They romp, growl, nuzzle, whimper, bark and wag their tails. Sometimes on all fours, tongue out or playing with toys such as balls and Frisbees. Other moments, they are flat on their backs, cuddling.
Welcome to the kinky world of ‘pup play’: A subculture of BDSM in which mostly men act like young dogs decked out in gear that includes a colorful array of masks, hoods, muzzles, collars, leashes, mitts and tails, and sometimes coupled with brightly-hued knee socks stamped with paw prints.
Unlike, perhaps, other relationships of dominance and submission, there is no one way to engage in pup play. It can be sexual or nonsexual, one can sport the gear or not, and a pup may or may not have a handler, someone who can gave commands, such as speak and rollover, or sexual orders. Some also choose a pup identity, complete with names like Threat, Rotten Dog, Dirty, Deuce and Binky.
But almost all pups wear a collar, explained Dr Phillip Hammack, one of the founders of the Fog City Pack in San Francisco and who goes by the pup name Turbo.
‘The collar is really important symbolically and that is something that most of us tend to wear almost all the time, at least when we’re in non-work settings,’ Hammack, 43, told DailyMail.com. ‘The collar signals our pup identity. It has our tag on it.
‘Some pups are “locked,” meaning that they have a kind of owner or – we tend not to use the word master – an owner or a handler or an alpha whose collared them, we’d say.’
Hammack, who has lived in San Francisco for about 12 years, said that the mainstream visibility of the puppy play community has dramatically increased in the city since around 2014.
‘I will say in San Francisco, I just feel like people barely bat an eye. I mean if they do see us in gear, I think San Francisco is just a place where people are accustomed to seeing diverse subcultures, to seeing interesting outfits and looks.’
‘Pup play’ or ‘puppy play’ is a kink subculture of BDSM in which mostly men behave as young dogs would: they get on all fours, bark and growl instead of using words, nuzzle, and play with toys such as balls and Frisbees. Some that engage in pup play wear masks, hoods and tails. Above, Dr Phillip Hammack, left, who helped found the Fog City Pack in early 2015 and who goes by the pup name Turbo, and Fawks, right, on the streets of San Francisco, where there is a thriving community and scene
There is no one way to be a pup: It can be sexual or nonsexual, one can sport the gear or not, and a pup may or may not have a handler, someone who can give commands, such as speak and rollover, or sexual orders. One aspect of the kink is called moshing, which Joe, a pup who goes by the name Jumper, explained to DailyMail.com is immersing yourself into the ‘pup headspace,’ which includes getting on all fours, usually not using words, and nuzzling, as seen above
Dr Phillip Hammack, who has lived in San Francisco for about 12 years, said that the mainstream visibility of the puppy play community has dramatically increased in the city since around 2014. Hammack told DailyMail.com he began engaging in pup play through a relationship, and realized that he was an alpha pup, or one that is more dominant. He founded the Fog City Pack in 2015 and it now includes nine pups with Hammack saying they are like family, having dinners as well as going on an annual retreat in which mentoring takes place. Above, a man, center, who said his pup name is Deuce, sports a bright green neon mask and outfit at a recent San Francisco Eagle Woof party
Pup play is a subculture of BDSM, an acronym which stands for bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, and sadomasochism. Dr Phillip Hammack told DailyMail.com that it is ‘light on the spectrum in terms of the power play or the role play versus, say, a dominatrix.’ Above, a man, sporting a bright orange and black mask, balances a ball on his nose at a party called Woof, which was recently held at the San Francisco Eagle. He told DailyMail.com that his pup name is Dark Matter
Hammack told DailyMail.com that while those who engage in pup play are mostly gay men, there are women who are part of the subculture as well. ‘There is a women’s community but I feel they’re pretty divided,’ he said. ‘I think they are considerably smaller. But they do exist.’ Above, a woman who said her pup name was Mahoney wears a black mask with neon green accents, and a T-shirt that states, ‘Beware of pup – May hump strangers’
Hammack, above both right and left, told Daily Mail.com: ‘The collar is really important symbolically and that is something that most of us tend to wear almost all the time, at least when we’re in non-work settings. The collar signals our pup identity. It has our tag on it. Some pups are “locked,” meaning that they have a kind of owner or – we tend not to use the word master – an owner or a handler or an alpha whose collared them, we’d say’
Joe, 29, whose pup name is Jumper, told DailyMail.com that the scene has blown up in the last several years.
