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- Introducing Ernie
Ernie. | Katie Amrhein
Pet(s): Ernie
Nickname(s): Bubby, Mr. Erntastic
Type/breed/etc.: Bluetick coonhound
Owner(s): Dave Infante and Katie Amrhein
Where and when did you get your pet? We got Ernie at the Richmond SPCA in April 2025, just a few days after he arrived there from an SPCA branch in western Pennsylvania. We were told he was about three years old, and that he’d been in shelters his whole life. He was just under 50 pounds, very timid, and basically mute. (That would all change after we brought him home, and fast.)
What's your pet's favorite thing to eat? Ernie is what dog trainers like to call “extremely food-motivated,” so there’s very little he won’t eat. Like many dogs, he’s a huge fan of peanut butter. That’s probably the out-and-out “favorite.” Right now, he’s also a big fan of bully sticks.
What is your pet's favorite thing about living in the East End? We’re still working on socializing Ernie, so his playdates in the neighborhood are pretty limited at the moment. As our (extremely patient) neighbors put it, he has a lot of “big feelings.” But hopefully we’ll get him trained to a point where he’s able to play with some pals soon!
Got anything else Lookout readers should know about your pet? Ernie loves sprawling on the cool cement floor of Second Bottle on a hot summer day, and running around in the Chimborazo Dog Park no matter the season. But his favorite day-to-day activity is probably any walk that takes us past Riverbend Roastery, where he knows Felicia, Han, Ariel, KJ, and the rest of the staff keep a treat jar stocked with Milk-Bones—just one more of his favorite things to eat.
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This has been East End Animal Friend, a new recurring feature spotlighting the many creature companions of Church Hill and its surrounds. Fill out this form to introduce your beloved animal(s) to the neighborhood in a future edition of The Lookout!
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