BY HYATTSVILLE CITY STAFF – Meet Breeze Puglisi – gentle Golden Retriever, two-year-old, and passionate plastic-bottle recycler. That’s right, on her walks throughout Hyattsville, Breeze picks up bottles – between five and ten a week – and carries them back home, where her owners, Melissa and Joe, recycle them.
“She thinks it’s fun,” said Joe, 33, who grew up in Hyattsville. “She starts prancing when she has one.”
Her recycling abilities, paired with her kind disposition and adorable looks, have made her many friends in Hyattsville. It was former City Councilmember Lucille Brogden who notified The Reporter of Breeze’s passion. And neighbors, people who see her on her walks, and the mailman and UPS driver all give her treats.
“The veterinarians are not happy with us,” Joe said.
The Puglisis live on Oliver Street, near Heurich Dog Park, where they often take Breeze to meet up with her dog friends – among them Pike, Cocoa, Booker, Seamus and three Labradors, Mason, Major and Mia.
“We love all the parks around here,” Melissa said. “She loves Magruder Park.”
The Puglisis walk Breeze twice a day, usually between one and two miles. No matter the distance, if she finds a bottle, she picks it up and walks it all the way home.
When asked what they think of their dog’s habit, the Puglisis smiled.
“We always joke about it,” Melissa said. “We call her the Dogcycler.”
