Did you know downtown Cape Girardeau is home to a gourmet dog boutique?  Mississippi Mutts is a friendly shop on Broadway that provides a place for you to take your dog to enjoy some well-deserved social interaction, to pick up a few toys and some new treats from their delicious bakery, while stocking up on his or her everyday supplies. If you and your dog can use a little help with obedience training, sign up to take part in their training classes.

Sherry Jennings, owner of Mississippi Mutts, says that people take their dogs to downtown Cape more than any other area. She calls our area ‘unique’ because you can take your dog for a walk, or you can take them to get wine or lunch with you. A variety of places downtown are available to explore with your dog. “More and more places are becoming pet friendly,” added Jennings.  She believes the growing dog friendly atmosphere makes downtown a more relaxing place, even for those who do not own dogs. 

Some of the downtown locals even bring their dogs to work. “It’s proven, when you take your dog to work it lowers stress and increases productivity,” Sherry noted. She definitely should know. Have you seen her dog Murphy out-and-about downtown recently? He has become a downtown fixture with enough love to for everyone. Dog-friendly work places are becoming more and more popular in our area. 

One example is Wynn from Cape Paint and Glass. He brings Harley, his golden retriever, to work every day. You’ll see them soaking up some fresh air and getting in some exercise around downtown almost every day during the lunch hour. If you stop in the shop, Harley is one of the first to say hello and welcome you in. ‘Harley has become our official greeter here at the office,’ commented Beverly, the office secretary. ‘He’s definitely brought some life and excitement to the business.’

Another famous downtown dog is Santino. If you haven’t seen Santino working in Sloan + Themis during the day with his owner Claire, you may have seen him wandering around many of our downtown Cape Girardeau shops. ‘People go nuts over him,’ Claire exclaimed! ‘He runs all types of errands downtown and he loves to get positive attention from everyone he comes in contact with.’ The girls at Mississippi Mutts will sometimes even keep him for a while after they are done grooming him to play.

Many downtown businesses have outdoor seating that helps make the area more dog-friendly. You can always see pups outside Cup ‘N’ Cork, Socials, Mediterranean on Broadway or Dynamite Coffee. What better way to relieve stress than a latte or a casual lunch with your best friend?

Another great downtown opportunity for dogs is the Cape Riverfront Market. During the warmer months this outdoor market plays host to local produce and craft vendors, musicians and an array of other specialized suppliers. Some vendors even have healthy dog treats for your furry family members. The casual, fun-for-everyone Market atmosphere is an excellent environment for these four-legged friends, so be sure to bring them along.

This post was written by Hilary Auer, Old Town Cape Intern; Kevin Taylor, Development and Resources Coordinator at Old Town Cape; and Christa Zickfield, Project Manager at Old Town Cape.

Three months ago, I gained a new family member. No it's not a baby - this family member is furry and has four legs. Her name is Gertie and she is a nine month old Border Collie/Australian Cattle Dog mix that my mom rescued from the Humane Society of Southeast Missouri.

Like most puppies, Gertie is full of energy and always trying to play with something. After having her for about a month, my mom decided that it was time to do something. We had been working with her on learning to not jump on us, to sit and stay when told, to leave treats, etc. It seemed that she would listen sometimes, but acted like she had no idea what we were saying at other times.

I knew the perfect solution! Mississippi Mutts, a downtown bakery, bath, and boutique for dogs, had just started offering dog obedience classes a few months prior. Needless to say, my mom called and signed Gertie up right away.

The classes are taught by Becky Dunn, owner of Furry Kid Klubhouse in Desoto, MO. She offers two levels of classes, beginner and advanced, that cost $75 each and include six weeks of one hour training sessions. Over the course of six weeks, the dogs are taught general manners and obedience including how to sit and stay, leave it, come when called, and the proper way to greet a guest.

Gertie successfully completed three of the six classes, but unfortunately had to miss the rest of them because she decided to get into some mouse poisoning (that's a whole other story - but don't worry, she's ok). My mom and I noticed a big difference in her behavior after attending the classes and have plans to take her back to attend the other three soon, so that she can learn more from Becky.

Although I didn't have the chance to observe any classes that Gertie attended, I did have the opportunity last night to hang out with five other furry friends: Casey, Fergie, Rugar, Murphy and Roxy during a beginner class. The pictures below are proof themselves that the dogs had fun during the class and learned so much! It's evident how passionate Becky is about the trainings because she really focuses on individual attention with the dogs. She even limits each class to 8 dogs so that she can have more one-on-one time with them.

The classes began back in August of last year and are normally held back to back every six weeks, except for the advanced classes which are held less often. For more information or to sign up your furry family member, contact Mississippi Mutts at (573)335-MUTT or Furry Kid Klubhouse at (314)808-6935. You can also visit Mississippi Mutts on Facebook and Twitter.