About Us
We're Anna and Alex — two millennials, three opinionated animals, and one very stubborn belief that your pets deserve better.
Our Story
Madison Mutt began the way most good things do — with a leap of faith, a setback, and a very small dog who refused to let us give up.
Long before there was a website, there was a storefront. A small, sunlit pet shop in upstate New York that we opened with everything we had. We hand-picked every collar on the wall. We knew our customers' dogs by name before we knew theirs. For a little while, it was exactly the life we'd imagined.
Then 2021 happened. The world reopened, but the shoulders of small retail didn't quite hold. By that fall, we'd packed up the last of our shelves, said goodbye to a community of regulars who'd become friends, and quietly closed the door. We told ourselves we were done with the pet business. We meant it, mostly.
A Household of Three (Then Four)
For a long time after the shop closed, home was just the four of us: Anna, Alex, and our two cats — Dante, the dramatic one, and Fibi, the diplomat. They had the run of the place. They had opinions about everything. We assumed our household was complete.
Then in the spring of 2023, a miniature long-haired dachshund tumbled into our lives — eight pounds of cinnamon-colored audacity, ears too big for her face, opinions far too big for her body. We named her Madison, after the street where we'd had our first apartment together, back when the shop was still just an idea sketched on a napkin. Dante was outraged for approximately six days. Fibi accepted her by the end of the first week. The three of them now share a sunbeam most afternoons, in a hierarchy only they understand.
Madison did what dachshunds do. She ruled the apartment. She demanded the good blanket. She side-eyed every cheap nylon harness we tried to put on her, and seemed personally offended by the bowl we'd had since college. Shopping for her — and finding things the cats actually deserved, too — turned into a strange kind of nostalgia. We'd find ourselves on a Tuesday night, deep in a rabbit hole of small European leather makers and independent treat bakeries, the way we used to source pieces for the store.
One night, somewhere between a Danish ceramic feeder and a hand-loomed alpaca pet bed, Alex looked up and said: we should try again. And this time, we'd do it online.
What We're Building
Madison Mutt is the pet store we always wanted to run — without the four walls, but with all of the care. We're based in New York, and the majority of our collection ships from here, stored and dispatched by trusted fulfillment partners we've worked hard to vet. A smaller part of the range ships from select partner warehouses elsewhere, so a few orders may travel from outside New York — always tracked, always to the same standard.
Every product is chosen by us, by hand, by the same two people who used to fuss over what went on the shelves of a real shop. We source from independent designers, small-batch makers, and a handful of heritage brands we've trusted for years. We say no to a lot of things. We say yes to pieces that feel considered — quietly beautiful, properly made, and worth keeping.
We pay attention to what 2026 dog and cat parents actually want: walking gear that doesn't look like sporting equipment, calming supplements with real science behind them, food bowls that look at home in a kitchen, toys that survive the second week, scratching posts that don't ruin your living room. We think your dachshund's harness should be as nice as your handbag. We think a pet bed can be furniture. We think premium should mean made carefully, not just priced highly.
A Note From Us
We're a family business, run by two people and three small tyrants with very loud opinions. The emails, the DMs, the replies on socials — that's us. Always. If something arrives and it isn't right, you'll hear from Anna or Alex directly, never a script.
We don't have a physical store anymore, but we miss it more than we can say. If the online shop finds its footing, we'd love to open doors again one day — for pop-ups, events, meet-the-maker evenings, and (Madison's personal request) a cookie counter for visiting dogs. We'll keep you posted.
Thank you for being here. Madison, Dante, and Fibi say hi.
— Anna & Alex
New York
Want to Partner With Us?
Creators, bloggers, small businesses, and dog-and-cat people with a community they love — we'd genuinely like to meet you. Our partners earn a 15% commission on every sale they bring in, with proper tracking, fair terms, and a team that actually replies.
