Unleashed Dog at Brewery Working as Unofficial Greeter for the Afternoon

RICHMOND, Va. — Showing unconditional love and affection to everyone who passed by him, Richmond-based dog Brutus took the unofficial position of greeter for the afternoon at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery, sources confirmed Sunday.

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Brutus, a two-year-old Golden Retriever mix, arrived at Hardywood around 1 p.m. with his owners Kyle Duncan and Shelly Garland, who quickly unleashed him and let him roam free with very little supervision.

“Brutus is super friendly, and this is a super friendly vibe, so we’re cool with letting him roam around on his own for a bit,” Duncan explained in an interview, adding that they kept an eye on him in case he wandered a bit too far. “He’s such a good boy, but we know to watch out for him, just in case. You can never tell how other dogs may react to our unleashed love-bug.”

After surveying the scene and unsuccessfully begging for table scraps from multiple other patrons, Brutus posted up near the door of the brewery, and proceeded to greet visitors with sniffs and the occasional lick as they entered the establishment.

Brutus’ position as the unofficial greeter was well received by many customers, who noted that his friendliness and tail-wagging created a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

“It was a really cool touch having him work as a greeter,” Amanda Petke stated in an interview after settling in to Blue Mountain with multiple licks and boops from Brutus. “He is so adorable that he just lights the place up to everyone that walks in.”

Charlottesville resident Eric Marsh expressed similar sentiments, noting the contrast between Brutus’ demeanor and the rest of the establishment’s staff. “He was really chill and just walked right up to me when I walked in. At first, I thought he worked here so I whipped out my license to show him, but then my friend Steve said ‘No, bro, I don’t think he works here. He’s just sniffing the place out or something.’”

“Whatever his deal was,” Marsh continued, “he was way more chill than the rest of the staff that scoffed at me when I wanted to try a sample of each of their six IPAs. Like, whatever.”

According to sources close to the establishment, Brutus was offered a job application from the general manager after manning his post for an hour. When presented with his application, Brutus proceeded to rip it to shreds and then vomit the pieces on the floor.