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I've never seen that one before. I was thinking of this
http://www.moonslightmagic.com/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=8847
Brooklynian » Forum » Park Slope »
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yes, it is the one with the magic powers that we discussed at length.
must. make. shirt. about. stray. dog. in. prospect. park. and. make. people. believe. it. can. get. them. laid.
$
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
I want in on this. Money, minimal work, kitsch - sounds right up my alley. But this means we can't call the dog Brooklyn. Because then people will think it's just a quirky Brooklyn shirt.
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Al Qaeda beware! Prospero is on the lookout for you & your fellow subversives.
Brooklyn ~ God's Country ~ is no place for you infidels. Abandon all hope ye evildoers who enter here.
Brooklyn Is God's Country! -
Is that Prospero? I thought it might be a pig hunting for truffles.
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booklaw said:
Is that Prospero? I thought it might be a pig hunting for truffles.Don't you know that Spirit Dog can take many shapes? Pay homage to Brooklyn's Spirit Dog!
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The Prospect Park Spirit Dog!
Tagline: Yea, he might be a little menacing at times ....but he can get you laid, and the latter trumps the former.For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Truffles in Brooklyn???
Doggone it (oops, no pun intended) why didn't I find any when I lived in Brooklyn for all those years?? Argh!!
Brooklyn Is God's Country! -
Anonymous
Posts: 1I saw this dog tonight at my 9 year old's baseball practice - I watched him trot across the wooded fenced in portion of the park in the picture above. I called to him, as he had no collar and it seemed surreal that such an animal would be unattended. He was majestic and beautiful - almost identical to my lovely red brindle male bullmastiff (minus the clipped ears - the clipping makes them look so tough). I'm guessing he's a shy and probably fearful male who self-protective instincts are in high gear. The funny thing about the mastiffs (or a cane corso - if that what he is) is they can be very timid and fearful, they are not bred to maul. I find it hard to believe this dog has been living in the park - he's much too healthy. Also my dogs could never take the cold - this winter was especially bad and if this dog spent a lot of it outside in the park, he wouldn't look like he does, that's for sure. These dogs aren't the most efficient hunters, and trash wouldn't do it. He also didn't at all seem to be casing for food. He was just enjoying the park. I'm guessing someone knows just where he is and let's him into that fenced in part of the park, and maybe sometimes he gets out and people sight him elsewhere. I know when I was desperate for a place for my dogs to run, off-leash (I had two bullmastiffs that didn't do well in dog parks). I would have scoped out that part of the park to let them romp when no one is looking. However, leaving the dog unattended seems crazy. He probably has a couple of people who monitor/leave him/pick him up. I also think it's a little crazy that no one from animal control has been able to bring him in, that just doesn't make sense. Maybe we'll try ... he's a beautiful animal and it would be nice to know for sure that he's not stray.
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He knows how to find food pretty well. He regularly peruses the popular picnic areas in the evenings, which have enough food littering the ground much of the year to feed 10 dogs. My dog scents enough food to feed him (were I to let him eat it all) during our walks year round. And there is food to be hunted (and I know a similar breed dog far from here who has proven that she can find plenty of meals on her own like this): rabbits, rats galore, squirrels, chipmunks,etc are all plentiful.
I was seeing him almost daily for a while and he really roams the entire park--I've seen him out of the fence more than in it at this point. I've seen him at 7am by the zoo and at 7pm around Rick's place, just roaming the woods. I've even seen him trot right down the middle of Longmeadow, scaring the shit out of some joggers. I also saw him out plenty during the heavy snow and rains. He looked happy in the snow but miserable in the rain.
Somebody puts out piles of cat food in parts of the park, including big piles along the Nethermead Arches road so that might be another source of food for him. For all I know the person is feeding him or trying to coax him out but it could be for some of the feral cats or the raccoons.
I think he spends the majority of his time in the park, but he must have been getting out of the cold somewhere in the winter because I can't imagine a short-haired dog doing so well in these long winters.
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Werewolves of Prospect Park.
your anger is delicious. - dieter -
Breaking news update!
