Bullies big and small (and one mystery solved!)

Oh, this is going to be one of those days!  It is always hard when all of the bully breeds show up on the same day!  What is a bully breed you ask?  Well, that depends on who you ask!  Most people consider the pitties (pitbulls), staffies (American Staffordshire terriers) and eggies (bull terriers) to be included among the bully breeds.  These dogs are typically stubborn, play rough and are very strong.  I would add most terriers and any breed that begins with the words “toy” or “miniature” to the list!  It becomes one of those days when we have representatives from all categories of bully in the house. 

Currently the biggest trouble maker weighs less than ten pounds.  Finding a place for everyone to play without bloodshed  is tricky on a day like today (now remember, they can’t use their words because they don’t have any, so it’s pretty much teeth in a conflict).  The answer to the inevitable question, “Why do you allow such dogs in doggy daycare?” is that the dogs that are the most difficult are usually the ones that need socialization the most.  Besides with careful management by skilled staff members, every dog can have an enjoyable day at  “school”.

 The little bullies are the hardest to accommodate.  They can’t play with the small dogs because we don’t want the other munchkins to get hurt.  It is also not safe for them to play with the big dogs because they lack the common sense not to bully a dog larger than they are!  We have additional space for just these occasions, but today, with an equal mix of big and little bullies, we are running out of places to put them.  We will spend our day juggling certain dogs between crates, long walks and solo time outside in the hopes that every dog will go home with all the skin and hair they came in with!  

On the research front, the mystery of the workhouse identified on the 1848 map of Buffalo has been solved. One of the biggest resources I have discovered while working on this project is a facebook page called Buffalo and Western New York's Proud History.  This page has over 3,000 very knowledgeable and helpful members who are more than happy to answer questions or direct others to resources that are helpful to their projects or queries.  One of the members posted the picture below, taken from the Courier Express in 1929.  Note the title of the article.

On the 1848 map, the workhouse is located on Pennsylvania, but the side street in not labeled.  A quick check of Google maps (thanks to the suggestion of another BWNYPH member) revealed that the side street was indeed Trenton!  This revelation still does not explain why the Erie County Poorhouse was not represented on the 1848 map of Buffalo, so there is still a bit of the mystery yet to explore (assuming I have not been eaten by dogs!).