. His mother, my grandmother, used to describe how terrified she and my grandfather were when this beast arrived in its crate. After release, however, she and my grandfather were the puppy's slaves . . . never was an animal so spoiled or well fed. Fortunately my dad rescued her from this and took her off with him into married life, or she would have died young of obesity.
My mom's family, very intellectual Jews, had no dogs at all. But my mom loved our collies so much that when she and my dad separated and divorced, she took several with her. She really loved cats best, but she kept those dogs all their long and happy lives.
Us Jewish offspring have all had dogs, and all but the cat fancier and the one who is married to a person who abhors animal hair still do.
My conclusion: it just takes one rebel to break the taboo.
posted by bearwife at 1:04 PM on August 4, 2015
My father broke the dog barrier. He was an only kid, and was in college. He ordered a collie mix puppy and had it delivered to his home in NYC -- the Riverside Drive area, of course. His mother, my grandmother, used to describe how terrified she and my grandfather were when this beast arrived in its crate. After release, however, she and my grandfather were the puppy's slaves . . . never was an animal so spoiled or well fed. Fortunately my dad rescued her from this and took her off with him into married life, or she would have died young of obesity.
My mom's family, very intellectual Jews, had no dogs at all. But my mom loved our collies so much that when she and my dad separated and divorced, she took several with her. She really loved cats best, but she kept those dogs all their long and happy lives.
Us Jewish offspring have all had dogs, and all but the cat fancier and the one who is married to a person who abhors animal hair still do.
My conclusion: it just takes one rebel to break the taboo.
posted by bearwife at 1:04 PM on August 4, 2015
Haha ok, so we lived in Boro Park, we were one of the few non-Orthodox families in the area. We had access to a little courtyard and lived on the ground floor, so we frequently went out there but made our Maine Coon stay inside, where she'd look at us through the window with hatred, as was her way.
Anyway, one time the kids next door were out playing too. Normally they would never have talked to us, but they saw the cat through the window.
"What is that?"
"A...cat?"
(to be fair, she was more of a rage-filled fluff ball. Probably didn't look like any cat they might have seen in a picture)
"Yes."
"Why do you have it? Are you going to eat it?"
We just looked at each other, replied in the negative, and the kids went back to ignoring us.
posted by emjaybee at 1:11 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
Anyway, one time the kids next door were out playing too. Normally they would never have talked to us, but they saw the cat through the window.
"What is that?"
"A...cat?"
(to be fair, she was more of a rage-filled fluff ball. Probably didn't look like any cat they might have seen in a picture)
"Yes."
"Why do you have it? Are you going to eat it?"
We just looked at each other, replied in the negative, and the kids went back to ignoring us.
posted by emjaybee at 1:11 PM on August 4, 2015 [6 favorites]
This fear is pretty common in families of Holocaust survivors (and I believe Southern African Americans of a certain age). Once a dog has been used against you as a weapon, it is very hard to see another one as cuddly.
posted by Mchelly at 1:15 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by Mchelly at 1:15 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
Okay, here's a Jewish dog joke that it has been years since I have had the chance to use, as nobody remembers that Jews are supposed to be afraid of dogs.
The setting is a battle in WWII. The battle is about to start, but the General is waiting for a Private, let's call him Shapiro, to come back with intel.
Shapiro shows up, and the General demands, what does the enemy have.
Well, on the right flank, they have mortars and artillery, but I am sure we can take them
And what on the left flank, the general asks.
On the left flank, tanks, machine guns, and flamethrowers, but I am sure we can take them.
What about in the middle?
Shapiro starts to tremble.
What about the middle, Shapiro, the general demands.
Oh, the middle, oh, Shapiro says, and starts to cry.
In the middle, general, they have such a big dog.
posted by maxsparber at 1:19 PM on August 4, 2015 [14 favorites]
The setting is a battle in WWII. The battle is about to start, but the General is waiting for a Private, let's call him Shapiro, to come back with intel.
Shapiro shows up, and the General demands, what does the enemy have.
Well, on the right flank, they have mortars and artillery, but I am sure we can take them
And what on the left flank, the general asks.
On the left flank, tanks, machine guns, and flamethrowers, but I am sure we can take them.
What about in the middle?
Shapiro starts to tremble.
What about the middle, Shapiro, the general demands.
Oh, the middle, oh, Shapiro says, and starts to cry.