Brooklynian poster Limestonekid reports the following:"He's been chilling behind the fence on Center Drive the last two days that I've been doing hill repeats there. He's a gorgeous looking dog."
and sent me this photo to post on his behalf:
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Based on what they taught me in my middle school Sex Education Class, I do believe we can conclude from that photo that the Prospect Park Spirit Dog is male.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
If Animal Care & Control gets this dog his days are numbered, they euthanize perfectly healthy dogs that contract kennel cough in the shelter to justify killing them. They lie on their behavioral evaluations to euthanize for temper too. The dog looks well cared for by someone, hasn't attacked anyone or threatened anyone. If a rescue group wants to try for him, awesome. If not, leave the dog alone.
Go do something useful. -
I can't agree more with Caseo. Leave the dog alone, unless you want to take it on as your sole responsibility and provide a forever home to it. (Seems like someone is already taking care of him and he seems healthy and surviving fine.)
Animal control will put him down for sure. Just let him live his life, unless you want to give him a permanent home, you're giving him a death sentence by calling the 'pound.'(\__/)
(=’.'=)
(”)_(”) -
Bigfoot has escaped capture for decades.
The loch ness monster has been equally lucky.
Surely the Prospect Park Spirit Dog can continue to his streak.
How many of us are able to avoid paying rent for months, by living in the park?
This dog is a genius.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Guess I now know why I so rarely see feral cats in the park. They're in his belly!
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I was thinking about this dog this weekend. Watched an episode of "Dogs 101" on Animal Planet, and in the segment on Bull Mastiffs, they did a story on a Mastiff in North Dakota that was on the loose in this one town for 4 years! He would sleep in barns during the winter, and was regularly fed by local residents out of dumpsters, but they estiamated that they tried to catch him over 400x before they were actually sucessful, and only then because he had developed a benign tumor on his rear legs which impeded his ability to run.
I'm with Caseo and Mama, unless you are planning on bring this dog in and giving it a home, leave him alone. He's doing well on his own and clearly someone is looking out for him (or else he's the luckiest ghost dog ever).
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If he is living in the park by his lonesome, that reduced access to goose dinners must have been a blow.
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^^ finally!
This the first good reason I have heard to save the geese, and I have been reading about them for months.
Don't kill the geese, the Spirit Dog needs them!
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Hell, yeah - I'm rather surprised the geese were ever a problem at all with Bitey the Spirit Dawg on the job. Nevertheless, with scavenging pickin's a bit slim during the winter (and Racoons being nasty competition) I have no doubt that Bitey will be doing his best to crunch whatever other wildlife proves available. Come to think of it, it has been a couple of years since I've seen a bunny rabbit in the park...
Anyhow, even though Bitey looks oddly non-feral, keep your Boston Terriers, micro-dacshunds and other li'l yappers close.
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On Tuesday (04/12) morning the big fella came running down the hill and across Center Drive as I was going up on my bike. He had a very easy manner about him and he barely paid me any attention.
Outwardly he doesn't seem to be suffering as he seems well fed and his coat looks good. However when I see him sitting behind the fence looking out over the Nethermead he does look like he's still waiting for someone to come back and get him.
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I think I have solved the mystery! I was running the perimeter of the park this morning and I came across the dog with a woman crossing Ocean Ave. near Lincoln.
I stopped and watched where she went, and saw them walk into a house on Ocean Ave. She had another large dog with her too. I stopped because a man walking a large rotweiller mix was having a very loud argument with her about her dog because it was off leash and he was afraid her dog was going to attack because of previous behavior. My quick assessment: she seemed a little out there.
Starting a list of users names who are actually the same person: west1440, DownwardPuppy, TruthandBeauty, Stretchy, RupaulRox, NarcolepticAbe, QuantumSilence, SoldierSantana, SouljaJuan, TrendPotter, THREEKxdz, HomeEida -
So, she uses the park as her own private dog run? Dumps him for a few hours and picks him up later?
Huh, who'da thunk.
