Donkey Coffee, located at 17 W. Washington St., is a beloved coffee spot near campus where many students stop to grab their daily caffeine fix, study or catch up with friends. Recently, a new regular has been making appearances — but unlike the students, he's not there for the coffee.
Angus, affectionately known as the “Donkey Dog,” is a black lab and basset hound who roams the shop nearly every day sporting his signature “Pet Me” collar.
His owner, Jay Klute, adopted Angus at a rescue shelter 3 years ago near his hometown of Cincinnati after Angus and around 20 other dogs were saved from a hoarding situation.
Klute has two other dogs — Finn, a dalmatian-retriever mix, and Milo, a blue tick-heeler mix — but neither are quite as affectionate or well-behaved as Angus.
“Right out of the box (he) was this way,” Klute said. “I’ve had a lot of dogs in my lifetime, and I’ve never seen anything like it. He was just naturally what they call a ‘velcro dog.’ He wants that attention, and he wants that affection.”
Klute recently moved to Athens in April 2024 after his daughter left for college. Working remotely as a tech manager, he quickly found himself sidetracked by ongoing home improvement projects. To stay productive, he began heading to Donkey to work, but he always brought Angus along for some company.
“He wants affection, and he wants to be with his person all the time,” Klute said. “Right from the get-go, I could take him places, and I knew that he wouldn’t get more than 10 feet away from me.”
Angie Pyle, who co-owns Donkey Coffee with her husband, Chris, aims to make the shop open and accepting of any type of customer — even non-human ones.
“Angus, oh my gosh, he's so funny,” Pyle said. “He just thinks he owns Donkey. He knows he can go anywhere in the whole shop, and he usually doesn't even have a leash on. He just walks around like a customer.”
Angus has even befriended the Pyles’ dog, Super Chunk, a Great Dane puppy, who also often visits the shop. Angus has even taught Super Chunk a few things about the store.
“Super Chunk was really afraid of the stairs,” Pyle said. “As soon as Angus went up the stairs, Super Chunk was able to go up and then could follow Angus up.”
Angus quickly became a friend to not just Super Chunk, but all of Donkey’s customers. Because of his popularity, Klute created an Instagram account for Angus called anguspdawg. On this account, he shares pictures of Angus and even has an AI chatbot that allows followers to interact with him or ask him questions.
Cami Mathews, a sophomore intervention specialist major, follows the account and is now a big fan of Angus after meeting him while studying for a final exam in Donkey.
“Angus was just really sweet … and he was so happy,” Mathews said. “His tail was wagging so hard — it was so cute. It was just a nice little brain break.”
For many students like Mathews, spending time with Angus offers a comforting reminder of the pets they left at home. For Mathews, Angus is a reminder of her dog at home, Crosby.
“I actually very dearly miss my dog,” Mathews said. “I make my mom FaceTime me every day to show me my dog … it just feels like a little piece of home when you see another dog.”
Whether students need a moment away from their studies, miss their dog back home or simply love animals, Angus provides comfort to everyone at Donkey.
“We all know how dogs release our endorphins,” Pyle said. “I mean, they make us so happy … that’s why we allow dogs in Donkey because Chris and I love dogs. We know that just being able to pet a dog makes you feel better physically, emotionally and psychologically.”