In the middle, general, they have such a big dog.
posted by maxsparber at 1:19 PM on August 4, 2015 [14 favorites]
I love all dogs, but if I were going to pick a dog to help someone get over dog-fear, it would not be a breed known for taking zero shit from creatures up to 300 times its size.
posted by FelliniBlank at 1:22 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by FelliniBlank at 1:22 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
huh. How did I make it to adulthood, having grown up Jewish in a heavily Jewish (though I guess not Orthodox) area, without ever hearing of this stereotype before? Plus, there are at least three people I know personally who are Jewish and have worked as dog-walkers-- one now owns a dog-walking business, and one is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors.
Maybe it's a New York thing?
posted by nonasuch at 1:37 PM on August 4, 2015
Maybe it's a New York thing?
posted by nonasuch at 1:37 PM on August 4, 2015
Could be a New York thing. My secular Ashkenazi New Yorker mother was fiercely anti-pet when I was growing up (I could have a fish and that was about it). As an adult it took me years to come around to cats, and I'm still not wild about dogs.
posted by Itaxpica at 1:46 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by Itaxpica at 1:46 PM on August 4, 2015
Yo, being orthodox doesn't give you a pass on typos.
It's "beastie," not "bestie."
Jesus Christ.
posted by crazylegs at 1:47 PM on August 4, 2015
It's "beastie," not "bestie."
Jesus Christ.
posted by crazylegs at 1:47 PM on August 4, 2015
It's very much an Orthodox thing I think. The mostly-secular Soviet Jews I grew up with and around have no more or less of a problem with dogs than anyone else coming from a culture where dog ownership wasn't a big thing like it is in America, and the American non-Orthodox Jews I know aren't much different than most other Americans. I live in a v. Jewish neighborhood right with people ranging from secular/ethnic Jewish (like me) to Hasidic and there's definitely an uptick in dog-fear as you go further into the religiosity. Like I very quickly learned not to walk my dog near large groups of Hasidic kids because they flip the fuck out and that's not good for anyone.
posted by griphus at 1:47 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by griphus at 1:47 PM on August 4, 2015
crazylegs: the hasidim are given a terrible secular, English education. Huge rabbit hole there.
posted by Melismata at 1:51 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by Melismata at 1:51 PM on August 4, 2015
I ... can't tell if you guys are serious or not.
posted by griphus at 1:52 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by griphus at 1:52 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
About the 'bestie'/'beastie' thing not the godawful state of secular education in the Hasidic community.
posted by griphus at 1:52 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by griphus at 1:52 PM on August 4, 2015
It isn't just Orthodox Jews. I live near university housing for international students. When I'm walking my dog (85 lb Rottweiler/hound mix) near there, I frequently see people of various cultures react with visible fear to him. It doesn't seem to matter that he's super gentle and on a leash.
posted by crazylegs at 1:53 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by crazylegs at 1:53 PM on August 4, 2015
Maybe it's a New York thing?
Um, it might be a Hasidic thing. I know a few Orthodox people with pets and some without.
posted by zarq at 2:23 PM on August 4, 2015
Um, it might be a Hasidic thing. I know a few Orthodox people with pets and some without.
posted by zarq at 2:23 PM on August 4, 2015
In the fairly assimilated Conservative/Reform community I grew up in, nobody was afraid of dogs, but owning them just . . . wasn't a thing. I think I always subconsciously chalked it up to Jews being, somehow, culturally cat people.
(Not that I know that many with cats either, actually. I wonder if this has something to do with American Jewish respectability politics? You start out in a city tenement where you can't have a pet, so you don't get into the habit, and then when you finally have enough money to move out to the suburbs, your house in the suburbs is a Nice Place, why would you want some animal tracking schmutz into it?)
posted by ostro at 2:25 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
(Not that I know that many with cats either, actually. I wonder if this has something to do with American Jewish respectability politics? You start out in a city tenement where you can't have a pet, so you don't get into the habit, and then when you finally have enough money to move out to the suburbs, your house in the suburbs is a Nice Place, why would you want some animal tracking schmutz into it?)
posted by ostro at 2:25 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
Also, not a single mention in the article of how he handles Shabbat? If he's remaining Hasidic, then he's definitely shomer shabbat. I assume he walks the dogs and doesn't get paid that day, but still, it's technically work.
