#CHSWalksTheDog: Ed Macy Tours
Seasoned Local Tour guide shows Shelter Dogs, Zeke and Juniper, a Different Side of Charleston
Wednesday, June 10, 2022 | Philadelphia Alley in Downtown Charleston, SC
Welcome to the first edition of #CHSWalksTheDog, a blog series that brings together notable Charlestonians, with shelter dogs in need, in iconic Lowcountry locations thanks to the talents of volunteer photographer, Heather Moran.
Each year, the Charleston area welcomes over 7.8 million visitors from across the globe to enjoy the delicious food, gorgeous sights, and rich history it has to offer. Ed Macy, of Ed Macy Tours, is of course more than happy to share with them each and every aspect of the wonderful city he’s called home for many years.
This past week, Ed was joined by shelter dogs Juniper and Zeke as he strolled through scenic Philadelphia Alley located in Charleston’s historic French Quarter snuggled between Queen and Cumberland Streets. Both Juniper and Zeke had each spent over a month at Charleston Animal Society, and were in need of a daycation.
Shelter life can be stressful for dogs – especially older dogs who might not have ever been away from what they knew as their home. “Walkabouts” or day trips out of the shelter can provide long-time residents a break from being in a kennel, allowing them time to decompress and to be stimulated with the sights and sounds of normal life. We also hope that showcasing our longest residents in a different light – outside the shelter walls – might allow a potential adopter to become interested in them when a family sees more normal canine behaviors exhibited on a calm leash walk through the city.
According to Ed, who wrote and guided the first ghost tour in Charleston, Philadelphia Alley has quite the interesting history. Colloquially known as “Dueler’s Alley” during colonial times, this was once the ideal place to settle disputes between gentleman. Ed recounted that some even believe this location to be haunted, though no ghosts managed to bother Ed or the dogs during the sunny Friday morning spent in the alley.
Juniper is a headstrong, but sweet 10-year-old chocolate lab mix and Zeke is a young, outgoing 1-year-old terrier mix. Juniper preferred to take things slow on her walk with Ed through the Quarter, pausing to enjoy the light breeze and the smell of yellow jessamine that coats Downtown Charleston during the warm months of the year. Zeke, on the other hand, was quite excited to be in a new and interesting location, stopping to sniff each new scent and greet all the new friends he met along the way. With Ed guiding them throughout the area, the two couldn’t have asked for a nicer morning out.
Shortly after this photo session with Ed and #CHSWalksTheDog photographer, Heather Moran, Juniper was lucky enough to find a home of her own! But Zeke is still looking for his future home. Be sure to go to CharlestonAnimalSociety.org/Adopt to learn more about Zeke and the rest of our adoptable cats and dogs. Stay tuned for the next edition of #CHSWalksTheDog. If you are a local business owner or personality who would like to walk a shelter dog in a future edition of #CHSWalksTheDog, please email whowell@charlestonanimalsociety.org to get involved.
