Jaeger Pup and Pup Flip Gray are Puppymates. The co-owners of the International Puppy Contest, held each year at the Flamingo Resort, also identify as boyfriends. But that’s only when they aren’t in “puppy space.”
“For me, puppy headspace is just letting go of all the human inhibitions and living in the moment,” explains Jaeger Pup, 51, of Spring Hill. “The best way to explain it is like when you see a puppy he does whatever he wants to do. He runs out of control, sniffs, plays and follows no real set of rules.”
Pup Flip, 54, agrees with Jaeger Pup’s description of that psychological space one must get to in order to be a “puppy” within the leather community.
“I forget that I’m human sometimes,” says Pup Flip, who lives in Tampa. “That’s basically what it’s all about. You get in the moment and forget about the things you’re not supposed to do. You want to be petted and played with—but not sexually.”
A “puppy” in this context, is a person who closely identifies with the canine breed, often referred to as “biopups.” And both men make it very clear that the puppy community is not about sex at all. It’s about losing inhibitions.
The men each say they are always puppies, but of course can’t live as such 24/7. Jaeger Pup is a retired hairdresser. Pup Flip is a graphic designer.
Their relationship is not exclusive. Jaeger Pup has been with his partner—whom he refers to as his “husband,” although the two are not legally married—for 17 years.
Recently, there has been a resurgence in the Puppy Scene within the leather community. But it is by no means a new practice.
Pup Flip says he dabbled in it for quite awhile before taking part seriously in 1989.
“That was in Montana when I was in the military,” he recalls. “There was a military underground of the leather world and when I first got involved it I was trained as a puppy. I’ve been one ever since.”
Jaeger Pup says he dabbled in the BDSM lifestyle but it wasn’t until 2006 that he was introduced to a Master. That person got him interested in the real aspect of the leather lifestyle. He began training as a boy, but soon transitioned to a puppy in training.
“The puppy play started as a punishment for boys and slaves,” explains Pup Flip. “You basically put a hood on them and put them on a chain and force them to act like a dog . The funny part of that is some actually liked that.”
Soon puppies had a cult following and leather hoods shaped like dog heads and specialized knee pads and Mixed Martial Arts gloves made their way into the subculture.
“Early on we would bind our hands into fists and walk like that,” Pup Flip says. “The MMA gloves make it easier to come out of Puppy Space and drink or have a cigarette. You have to be able to get back to your human head space. We’re built to stand upright, use our thumbs and communicate. You have to respect that. You have to be a healthy human to be a healthy puppy.”
Not all puppies are part of the leather community and not all puppies are gay men. According to both, neoprene and rubber puppies are gaining in popularity and heterosexual and gay women are enjoying the phenomenon.
“It’s now its own genre,” Jaeger Pup says. “There used to be puppies and owners, now it’s puppies and handlers. We also have a straight woman who is a puppy contest winner.”
Pup Flip says anyone who is interested in the Puppy Lifestyle is welcome to try on his gear.
“They should put on my magic puppy hood,” he says. “Everyone who has ever done it has become a puppy. Once you get that hood on and others can’t see your face, you are free to be what you want to be.”
You can also visit HumanPup.com.
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