Inquiring minds, gothamist. Inquiring minds.
posted by zarq at 2:26 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
Inquiring minds, gothamist. Inquiring minds.
posted by zarq at 2:26 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
Actually, ha, I bet I can think of one more reason: allergies! In the grand American Jewish tradition of being endearing but hilariously paranoid about children's health.
posted by ostro at 2:27 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by ostro at 2:27 PM on August 4, 2015
Also, not a single mention in the article of how he handles Shabbat? If he's remaining Hasidic, then he's definitely shomer shabbat. I assume he walks the dogs and doesn't get paid that day, but still, it's technically work.
Maybe he just doesn't walk dogs then? When I had a dog walker, he came five days a week.
posted by kate blank at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2015
Maybe he just doesn't walk dogs then? When I had a dog walker, he came five days a week.
posted by kate blank at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2015
I assume he walks the dogs and doesn't get paid that day, but still, it's technically work.
I was under the impression that dog-walking is mainly a weekday thing, so as long as he gets the walks in before sundown on Friday he should be fine.
posted by griphus at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2015
I was under the impression that dog-walking is mainly a weekday thing, so as long as he gets the walks in before sundown on Friday he should be fine.
posted by griphus at 2:29 PM on August 4, 2015
The article says he's offering to walk people's besties (Sorry, it was gnawing at me) while they're on vacation. It would be cruel to not walk a dog for 25 hours.
posted by zarq at 2:31 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by zarq at 2:31 PM on August 4, 2015
Oh wait, I didn't read carefully.
posted by zarq at 2:33 PM on August 4, 2015
"Recently Gottdenger has expanded the business by walking more dogs each day and offering to watch pets while their owners are on vacation, promoting himself with business cards and social media as “The Hasidic Dog Walker.""
posted by zarq at 2:33 PM on August 4, 2015
Also, for what it's worth, we're Orthodox and have a dog. My mother was the daughter of Hasidic Holocaust survivors, and she had a dog briefly when she was growing up (though her parents never warmed to it and it was eventually rehomed when it proved too much work to train). Something can be common, even widespread, without being universally true, especially when you're dealing with a group like Jews, who come from all over the world, with as many different traditions as they have similar ones.
posted by Mchelly at 2:37 PM on August 4, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by Mchelly at 2:37 PM on August 4, 2015 [5 favorites]
In March my GF moved herself and her two little chihuahuas to Midwood, in deep Brooklyn, which is a very, very Orthodox neighborhood, and I've noticed that almost nobody else seems to have dogs and people act really differently around hers than people did in Sunnyside, and she always says I'm crazy. PROOF!
posted by Navelgazer at 2:40 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by Navelgazer at 2:40 PM on August 4, 2015
I was at first a little annoyed by the preciousness of the prose in the FPP's link:
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:49 PM on August 4, 2015
An Ultra Orthodox gentleman with a giddy pup in tow may not be an odd sight to everyone, but for those aware of the cultural taboo and relatively benign stereotype that religious Jews fear dogs, Gottdenger sticks out like a bagel at a Passover seder.But then to more fully grasp the simile employed -- I am a goy who has never been to a seder dinner -- I found myself reading about Passover Seder Plates and learning more about something I know of only secondhand. Yay for instructive digression!
posted by ricochet biscuit at 2:49 PM on August 4, 2015
Inquiring minds, gothamist. Inquiring minds.
i nominate zarq to email this dude and ask him more questions on behalf of mefi's dog fancier jews.
posted by poffin boffin at 2:56 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
i nominate zarq to email this dude and ask him more questions on behalf of mefi's dog fancier jews.
posted by poffin boffin at 2:56 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
Last time I emailed someone (a well-known scifi author) to let them know metafilter was talking about them, the thread in question took a really horrendous turn and when the reply finally came back it was all "OH HELL NO, BUT THANKS" so yeah.... um.... let's let sleeping dogs lie. :D
posted by zarq at 3:00 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by zarq at 3:00 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
And lo, Dog Fancier Jew was registered as a MeFi sockpuppet.
posted by dr_dank at 3:20 PM on August 4, 2015
posted by dr_dank at 3:20 PM on August 4, 2015
LET MY PUPPIES GO
posted by poffin boffin at 4:29 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by poffin boffin at 4:29 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
well in Islamic countries I don't know if they necessarily don't like dogs (though they tend not to be super popular) but they LOVE cats.