"...you can choose the rain....but I choose the sun..." - N. Costa -
I haven't seen the park dog in a while. I was seeing him several times a week but in the last month or so, not one sighting.
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there was a cat that was caught a while back when i was in the park.
Fight white guilt and injustice by smoking tax free guilt free Reservation Smokes or go gamble in a Native Casino.
I like to stick it to The Man, The Man happens to be Liberal in NYC(power Structure). -
Whatchuwant said:
So, she uses the park as her own private dog run? Dumps him for a few hours and picks him up later?Huh, who'da thunk.
This would make it hard for her to get a ticket for him being off leash, because the folks who ticket dog owners aren't equipped to subdue a dog.
The Parks folks seem like they are concerned about owners who are with their unleashed dogs; They are not about looking a a dog in the woods.
...this could all make sense now.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Is there any more new about this spirit dog??? Has anyone seen him recently? I'd really like to know more about these sightings.
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I saw him a couple of days ago, dressed - I could swear - in a little doggie smoking jacket. I went to take a pic, but - too late! He had flown off.
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I had a run in with this dog in the morning. He was sitting in the center of the work out area on the wood chips in Prospect Park. There were several runners and dog walkers staying back, afraid, and watching him from the walking path. I walked over, ignoring the dog, as he watched me. He didn't growl or display any sort of aggressive behavior, and I wasn't afraid. The only intimidating thing might be his size and cut ears. His demeanor was cautious and tentative, not overtly friendly or playful. He walked by me as I did my crunches, sniffed as he did so, and slowly retreated into the woods.
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I swear I saw the Prospect Park spirit dog on Tuesday morning when I was in the park for my morning ride. He was walking about 10-15 feet behind a woman who was entering the park from Prospect Park Drive SW. The woman had another dog on a leash.
Didn't someone post earlier that they thought the dog's owner brought the dog to the park for the day? Perhaps there's some truth to that rumor.
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Saw it yesterday! Someone thought it would be funny to put my buddy's bag in the woods while we were skateboarding. While we were looking for it, my friend got stuck in a thorn bush, as i watched the figure walking towards him. I thought it had to be a boar. I guess it wasn't. It dissapeared in the bushes. He did find his bag, eventually.
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I've been seeing him in the mornings, usually before 8, when I walk my southern route. He's got a perch where he seems to watch all the park visitors from and I could swear that he's getting used to me. I talk to him and toss a treat every time I see him, though he doesn't seem to think they are worth the effort to eat.
Here's a photo from a few weeks ago. He's gotten pretty chunky but his coat still looks good to me.
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OpposumQueen,
Let me get this straight... You have been seeing Prospect Park Spirit Dog regularly and taking his photo, yet waited until someone (ie ConcreteChris) confirmed it before you would post a photo?Were you afraid we would judge you like those drunken quacks who see Bigfoot, flying saucers or the Lochness monster?
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Looks like a Cane Corso. Amazing dogs.
Go do something useful. -
He has been captured.
http://brooklynian.com/forum/park-slope/saga-of-prospect-park-wild-dog-might-have-happy-ending
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Not everyone reads e mails so Fido... so here it is.
Brooklyn's 'Ghost Dog' Pulled to Earth
By AMELIA HARRIS
Peter J. Smith for The Wall Street Journal
Brooklyn animal rescuer Sean Casey on Monday with the dog he caught last week in Prospect Park.
For years, visitors to Brooklyn's Prospect Park have been captivated by sightings of a lone beast dubbed the "ghost dog."
One minute, the large brown canine with dark stripes was there. The next, he was gone.
Sometimes, the noble creature was spotted early in the morning, sitting on a hill overlooking frolicking dogs and their owners, as if surveying his kingdom. Late in the day, he might be spotted at the entrance of a hidden Quaker cemetery, like a shamanistic spirit guide."We always wondered, 'Is there an owner somewhere behind?' It seemed pretty shy," said 24-year-old barista Rachel Wynman, who saw the dog several times while jogging with friends.
