Ollie, a four-month-old lab mix, captures hearts of campus

Anne Goldberg, a senior from St. Louis, Missouri, beamed like a proud mother anytime people asked to pet her little puppy, Ollie, a four-month-old mix, or take a quick picture. Passing students' faces lit up at the sight of Ollie. 

"I love dogs because they’re always so happy and seeing them makes me happy no matter how bad my day has been,” said Kaitlyn Fulp, a sophomore and an Anthropology and Global Studies major from Kernersville, NC. 

From the time Goldbert and Ollie spent on the quad, one thing was clear: everyone seems to be in love with Ollie.

Goldberg adopted Ollie on Feb. 12 from a foster family in Wake Forest — something she recommends. She said he enjoys cheese, peanut butter and Netflix. 

Adopting Ollie seemed like an easy choice for Goldberg.

“He was in a foster home so he was already around a family," she said. "This lady adopted him. He was around people and other dogs. He was already socialized and trained, microchipped and neutered. So he was kind of the full package."

Ollie’s mother is a brown lab. It’s a bit more unclear about his father’s breed. The foster family believes he is a beagle/boxer mix.

However, his personality is clearly lovable. 

“Ollie is super goofy and he loves to cuddle. He just makes me laugh and he’s a great little companion,” said Goldberg. “We love going on walks, obviously. We like watching Netflix on the couch together. Eating. You know, the basics, snuggling in bed.”

As perfect as Ollie’s life seems, he too struggles with life as a pup trying to learn the ropes of life.

“He tries to jump up on the couch sometimes and he falls because he’s bottom heavy and his paws are so big. That’s really funny,” said Goldberg.

And, while social toward dogs, who he loves to play with, Goldberg said, he is still shy around humans. 

When confronted with questions about how much he likes his owner and questions about politics, Ollie kept chewing on the stick he found between Bingham Hall and the Undergraduate Library. He also did not make it clear what his favorite dog food was.

Kate Williams, a senior peace, war and defense major from Charlotte, NC, said she is in love with her puppy nephew. She calls herself Aunt Kate.  

“I call him nugget because he was so small when she got him,” she said. “He does his own thing and his mom spoils him with bow tie collars and puppy Oreos.”

arts@dailytarheel.com