Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Onlookers Claim Beloved Baseball Dog Coffee Is Being Abused
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 20, 2011
Modified May 25, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 20, 2011
Modified May 25, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Have you seen this dog, adorned in costumes and sitting outside of Citi Field and Yankee Stadium, earning coin for her human in the most humiliating way? A group has started a Stop Abusing Coffee (that's her name) Facebook page which has some startling claims. A tipster just alerted us to it, writing:
A man has been setting up his dog, Coffee, outside Citi Field for every Mets game (he also hits up Yankee games!) and puts out a jar with some cutesy saying on it ("I love everybody except cheap people"). Coffee gets attention because of the way she is decked out (see attached). The owner sets up Coffee two hours before every Mets game and stays until the game is over. Coffee does not receive food or water or any rewards. This is in spite of the fact that Coffee is forced to sit there in that ridiculous outfit, complete with a pipe in her mouth. Spectators are wowed and amazed that a dog could be so obedient. Everyone has marveled at the sight of a dog sitting with pipe in its mouth for 4, 5, or 6 hours. Coffee can do this because she is forced to wear a shock collar—that's why there are so many bandanas around her neck. The shock collar is visible in one of the pictures (taken this past week); the owner was pissed that the photographer saw the shock collar. Her owner shocks her every time she moves. She is unable to take a rest or get the pipe from her mouth because she is immobilized.
We've contacted the Humane Society of the U.S. and the ASPCA to see if they've heard of Coffee, and if these allegations are true, if there's anything that can be done about this. We'll update when we hear back. In the meantime, Coffee will be back in the parking lot at the next Mets home game (and possibly Yankee Stadium before that), if you want to see her for yourself.
Tagged
animal abuse
coffee
Coffee the dog
dog
mets
shock collar
Yankees
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
Mid-October through mid-December is deer mating season, which can be a danger to drivers as the sex-seeking creatures cross roadways throughout the Garden State.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 16, 2026 at 4:22 p.m. ET
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
News
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
By
David Brand
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .