Molly Sullivan

It's never easy being the new kid on the block, but when faced with this, it never hurts to throw a house party and invite a few friendly pups to liven things up. ARFhouse, a no-kill shelter, moved into Bucktown just five months ago, and pairs up tonight with its new neighbor, three-and-a-half-month-old Red Dog House, an upscale pet boutique, to get the word out that they are both open and here to stay.

The theme for the night, "House Party," is an obvious choice. "We both have 'house' in our name, so we're playing house music and giving away house baskets with music from Reckless Records," Kristen Gerali, one of the founders of ARFhouse, explains. And while the crowd gets to know both businesses a little better, there is more than just a party going on. Three very special dogs have come tonight in hopes of being adopted and maybe even treated to some goodies from Red Dog House. Two of the dogs, Pablo and Dylan, come from kill shelters, while Aaliyah has been in a foster home for the last year, until her owner could no longer care for her. "It's been hard getting some of them adopted... People look at Pablo and see that he's a pit bull and that's it," Gerali says as Pablo licks a guest's face.

And while not all the guests can adopt the dogs, they do help them out by buying treats for their own pets. Red Dog House has a list of their top-ten sellers tonight, that if purchased, fifteen percent of the proceeds will go to ARFhouse. "We want everything we do to benefit others also," Marice Greenberg, who owns the store with her husband Steve, says. Even though they have barely just begun, they have already worked with a number of local charities, including PAWS.

Tonight's activities define why the Greenbergs left New York, wanting to open a store where the dogs could participate in every aspect, as the ones here tonight test out some toys and attempt to sneak some organic snacks. "We feel our store is for people who include their pets as part of the family," Greenberg says. "We have sweaters that fit Chihuahuas to Great Danes."

Throughout the night, hopes of finding homes for these dogs go up as they are on their best behavior--Aaliyah jumps around, playing with any toy in sight and the other two sit peacefully and bask in all the attention. It seems like ARFhouse and Red Dog House might have paired up perfectly, growing their businesses together and helping these dogs find what they need. After all, Greenberg laughs, "Chicago is a big dog city."

(2007-01-23)

Also by Molly Sullivan

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