NYC CONCRETE JUNGLE

New York City gave us the best kind of contradiction: endless energy and not nearly enough time. I met Ana in Australia; we landed in Manhattan with two suitcases, one big dream, and a tiny French bulldog named SUSU who turned our rented walk-up into home. On the days we worked long hours, SUSU waited. We watched her on the apartment camera between subway transfers and double shifts—little ears pricking up at every hallway sound. The guilt? Real. The love? Bigger.

Weekends became our reset. We learned the city block by block, searching for quiet pockets where a small dog could breath on some of the treelined side streets, hidden benches, narrow slivers of shade in Riverside Park, and the rare café corner where staff would smile and slide a water bowl our way. We figured out which cobblestones were kinder to tiny paws, which dog runs felt welcoming (and which felt like rush hour), and how to time everything around the heat, the noise, the crowds, and life’s unpredictability.

That’s the truth about raising a city dog: it’s joy braided with logistics. You’re always packing a mini kit; leash, bags, wipes, treats and a mental map of streets that feel safe at dusk. You want spontaneity and structure, style and function, space for your dog to be a dog and for you to just… exhale. We felt that tension every day, and we know so many of you feel it too.

SUSU PET CO. started as our attempt to make those moments easier and a little more beautiful. Not to sell you a lifestyle, but to build with you a community that understands the rhythm of this place; the early morning off-leash windows, the secret water fountains, the patios with steady shade, the loops that turn a stressful day into a shared adventure. Because the best part of city life isn’t the skyline; it’s the small rituals you and your dog write together: a familiar route, a favorite bench, the sound of their nails on old pavement, the way they curl into your side on the train ride home.

“Shared Adventures” is our open notebook. Each week, we’ll map a neighborhood route you can actually follow, call out the dog runs that get the SUSU stamp, and highlight cafés where you can linger without side-eye. We’ll keep it text-simple and reality-checked. No glossy fantasy, just what works when you’re juggling errands, weather, and a very opinionated best friend on four legs.

Most importantly, this space belongs to city dog parents like you. Tell us where you go when you need quiet. Share the patio that never fails you. Flag the hours that make a run feel safe and friendly. Your notes become the next person’s better day. When we say “Shared Adventures,” we mean it.

So here’s to claiming small pockets of calm in the middle of the noise. To walking slower than the taxis and faster than yesterday’s worries. To making the concrete feel softer under your dog’s paws and under your own feet, too.