

“A lot of these puppies become conditioned to having human beings in their sight for 24 hours,” Ms. The influx of new dogs into households created new problems. (According to a study in May by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, 23 million American households acquired a pet during the pandemic.) Paradoxically, the pandemic that hurt her business in 2020 has helped it this year, in part because many clients resumed travel, but also because of the surge in pet ownership. With many people unable or unwilling to travel, her business dwindled. But now they are speaking from more than 150 miles apart while Mousey snoozes by Ms. “Maybe a few minutes a day, he might need to go through some routine commands with Mousey - sit, look at me, lie down - just so he gets the muscle memory of ‘what Nathan says you need to do.’”īefore the pandemic, they would have had this discussion at Ms. “He might see Nathan as more of a play pal,” Mr. “But when Nathan comes in the room, he jumps in his face.” Suriato, has started behaving aggressively with her husband, Nathan DiSanto. They are talking on Zoom about Mousey, an 8-year-old male pit bull who, although obedient to Ms. Bennet is in the dining room of his cabin in upstate New York near Franklin, where he has been living since April 2020.

She is in her house in the Bay Ridge neighborhood Mr. Bennett, 63, is a certified dog trainer who has been doing business since 2014 as Brooklyn’s Finest Dog Training.
