Upcoming Events
Coffee Barks! are held on the first Saturday of the month, from 10am-12noon.
Please join us for complimentary coffee and goodies in the run!

March 3 hosted by Kevin (Princess Apollonia and Brutus)
April 7 hosted by Barry (Corona & Murphy)
May 5 hosted by Connie (Stella)

Spring Clean Up: Saturday, May 19, 2012 from 10am - 2pm.
Held in conjunction with the Partnerships for Parks city-wide "It's My Parks Day."

We're way overdue for another "Human's Night Out," an evening where the dogs stay home and we convene at a local establishment. This is an easy event to arrange: just pick a date, time, and place and post that information to the listserv - the rest of us will meet you there!

PS: Inwoof is on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/inwoof/

Recent Events
Coffee Bark: Saturday, February 4, 2012, hosted by TLC Pet Services - more about the event
Coffee Bark: Saturday, January 7, 2012 - more about the event
Santa Paws: Saturday, December 10, 2011 - more about the event
Howl-O-Ween: October 29, 2011 - more about the event
It's My Parks Day Fall Clean Up: October 15, 2011 - more about the event

Despite the tragic fire earlier this week, destroying the building of his store, Amine from Furry Fiends was able to stop by and speak directly to us. His biggest need right now is to find another location in the neighborhood (500-600 square feet). In the meantime he is continuing to take orders for everything our furry "fiends" may require (desire?), which he will have delivered free: just text or call him at 646-315-0695. Furry Fiends is on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Furry-Fiends/162233863819001.

A fire relief fund has been established by the Facebook Inwood Community Group which can accept tax-deductible donations. 100% of all contributions will be disbursed by a committee directly to the business owners and their employees who have been displaced by the fire. This includes Furry Fiends. For now the fund can only accept checks.

Make your tax-deductible check payable to INWOOD COMMUNITY SERVICES with FIRE RELIEF DRIVE written in the memo area (so that your donation is credited to the fire relief fund) and then mail to:
Inwood Community Services, Inc.
651 Academy Street
New York, NY 10034

Inwoof Community Services has been doing good work in our community since 1979 - three generations now - and we are very grateful for their help in funneling tax-deductible contributions to our local businesses.

Here's Santa's "nice" list (none of our dogs were "naughty" of course!) according to sign-up order for photos with Santa of humans and their dogs at Santa Paws:

John/Dana/Joyce (Keiko)
Tamitha (Jubilation)
Kathy (Niki)
Debby (Fibi)
Diane (Peaches)
Keven (Princess Apollonia and Brutus)
Jeff (Sophie)
Bob (Danny)
Connie (Stella)
Carey (Puka)
Stephanie (Heathcliff)
Naomi (Hapi)
Sarah/Nick (Puggy and Six)
Mark (Jethro)
Andrew (Layla)
Gary (Hunter)
Ann (Posy)
Human? (Everett ?)
Dan (Zora)
Linda (Blanche)
Holly (Ponti)
Carolyn/Richard (Ophelia and Che)
Luis (Husky and Joshi)
Naima (Bella)
Jacquelle/Gene (Ballarin)
Julian (Parsley)
Marcis (Sucha and Nina)
Francine (Fiona)
Linda (?)
Tara (Sophia)
Jakob (Usko)
Sabrina/Cameron (Benny)
Elizabeth (Maezy and Felipe)
Catherine (Super Groverino)
Melissa (Samson)
Megan/Darryll (Java)
Heather/Chris (Stella)
Eleanor (Pedro)
Brenda/Armando (Chilo)
Nicole (Tibor)
Shawna (Willow)
Elvis (?)

To download your high-resolutions photographs, first go to Inwoof's Flckr account. Now, look for the four "Santa Paws 2011" folders on the right - there's one for each of the four photographers. (Please be patient - the photographers will upload their photos as soon as they can, and it make take them a few days). Click on the folder's title and you'll see thumbnails of all the photos inside that folder, which makes it easier to scan through looking for photos of YOUR furry friend. To download a photo, first click on the photo so that it opens and only that photo is on the page. Next, click on the "Actions" tab (above and to the left of the photo) and click on "View all Sizes." On the next page, find "Sizes" and select the size you want to download. Then click the "Download" link on this page, above the "Sizes" choices. Don't forget to check all four of the "Santa Paws 2011" folders in order to make sure you don't miss any of your photos.

You can use these photos to make all sorts of personalized gifts, cards, calendars, and the like - Snapfish, CafePress, and Shutterfly and TinyPrints are just a few vendors which provide these types of products, and many photography software programs offer similar features. If you made a donation yesterday, thank you. If not, Inwoof gratefully accepts tax-deductible donations in any amount to support Homer's Run in Inwood Hill Park.

Santa Paws 2011 was brought to Inwoof by a fantastic Elf Team:
Shawna (Willow)
Susan (Bodhi, True)
Connie (Stella)
Megan & Darrell (Java)
Jakob (Usko)
John (Keiko)
Catherine (Grover)
Monique (Sealy)
Julio (Bonsai, Prieta)

When you see these folks in the run, please take a moment to thank them for volunteering. Their hard work made Santa Paws possible for everyone.