posted by pravit at 4:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by pravit at 4:45 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
I think of it as a Yiddish culture thing less than an Orthodox thing. My maternal grandparents feared dogs also.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 4:50 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 4:50 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
Huh. I never knew Jews weren't supposed to like dogs. I'm Jewish (albeit not Orthodox) and we had dogs when I was growing up. It would certainly be news to my dog, who is standing here wondering why I'm typing when I could be paying attention to him. : )
posted by SisterHavana at 5:39 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by SisterHavana at 5:39 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
I am the Sephardi person poffin boffin was talking about and I have to say Eastern European Jews sometimes really make me side-eye. There is nothing in the torah hating on dogs. This is simply a cultural issue. Everyone can Jew as they so choose, but we're not all from Russia or Poland. There are other traditions and we're also not all from NYC.
Down here we have dogs. It could be a room issue. We have more than living in a city.
posted by syncope at 6:02 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
Down here we have dogs. It could be a room issue. We have more than living in a city.
posted by syncope at 6:02 PM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
whatevs bean eater
posted by poffin boffin at 6:52 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by poffin boffin at 6:52 PM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
Syncope: I'll say for my own experience that this "Jews-don't-mix-with-dogs" phenomenon super-new to me. Walking my GFs dogs in Midwood, they'll mostly get a side-eye or a wide berth, and on occasion someone will jump a foot in the air if they are surprised by the dog for whatever reason. As a cultural thing, I can say that the little kids (and my GF lives right next to a school) are either crazy-excited to see dogs at all and ask all types of questions, or else back up against the wall of fence in terror. These are, again, chihuahuas.
That said, I grew up in suburban Houston and a ton of my neighbors and family friends were Jewish families of a more secular spectrum, who were fine with dogs, owned them, and in one case was famously the family on the street with like fifteen pets at any given time. As far as my experience goes, this is a south-central-Brooklyn-Orthodox-Jewish thing, and pretty generational even there.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:33 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
That said, I grew up in suburban Houston and a ton of my neighbors and family friends were Jewish families of a more secular spectrum, who were fine with dogs, owned them, and in one case was famously the family on the street with like fifteen pets at any given time. As far as my experience goes, this is a south-central-Brooklyn-Orthodox-Jewish thing, and pretty generational even there.
posted by Navelgazer at 9:33 PM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
No shortage of dogs in Israel!
posted by oceanjesse at 5:51 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by oceanjesse at 5:51 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
Walking my GFs dogs in Midwood...
If you see a dude walking around with a small, annoying puggle say hi.
posted by griphus at 5:53 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you see a dude walking around with a small, annoying puggle say hi.
posted by griphus at 5:53 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Instantly brought to mind this 'Humans of New York' photograph.
posted by Morfil Ffyrnig at 6:06 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Morfil Ffyrnig at 6:06 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
No shortage of dogs in Israel!
posted by oceanjesse
Canaan Dogs - so cute
posted by rosswald at 7:31 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by oceanjesse
Canaan Dogs - so cute
posted by rosswald at 7:31 AM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
My family is a huge Jewish family of dog lovers. We all have them, we all love them. That said, my orthodox great grandmother thought we were all a little meshugge to have so many doggies. zt'l safta
posted by Sophie1 at 7:43 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Sophie1 at 7:43 AM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
crazylegs: "It's "beastie," not "bestie.""
Um, I interpreted that as "cutesy way to say 'best friend'. " You know, as in "man's best friend is a dog"?
posted by Chrysostom at 2:47 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Um, I interpreted that as "cutesy way to say 'best friend'. " You know, as in "man's best friend is a dog"?
posted by Chrysostom at 2:47 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
I suspect that on the seventh day, the dog owners walk their own dogs, because on the weekend they have time and inclination but not the religious stricture. Or am I missing a nuance?
posted by gingerest at 5:01 AM on August 6, 2015
posted by gingerest at 5:01 AM on August 6, 2015
Gingerest - This was talking about vacations - if you are out of town and you cannot walk your dog, then you hire this guy, but you cannot pay him for work on Saturday. If you are paying him to walk while on vacation, I can think of a number of pretty easy loopholes, including paying him extra for the other 6 days and not paying him for the Saturday, etc. Anyway, Jews and their fences.
posted by Sophie1 at 11:28 AM on August 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Sophie1 at 11:28 AM on August 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
« Older The wine that came in from the cold | How many miles to Wall Drug? Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by poffin boffin at 12:37 PM on August 4, 2015 [22 favorites]