Comments (0) Best Shop Pet - 2012
A.J. of Little King Jewelry
177 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10013
212-260-6140
It's the age-old love story: Man meets dog, falls in love, adopts dog, and makes Fido the unofficial mascot of the jewelry shop where the man works. In this case, the guy is Joey Perrotta. The dog is A.J., a scrappy mixed breed. And the store is Soho's Little King Jewelry. Perrotta saw A.J. walking with a volunteer from Animal Haven—a nonprofit shelter up the street from Little King—and the tiny dog stopped and sat at the store owner's feet. "He had a crooked little mouth and one tooth sticking out the side, and I thought: 'Oh, my God. I have to have him," says Perrotta of the first time man and mutt met. Now A.J.—his owner's best guess is that he's part Jack Russell Terrier and wire-haired terrier, with some long-haired Chihuahua thrown in—occupies the window of the shop and specializes in luring customers in with what Perrotta calls his "three downward-dog positions": cute, cuter, and cutest. Catch Little King's best sales clerk at the shop every week on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. 177 Lafayette Street, 212-260-6140, littlekingjewelry.com (10013)
