Marysville's menagerie

Dimey the dog skitters across the linoleum floor of her home-away-from-home to get a few pieces of kibble.

She heads back to a cushioned chair across the room from where her owner cuts hair and makes herself comfy before dining.

"She's prissy," says barber Anthony Natale, 26, of his Jack Russell terrier puppy, whose name is short for Diamond.

Natale — and about a dozen other people who work in downtown Marysville — keeps his pet with him at work every day.

"It's real good for business," he says, "but she has a tendency to jump in people's laps."

Upper Cut Barber Shop Owner Candis Gifford, 29, brings Rosco — Dimey's dad — to the shop, as well.

"Some people don't like dogs," she says, smiling. "We laugh at them."

Business surveys have been suggesting for years that dogs and cats in the workplace create good morale and a higher level of productivity than in workplaces where pets are not allowed.

You'll get no argument from animal-loving shopkeepers in Marysville.

Molly the calico cat watches as a stream of mid-afternoon pedestrians moves by "D" Street Mercantile, which sells vintage gifts and home decor.

A sign above her on the glass door requests that she be kept inside.

As a customer enters and heads down the shop's long aisle, Molly follows close behind, purring loudly.

The feline mascot has lived in the store since it opened 10 years ago, and has appeared in at least 15 television commercials, says owner Tracy Schneller, 45.

Molly makes the store feel homey, Schneller says.

Animal magnetism

But the cat gets in plenty of trouble.

Like the time she hopped into a customer's stroller for a ride, and nearly got folded up and driven home with the baby's mom.

And she likes to share.

"When she gets a mouse, she shares it with customers," says Demona Dibble, 50, a store clerk.

The tri-colored cat is full of surprises.

Schneller says she often startles shoppers after napping in a pile of stuffed animals, and then moving suddenly.

"She has a lot of personality, and she loves kids," Schneller says. "People come in just to see her."

A 5-year-old Pomeranian named Bucky runs the show just a few doors down from Molly.

Norm Smith, owner of Downtown Shoe Repair, says he gets regular traffic from residents who just want to pay their respects to the friendly, fluffy, buff-colored dog.

"Wal-Mart has its greeters and I have mine," he says. "Around here, I'm the pet and he's the master."

Being able to bring his best friend to work, Smith says, is one of the advantages of being your own boss.

"The way I see it, if people don't like my dog, they can get out of my store," he says.

Office tails

On First Street in Chinatown, Rosie has taken notice of a bucket of cracked walnuts brought to the Fruitman Law Office by a client.

The sweet-natured griffon — Belgian wire-haired pointer — figured the walnuts were for everyone. She helped herself to a few, leaving shell fragments scattered across the carpet near her owner's desk.

Her tail begins to wag when she hears a voice in the lobby area. She approaches, sits, bows her head, and leans against the visitor.

"She goes up and greets everybody," says Barbara Fruitman, Rosie's owner. "She's real good. I like having her here."

A couple blocks away on C Street, Juno, another Jack Russell puppy, is rummaging through boxes of shirts at King Clothing, a small silk-screening operation.

On one side of the dog's lips is a splotch of neon pink ink.

"She's been blue and yellow and red before," says Zak King, 25, who owns both Juno and the store. "She puts her head in to smell it, I guess, and it gets all over her."

The puppy shoves open a closed "employees only" door, prompting her owner to chase her. Then she tears loose paper off a cardboard box, hops in, and goes digging around.

King retrieves a small piece of bone from the bottom of the box and returns it to its grateful owner.

Work goes quicker, King says, with Juno around to keep him company.

Juno is the sister of Diamond, the puppy at the barber shop. She's also got another sibling living with an owner of Cakes By Request, just two doors down from King's store.

Pet owners downtown tend to know one another. And in the case of the Jack Russells, they often get taken for visits and play dates.

Bucky, the Pomeranian at the shoe repair shop, receives dog treats on a regular basis from his fans who come to visit.

Smith says he's happy to share his canine friend with anyone who's fond of dogs.

And anyone who's not?

"People that don't like animals," he says, "are worthless."

Contact Appeal-Democrat reporter Nancy Pasternack at 749-4712 or at npasternack@appealdemocrat.com