Meet the Birthday Boy

Stanley is getting ready for one busy week. First, he’s going to a dinner party where he and a few friends will watch the second night of the Westminster Dog Show. Then, the spotlight is on him as he hosts a party for his third birthday. Naturally, he’s going to invite 15 of his closest friends to an Upper East Side restaurant to help him celebrate. Each lucky guest will receive a red gingham scarf with his or her name embroidered on it as a party favor. The birthday boy himself, will be sporting a new brown cashmere scarf. Last year, partygoers dined on grilled chicken, pommes frites and mesclun salad. Well, the two-legged guests did. The furry ones indulged in their party favors and occasionally sampled the chicken. Stanley’s first birthday was celebrated at the now-closed Mortimer’s, where Park Avenue socialites dined on home-style cooking.

Like most dachshunds, whose bellies are just inches above the ground, Stanley is able to keep a low profile. But despite his diminutive stature, he is a high-flying jet setter, dividing his time between his owner’s New York apartment and their house in Los Angeles. He is also an avid traveler. In his personal photo album, he has pictures from his trips to Paris and Aspen, as well as along the eastern seaboard from Florida to Maine. Despite all of these fabulous adventures, he feels most at home on the Upper East Side, where he knows the streets like the back of his paw.

Meet Jax. This East 56th Street resident likes to nibble on carrots and blueberries in season.

Jax looks like a black sausage link with tan feet. Barely two years old, he already has sense of fashion. He wears a collar from Louis Vuitton, and has a couple of different outfits depending on the weather, like his Burberry’s raincoat, with the Burberry’s recognizable plaid pattern. He refuses to go out in inclement weather, and insists on being carried when the ground is cold and wet. But once he gets to Central Park, the "drag and carry" routine is over. He can be a dog for a little while. He surveys the scene, looking for squirrels. He raises one of his little front paws. He eats some snow.

Bundled up in his bright red winter coat with a wool lining, Jax takes a bathroom break. He raised his hind leg and just before he was about to tip over, he caught himself, stood up straight, and began bouncing along in search of a squirrel. The attempt was futile. He’s tired and wants to call it a day. He’s comforted by the fact that he’ll be back. He always goes to the park on the weekends. On Monday, he’ll be sure to tell his friends at day-care that all of the squirrels were hiding—they must have heard that he was coming to get them.

With a combined weight of 140 pounds and big frowns on their wrinkled faces, Harald and Jasper give the impression that they would be happiest wearing spiked collars and gnawing on raw T-bones. In reality, these gentle beasts are affectionate and sensitive. "Male bulldogs are like children," says their owner.

Harald was named after the last Saxon King of England before William the Conqueror.

As cute and lovable as they are, Harald and Jasper are not allowed to sleep on their owner’s bed, even though they love to be cuddled. Their owner says that cuddling with a snoring 75-pound bulldog lying on your head makes a good night’s rest very difficult.