Puppy Happy Hour
2272 Telegraph Ave, Oakland
September 10, 2025
The eight-month-old sleek and short-haired character, Bernie, was attracting a small crowd of admirers. Indoors, a downy furry baby nestled into the working bartender’s neck crook, sharing sweetness and hives in equal measure. Minutes in and puppy happy hour at the Legionnaire was already in full swing.
That baby is not old enough to drink! Koda gets cozy with an ashtray. Germs are good, right?
I learned of the weekly happening last month while walking to BART after an event at Thee Stork Club. Spying a recognizable small lumpy shape in the waning light, I, ever the purveyor of totally normal and not weird at all social interactions, asked “Is it fresh?”
Thankfully, the human surrounding the furry bundle understood me perfectly fine. The babe in arms, a to-be-large dog at the absolutely perfect age of three months, all droop and soft skin and gummy teeth and wide eyes, snuggled him closer as he informed me that yes, this was a real live puppy, there were more inside (!), and that they were there in hopes of adoption.
Clockwise from top left: Broken-legged Bhoot gets a lift; Tiara pretends to be petite; adult dog is not ignored; Koda’s tongue will not be contained.
Hosted at the Legionnaire with handler and puppies from the Oakland Animal Services, the weekly event is clearly a smash hit. As owner Jason Lujick put it, with delicious cocktails and puppies, what more could you ask for?
So, in need of some seriously soft oxytocin transfer, I took my highball and a stool and spent at least 10 blissful minutes as Altima’s (above left, sister of Maxima, at top) bed and pillow before standing to socialize us both more thoroughly. The environment was familial and friendly—Bernie the beaut met her parents right here just five months ago, and handler Jave told me that every dog to come through has found a home. A godless crowd, as Lujick had told a passerby, doing dog’s work.
Mary Jane, cuddly with Coral (R).
As the sun began to set, so did the eyelids of the babes, and one by one the already cuddly cuties conked out. They were carried off to settle in for the night, far away from the karaoke gearing up to begin, but also ready to return for another meet and greet next week. See you then?