‘It’s thriving,’ he said with a laugh. ‘It’s definitely the largest and most social of the scenes I’ve seen around. Every day I met a new pup.’
Joe, who asked that his last name not be used, has lived in San Francisco since 2013. He said he was first interested in leather culture, and then started exploring kink and pup play the year before his move to the West Coast.
‘San Francisco historically has been sort of one of the centers for the leather scene in the gay and queer community and puppy play has been… a much more easy and playful door for younger guys who are curious about the scene to get into it. It’s a lot more fun. It’s a lot more playful.’
Hammack, the professor and Fog City Pack founder, said he started engaging in pup play in 2014 because of a relationship he was in, and, at that time, he was relatively new to ‘being out as kinky.’
‘There was sort of this subculture starting to develop and take hold of being a pup or puppy and it appealed to me because it seemed like a more nurturing sort of approach to engaging in some kink play or kink activity,’ he recalled.
He enjoyed the playful aspects of behaving like puppy and getting into what he called the ‘pup headspace,’ acting in an instinctual way, getting on all fours, nuzzling, and not talking but rather whimpering or growling.
Joe, who is also a part of the Fog City Pack, explained that completely engaging with the pup headspace is what is known as moshing. For him, pup play has been a way to get out of his own head and be more in the moment.
‘Jumper allows me to be a much more playful and social than I would normally be, I guess, as Joe… I can be much more reserved,’ he told DailyMail.com
‘When it comes to a lot of these sorts of kink-type cultures there’s this idea that you have to do everything a certain way but one of the nice things about all this is that it’s such a release and… it really is what you would make it of it.’
In his relationship with his handler, Hammack said he felt protected and appreciated the framing of their dominant-submission relationship, which was less aggressive than having a master.
Pup play is under of the umbrella of BDSM, he said, an acronym which stands for bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, and sadomasochism.
‘I would just make that distinction… that kink dynamics occur on a whole spectrum… in terms of dominance and submission,’ said Hammack, a psychology professor at University of California, Santa Cruz who researches and teaches about sexual and gender diversity.
‘I think puppy play is really light on the spectrum in terms of the power play or the role play versus, say, a dominatrix.’
Dr Phillip Hammack told DailyMail.com that while pup play, a kink subculture in which mostly men act like young dogs, has been around for years, it is more visible and mainstream now in San Francisco, where he has lived since 2007. He credits the group that he formed called Fog City Pack in early 2015 and which holds events for the queer community as well as social media for increasing interest in pup play. Above, a man shows his collar and tag with his pup name Dirty
Hammack said that gear, such as masks, hoods and tails can be expensive, are not necessary to engage in pup play. Masks can run anywhere from about $139 to $149, and tails from $46 to $99 at the adult entertainment store called Mr. S Leather, which opened in June 1979 in San Francisco. ‘We have a portion of the store called “The Kennel” that’s nothing but puppy play gear: hoods, muzzles, collars, leashes, mitts and puppy tails. We created the dedicated space about four years ago,’ Brian Murdy, marketing director for Mr. S, told DailyMail.com in an email. Above, a man is on all fours at a Woof party, which was recently held at the San Francisco Eagle
With an increase in the visibility of pup play in San Francisco, Hammack told Daily Mail.com: ‘I’ve seen the puppy section in Mr. S (Leather) grew exponentially over the years. They’re just trying to meet demand for it.’ Above, Hammack, left, and Fawks, right, at Mr. S Leather in San Francisco. ‘We launched our first leather dog hood back in 2001. Puppy play was not as big back then as it is today. It was a niche kink. In addition to the hood we also carried bondage mitts which player used as “paws.” Puppy play and bondage were really connected back then,’ Murdy, of Mr. S, said in an email
