When you picture the typical life of a pet, a massive house filled with 60+ college students may not be what you’re thinking of. However, several Greek houses across campus are providing a loving, fun environment for their house pets to live in.
Phoebe and Prince Harry: Kappa Kappa Gamma’s Dogs
Roaming around Kappa Kappa Gamma are their two house dogs, chihuahua Prince Harry and shih tzu Phoebe. Sophomore member Lauren Ridgeway, house manager for Kappa, said Prince Harry has been with Kappa for a decade, while Phoebe joined the crew last year.
The two dogs belong to Kappa’s house mom Sue Gilbert, living in her apartment connected to the house, but Ridgeway said they’re always out hanging with the members in their formal and informal living rooms, even attending their chapter meetings on occasion.
Ase house manager, Ridgeway is especially close with the dogs and takes them on walks weekly. Since Phoebe is still a puppy, Ridgeway said she’s much more active than Prince Harry. “Sometimes when we take her on walks we'll go to a fraternity and take a picture with her outside the house and it's like, Phoebe's at the party!”
Living in a large space with many rooms, it’s inevitable the dogs will sometimes stroll through the space when they aren’t supposed to. “Sometimes we'll be sitting in our rooms and all the sudden there will be a dog wandering in there,” Ridgeway said. “We'll be like, ‘no, okay, we got to bring you back down to mom!’”
While the house mom handles most of the responsibilities in taking care of them, Ridgeway said all the members enjoy having Prince Harry and Phoebe around. “Everyone loves to go see them. I don’t think anybody doesn’t like them,” she said.
Annie: Delta Upsilon’s Dog
Delta Upsilon’s House Dog Annie is a Collie, Lab, and German Shepard mix that was rescued when she was 9 months old by DU’s House Mom Liz Davies and her daughter.
When Davies rescued her, she had intentions of training her to become a therapy dog to work in nursing homes and hospitals, but was unable to get her into the classes due to COVID-19. Davies said since Annie is still a puppy, turning 4 in May, that she plans to hopefully still be able to do this in the near future.
Davies is Annie’s main caretaker and lives with her in Davies apartment at DU, but said the guys are always coming to pet her throughout the day. However, Davies said Annie is like her “shadow,” so hanging out with the guys is “definitely on her terms.” But when Annie’s feeling comfortable, Davies said the pup loves to be pet and get belly rubs from the members. “I think the guys are a little jealous because if there's a guy and girl at the house, Annie will always go to the girl,” Davies said.
Now that the weather is starting to warm up, Davies said Annie enjoys being outside. “She likes hanging out on the front porch while they guys are playing volleyball, since she can see me from there and can decide if she wants to come in or out,” she said.
Pumpkin: Pi Beta Phi’s Cat
While Pumpkin doesn’t technically belong to Pi Beta Phi, members have unofficially adopted this stray cat as their own.
Last school year, junior Pi Phi member Maddie Howe and her friends noticed a cat was frequently visiting the back of the Pi Phi house around the same time. After some investigating, Howe discovered the house mom and chef’s were feeding Pumpkin, leading to their repeated visits.
When Howe arrived back to campus the next fall, Pumpkin was still coming around, despite several months of the house being unoccupied. Howe and many other Pi Phi members quickly formed a relationship with Pumpkin, causing the feline friend to come visit even more.
When the weather started to get chillier outside, Howe and her friends were worried about Pumpkin getting cold. They decided to purchase a little house for them with the help of their friend Ty Hartman and put blankets inside so Pumpkin could stay warm. “We all assembled it together,” Howe said. “It was really exciting to see if Pumpkin would actually go in their house, especially when it's cold, and they did.”
Howe said she sees Pumpkin on a weekly basis, but other members are always outside on the back patio hanging out with them throughout the week as well and sending pictures in the house group chat. “No matter what, you can always count on seeing Pumpkin at mealtimes,” Howe said.