Unlike so many other riders—distractedly glued to their smartphones—Zino uses the New York City subway for its intended purpose: people-watching. “He loves to watch everything,” says Perris Cavalier, the owner of the four-year-old Havanese. “He’s obsessed with people and is nosy—he always wants to see and hear what’s up.”
Photographed by Hannah La Follette Ryan
Among the teeming throngs that populate the bustling metro system—the city’s vital bloodstream—one may notice from time to time a winsome canine presence punctuating all that ungainly humanity: a good boy or girl among the people, heading to their next destination just like the rest of us. Zino, for example, was on his way from Greenpoint toward Downtown Brooklyn on the G train when we encountered him. “[He] brings a smile to everyone’s face,” Cavalier says. “At least once a day I’ve had a stranger come up to me and tell me their dog stories while they pet Zino—usually about dogs they have had for years or childhood memories. It’s very sweet. Zino and I always hold space for people to feel comfortable. I think that is something I passed on to Zino—he’s a wizard like me.”
Or there’s Lady, a six-year-old ridgeback who used to ride the subway daily from Prospect Lefferts Gardens to Dumbo—another face, albeit cuter and furrier, among the countless other beleaguered commuters. “When we got Lady, we worked extremely hard to train her beautifully so that she could live as much of her life as possible with us out in the city,” says her minder, Naomi Mishkin. “And that means taking the subway.”
According to official MTA policy, dogs on New York City subways are required to be carried in a bag or other container, which leads to some humorous sightings: small pups’ heads peeking out of tote bags or larger dogs standing awkwardly atop a limp Ikea carryall. However, many New Yorkers throw caution to the wind and bring their dogs along au naturel.