The animal got its own thread—"large dog living in Prospect Park"—on Brooklynian.com. One user called the dog Prospero because it was "kind of like the Shakespearean character in exile.'' Budding filmmaker Arielle Apfel, 25 years old, even made a short documentary about the dog this year called "Roaming Wild."
Finally, however, the beast's wanderings—if not its mythic status—may have come to an end: After years of attempts, Brooklyn animal rescuer Sean Casey believes he caught the canine last week."We say we have three Moby Dicks, and he was one of them," Mr. Casey said Monday.
Mr. Casey had been getting calls from concerned parkgoers about the dog since 2008, but his quarry always proved elusive. "We would get out there and there'd be no dog,'' Mr. Casey said. "He would be there one minute, and he'd just disappear in the blink of an eye.''Of course, time will tell if this really is the ghost dog of legend.
New York City Animal Care & Control spokesman Richard Gentles said the organization received five reports in four years of an animal matching the description of the creature."We responded each time but were unable to locate the dog or he/she was gone upon arrival,'' Mr. Gentles said in a statement. "However, there is no way for us to know for sure if this is the same dog."
Mr. Casey is convinced. The dog, a type of Italian mastiff called a Cane Corso, is heavy for a ghost: 109 pounds.
But it has proved gentle in captivity, Mr. Casey said. The dog—estimated to be at least 5 years old—allowed Mr. Casey to pet him and walk him on a leash within 24 hours of the May 16 capture.
Initially, corralling the dog was a low priority for Mr. Casey because it seemed happy. In recent weeks, though, the dog was limping, lying out in the open more often and letting people get close, prompting the animal rescuer to create a capture plan.
The 31-year-old Mr. Casey enlisted some help: a man who had gained some of the dog's trust recently with bits of food and some early-morning play time in the woods near the park's Vanderbilt Playground. The dog wouldn't let the man touch him, but it would get close.About 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Mr. Casey and four others formed a circle around the pair, moving closer and closer in. Another mastiff was introduced to distract the ghost dog. The team put their rabies poles—a metal rod with a noose—on the ground, surrounded by treats. After two hours of painstaking progress, the ghost dog had a loop around its neck. It struggled. Mr. Casey used a second pole to seize the animal.
Windsor Terrace graphic designer Virginia Cahill, who first saw a "charging giant dog'' in the fall of 2010, heard about its capture from her sister-in-law on Saturday. "I went right over to Sean's, and he confirmed it,'' Ms. Cahill said.
Tests showed the dog had bone fragments floating in a knee, requiring an operation, and Lyme disease, a tick-borne illness that can cause lethargy and body aches. Care will cost several thousand dollars.
A tussle has already begun over who will keep the ghost dog, which, Mr. Casey said, still needs more training and socializing. "We are already getting lots and lots of calls with people staking claim,'' Mr. Casey said. "I'm going to do what's best for the dog." -
An excellent end to the story.
I hope that, if I am ever captured, I end up in equally caring hands.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
whynot_31 said:
if I am ever captured, I end up in equally caring hands.Ahem don't you mean "committed"
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There's a reason I respect the lawyers at MFY.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
In addition to the WSJ running the story of his capture, The Windsor Terrace Patch ran a piece: http://windsorterrace.patch.com/articles/prospect-park-s-ghost-dog
Word has it that the NY Post will run a story tomorrow, Sunday May 27th.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
As promised, here's the story in today's NY Post:
Hopefully all of this fame will result in him being adopted.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Ghost Dog is a genius. Media is stating that:
He had about 12 people a day feeding him
http://gothamist.com/2012/05/27/infamous_ghost_dog_of_prospect_park.php
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
Update, seven months later Ghost Dog is back in the press, albeit only The Brooklyn Paper:
http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/36/2/all_ghostdogadoption_2013_01_11_bk.html
After being trained and tamed, he is now available for adoption.
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor. -
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor.
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http://prospectheights.patch.com/articles/so-you-think-you-want-to-adopt-ghost-dog-41cf4462
For better or worse, the change on Nostrand is going to make the change on Franklin look minor.
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