Archive for December, 2022

1879: Jim, the FDNY Fire Horse of Engine 33 Who Earned His Pension

Posted: 29th December 2022 by The Hatching Cat in FDNY Horses/Mascots, Horse Tales
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Under the 19th-century rules of the Fire Department of New York (FDNY), when horses were no longer fit for the hard service of pulling engines, hose reels, or ladder trucks, the department would sell them at auction to any huckster that needed an old horse to pull his cart or do his dirty work. But no such fate was to come to Jim—at least not if Chief Hugh Bonner or Engine 33 Captain William H. Nash had any say in the matter.

1921: Merry Christmas for a Stray Kitten at the Bideawee Home for Animals

Posted: 24th December 2022 by The Hatching Cat in Animal Stories
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When Mrs. Harry Ulysses Kibbe and several other visionary society women organized the Bide-A-Wee home for animals in 1903, the women relied on paid subscriptions from generous New Yorkers to achieve their mission to care for friendless animals. One of their first fundraisers was a Christmas tea at the Hotel Savoy on Fifth Avenue.

Over the years, a Christmas feast for animals became a tradition at the Bide-a-Wee home. Neighborhood children who had shown kindness during the year by bringing stray cats and dogs to the home were also invited to partake in the festivities.

1941: Sally Losch and Rascal Gilmartin, the First Seeing Eye Dogs to Ride the NYC Subway

Posted: 14th December 2022 by The Hatching Cat in Dog Heroes, Dog Tails
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Until recently, I never realized that service dogs such as Seeing Eye dogs were once banned from the NYC subways.

Here is the true story of Robert J. Losch and his dog, Sally, who fought to overturn the ban on service dogs in the subways. I discovered their story after finding a wonderful vintage photo of Thomas F. Gilmartin, Jr. and his Seeing Eye dog, Rascal…