Coverage of last year's Santa Paws: Santa Paws 2010

Furry Fiends
617 W. 207 Street between Broadway and Cooper Street
(212) 942-0222
(doggie "treat" bag for all canines present along with a large bag of dog food for the winner of the "tricker dog" contest")

Barry Waldrop Grooming Services (Pet Ark)
5008 Broadway between W. 212th and W. 213th Streets
(212) 544-2300
(gift certificate for one free grooming)

Pethaus Boutique
at 4777 Broadway between Dyckman Street and Cumming Street
(212) 567-0017
(provided coffee, doughnuts, and other goodies for the human participants)

Indian Road Cafe
600 W. 218th Street at Indian Road
(two $25 gift certificates for meals at the Indian Road Cafe)

Garden Cafe
4961 Broadway between W. 207th Street and Isham Street
(gift certificate for $25 for meals at the Garden Cafe)

Burhan Hardware
4941 Broadway between W. 207th Street and Isham Street
(gift certificate for $25 worth of purchases at Burhan Hardware)

Cuddles and Kisses Pet Care
(gift certificate for five 30-minute dog walks)

Wolf-N-Raven
(gift certificate for $30 for items purchased through their on-line store)

The Dogs from Howl-O-Ween 2011 (Partial List):
(Attended but not listed here? Send us an email and we'll add you!)

Naomi (Hapi as a Bunny)
Shawna (Willow as a Roman Chariot)
Sarah (Lucy as a Pirate Wench)
Susan (Oliver as a Jester)
Catherine (Grover as Super Grover)
Kevin (Brutus and Princess Apollonia as Themselves)
Susan (Bodhi and Lexie as Soul Surfer and the Shark)
Amy (Mambo as the Warden - Amy was dressed as the Prisoner)
Joanna (Abby as the Mermaid Princess)
Kathy (Niki as a Baby Elephant)
Helena (Georgia as a Baby Ostrich - Helena was dressed as an adult Ostrich with a Rider)
Unknown Human (Unknown Dog as a "Fleabag")
Unknown Human (Unknown Dog as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz)
Unknown Human (Unknowns Dog with a creature with a mace on its back)

The judges this year were: John Barclay, Inwoof President (Keiko); Yekaterina "Kate" Gluzberg, Partnerships for Parks Northern Manhattan Coordinator (no dog - yet!); Julio Belliard, Inwoof Parks Liaison (Preieta, Bonsai); and Jakob and Tuuli Holder (Usko), Inwoof Members.

And now, for the Howl-O-Ween 2011 winners!

Most Creative Costume: Susan's Bodhi (Soul Surfer, not pictured here, rats) and Lexie (Shark) as Soul Surfer & Shark (with Surfboard)

Most Ironic Costume: Catherine's Grover as Super Grover

Most Poignant Costume: Amy's Mambo as The Warden (Amy was his Prisoner)

"Scariest" Costume: Sarah's Lucy as a Pirate Wench

Cutest Costume: Kathy's Niki as a Baby Elephant

Shiniest Costume: Joanna's Abby as the Mermaid Princess

Congratulations to All the Participants!

One reason why it's so hard to keep costumes on dogs: Lisa's Hannah "helping" Naomi's Happi get out of the bunny costume as Catherine's Grover is about to get into the action, too.

There are more photos in the "Photos" section of Inwoof's YahooGroups site at (you have to be a member to view them) and also on Flickr, viewable by everyone.

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It's My Parks Day Fall Clean Up: October 15, 2011
The good people of Inwoof spent the day on Saturday, October 15  making improvements to Homer's Run at the semi-annual Partnerships for Parks "It's My Park" day. We raked, cleaned, and moved back a TON of gravel that had shifted away from the center.

Many thanks to all those who contributed to make this clean-up such a success!

John, Dana, and Joyce (Keiko)
Daisy (Darla)
Monique (Sealy)
Emily (Finn)
Julia (Buster)
Naomi (Hapi)
Lisa H. (Davey)
Danielle (Chevy)
Jakob (Usko)
Ted (Doc Holliday)
Shawna (Willow)
Connie (Stella)
Michael (Damien, Bianca)
Chris and Rachael (Levi)
Tara (Sophia)
Julian (Parsley)
Andrea (Moln)
Catherine (Grover)
Bob (Danny)
Joyce (Gus)
Jay(Babka)
Lisa, Adam (Hannah)

This is the best group of people around. Don't just take our word for it, though.  The NY Press recently named Inwood the "Best Manhattan neighborhood for Dog Owners" in it's annual "Best of" issue:

 "The dog run is frequented by a collection of people obsessed with their dogs. They see each other every day, know all the dogs, and have a sort of neighborhood watch that revolves around Inwood Hill Park. In the year that we've lived here, about 100 dog run regulars have formed a not-for-profit group called "Inwoof," whose goal is to make Homer's Run the safest and best dog run in the city.

 As nutty as this may sound to those who aren't serious dog owners, these people are some of the best resources in Upper-Manhattan on everything from where to get the cheapest and safest pet care and free shots to how to avoid getting ticketed or mugged.

 So for anyone who loves dogs but feels like it would be cruel to have a dog in the city of no backyards, there is hope. Just move to Inwood."

We love praise like that!

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