Off-Leash With Rachel Bell & Ernie

Welcome to Off-Leash, a series spotlighting Biche’s community of tastemaking dogs and humans.

There’s nothing quite like hitting the Penjamin and going for a stroll with your dog. Just ask Rachel Bell, the director of content at Gotham, a woman-owned legal dispensary.

Rachel and her Italian Greyhound went semi-viral in a recent installment of Gotham's lovable video series, “Hi, I’m High,” in which Rachel navigates various situations — like taking the Staten Island Ferry and going backstage at Fashion Week — after enjoying one of the many cannabis products available at Gotham.

In a September segment of the series, Rachel went on a Central Park jaunt with Ernie, her eight-year-old, vision-impaired rescue dog. Under the calming influence of a Dosist pen, Rachel narrates as she walks Ernie to the boat pond, gets his caricature drawn, and feeds him dinner in the grass.

As the video began circulating on Instagram and TikTok, Rachel and Ernie quickly became one of our most-requested Off-Leash headliners. So naturally, we had to get in touch. "I have always loved Italian Greyhounds and I have always loved old, differently-abled dogs,” Rachel says. "I saw Ernie on Petfinder and knew he had to be mine. He was rescued from a dog mill in Korea and flew over to the United States. He was treated for heartworms and given a LOT of dental work… He is perfect. I wept when I met him.”

Despite Rachel and Ernie’s instant bond, she hadn’t always wanted to adopt a dog. "I never thought I was responsible enough to have a dog. Then my brother had a child and, weirdly, seeing what a great job he was doing raising a human being made me feel confident that I could raise a dog."

Ahead, Rachel and Ernie (who also goes by Ernie the Cowardly Bug and Ernie Sanders) tell us about their many quirks.