Joe, who asked that his last name not be used, has lived in San Francisco since 2013, said he was interested in leather culture and started exploring kink and pup play the year before he moved to the West Coast. The scene has blown up in the last several years, he told DailyMail.com. ‘It’s thriving,’ he said with a laugh. ‘It’s definitely the largest and most social of the scenes I’ve seen around. Every day I met a new pup.’ Above, a man shows his collar and tag with his pup name Threat
Through the relationship that he began his interest in pup play, Hammack said that he constructed an identity as an alpha, Pup Turbo, which is a more dominant pup, and met others interested in that type of kink. ‘Before we knew it… there were a number of other young gay men who were orbiting around us and looking to us as mentors,’ he told DailyMail.com. ‘So myself and this other alpha pup, we built Fog City Pack and there’s nine pups now and we call each other family.’ Above, two pups embrace
Hammack credits Fog City Pack, formed in early 2015, and its events as well as social media for heightening interest in pup play. ‘Social media has really helped a lot in terms of destigmatizing, kind of normalizing sexual diversity. So I think kink is just part of that,’ he said. The subculture was growing at around the same time in the UK as well, Hammack told DailyMail.com, noting that thus far only UK academics have done research and written papers on pup play. Above, a pup and a man hug at a recent party called Woof at the San Francisco Eagle
Playing with a toy such as a ball, as seen above, is one part of a kink subculture known as ‘pup play.’ Wearing gear, such as the mask above, and a tail can also be part of the role playing, but is not necessary, explained Dr Phillip Hammack, one of the founders of the Fog City Pack in San Francisco and who goes by the pup name Turbo
Through the relationship that he began his interest in pup play, Hammack said that he constructed an identity as an alpha, Pup Turbo, which is a more dominant pup, and met others interested in that type of kink.
‘Before we knew it… there were a number of other young gay men who were orbiting around us and looking to us as mentors,’ he said. ‘So myself and this other alpha pup, we built Fog City Pack and there’s nine pups now and we call each other family.’
Fog City Pack was established in early 2015, and Hammack said the group has monthly family dinners as well as going on an annual retreat. Mentoring is a component of the pack, he explained, and it also runs an events business, such as dance parties for San Francisco’s queer community. The business utilizes pack members’ different talents. For example, one member, who goes by the pup name, Fawks, is a DJ.
Fawks, who goes by his pup name both personally and professionally, told DailyMail.com that he is a founding member of the Fog City Pack.
‘The group as a whole have lent to a very supportive and personal growth kind of mentality,’ said Fawks, 31, whose given name is Christopher. A part of the pup community, Fawks said he aligns himself with the fox.
Hammack credits Fog City Pack and its events as well as social media for heightening interest in pup play.
‘Social media has really helped a lot in terms of destigmatizing, kind of normalizing sexual diversity. So I think kink is just part of that.’
The popularity of pup play is reflected in what the longtime adult entertainment store, Mr. S Leather, which has been in business since June 1979, is stocking.
‘We launched our first leather dog hood back in 2001. Puppy play was not as big back then as it is today. It was a niche kink. In addition to the hood we also carried bondage mitts which (a) player used as “paws.” Puppy play and bondage were really connected back then,’ Brian Murdy, the marketing director for Mr. S, told DailyMail.com in an email.
‘We have a portion of the store called “The Kennel” that’s nothing but puppy play gear: hoods, muzzles, collars, leashes, mitts and puppy tails. We created the dedicated space about four years ago.’
Scott, 37, who goes by the pup name Gunner, told DailyMail.com, that there was additional reason pup play has exploded: PrEP, (pre-exposure prophylaxis). It is a medicine taken daily for ‘people at very high risk for HIV… to lower their chances of getting infected,’ according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website.
‘For years, since the 80s, gay men have been living with this kind of terror around sex because you could… get HIV and then eventually die. And that was really ingrained into our culture,’ Scott said.
The kink community, including pup play, were the first adopters of PrEP in 2015, said Scott, who asked that his last name not be used.
Scott, along with his husband, also named Scott, 35, who goes by the pup name Pocket, and one other pup, formed Pedal Pups, an AIDS life cycle team.
‘I really look at Pedal Pups, we’re a pack, but centered around how we give back to our community and how we mentor younger people to come in and learn how to do these things, (such as) how to host events.’
The pup play subculture was growing at around the same time in the UK in 2015 as well, Hammack, the professor, said, noting that thus far only UK academics have done research and written papers on it. A documentary called the ‘Secret Life of the Human Pups,’ which looked at the growing community in the UK and Europe, was released in 2016.
Hammack said he intentionally doesn’t study the pup subculture because it is his life and lifestyle, but he has noticed that there may be less emphasis on identity and the community aspects of being a pup in the UK than in the US.
Kink has become a bit more mainstream and visible, he said, pointing to the new show called ‘Bonding,’ on Netflix about a New York City grad student who works as a dominatrix. Nonetheless, misconceptions about kink persist.
‘I think sometimes outside of the kink community, relationships can misconstrued as, you know, someone owns you, right, that there’s some kind of exploitation going on. I haven’t seen a lot of that, but that’s a stigma that I’m always trying to make sure people understand that’s not what these kinds of relationships are that play with roles or play with dominant and submission – they’re really context for role exploration, personal growth, nurturing, identity formation, things like that.’
Fawks, right, said that he met Dr Phillip Hammack, left, who goes by the pup name Turbo, at a bar. ‘We bumped into each other and he kind of barked and growled at me a little bit and like was wagging his tail, doing basically pup behaviors,’ Fawks, whose given name is Christopher, told DailyMail.com. Since then, they have spent the past four years in a fetish relationship but also as a mentor and mentee, he explained. ‘Our bond is very special,’ said Fawks, who is also married
Above, a sign for the monthly Woof party at the San Francisco Eagle, which has been in business for around 35 years, according to its website. The party’s page on the site states: ‘Come romp, play, and socialize at our monthly pups and Handlers mosh event! We’ll have mats to scamper on and usually a treat or two! Open to all genders, orientations, and human pet identities’
Kink has become a bit more mainstream and visible, Hammack noted, pointing to the new show called ‘Bonding,’ on Netflix about a New York City grad student who works as a dominatrix. A psychology professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Hammack said: ‘I research and teach in sexual and gender diversity and right now I’m teaching a course called ‘Queer Intimacies,’ which is all about relationship diversity. So we cover everything from same sex intimacy to polyamory and kink fetish.’ Above, two men in the ‘pup headspace’ at the San Francisco Eagle
Gear such as masks, hoods and tails can be part of pup play, but are not necessary, explained Hammack. However, he said almost all pups wear a collar and tag, as seen above. ‘The collar is really important symbolically and that is something that most of us tend to wear almost all the time, at least when we’re in non-work settings. Some pups are “locked,” meaning that they have a kind of owner or – we tend not to use the word master – an owner or a handler or an alpha whose collared them, we’d say’
Leaders of the pup play community in San Francisco say that social media as well as release of PrEP helped to spur the growth of the community. PrEP, which stands of pre-exposure prophylaxis, is a medicine taken daily for ‘people at very high risk for HIV… to lower their chances of getting infected,’ according to the CDC’s website. ‘For years, since the 80s, gay men have been living with this kind of terror around sex because you could… get HIV and then eventually die. And that was really ingrained into our culture,’ Scott, 37, who goes by the pup name Gunner, told DailyMail.com
Above, Hammack, left, who goes by his pup name Turbo, and Fawks, right, in their pup play masks with their collars on the streets of San Francisco. Kink has become a bit more mainstream and visible, Hammack said, pointing to the new show called ‘Bonding,’ on Netflix about a New York City grad student who works as a dominatrix. Nonetheless, misconceptions about kink persist. ‘I think sometimes outside of the kink community, relationships can misconstrued as, you know, someone owns you, right, that there’s some kind of exploitation going on. I haven’t seen a lot of that, but that’s a stigma that I’m always trying to make sure people understand that’s not what these kinds of relationships are that play with roles… ‘