by Jeremy Fuscaldo
How my dog and I spent Baltimore Comic Con
[Editor’s note: I was chatting with Jeremy at his booth when I couldn’t help but notice Jackson, his adorable emotional support dog. We came up with the idea of an article talking about tabling with a pet and this is the result.]
There is no one word to describe Baltimore Comic Con. It was my first time tabling there as an artist looking to create art while I pursue a full time job and it was certainly unforgettable. However— there is one experience that can help summarize the entire weekend: Dog Sitting. That’s right— during the entire weekend of Baltimore Comic Con, I went out of my way to take care of my emotional support dog, Jackson.
He has been my family dog for the past 6 years. I first met him through an adoption program at a local pet store in Hillsdale, New Jersey in July 2018. When we met, he knew that I was the right one for him; and vice versa. One jump towards his pet store cage is all it took— he chose me and we were set for life. And from that day forward, he became my companion and we traveled throughout most of the northeast of the United States. And very recently, this year— he became my emotional support dog.
During the summer of 2023, Jackson began appearing with me at one Comic Convention and an Expo appearance, with my parent’s help & assistance. And this year, I vouched for him to come with me to Baltimore Comic Con. For the entire weekend, it was a fascinating experience—Jackson reacted differently from Small Press Expo and Natsukashii Con in Gettysburg, Pennslyvania. During several periods, he felt cooped up and wanted to stay with me every step of the way, to the point where he hid under the table because of the noise. Despite these challenges, everyone adored him at the convention; and his temperament impressed several other professionals who were tabling. To further elaborate, here is a background of what happened.
On Friday, it was a pretty standard day. People had come to my table to either sign the Baltimore Comic Con yearbook or buy some art from— and I made a ton of sales. In between the commotion, people noticed him, found him adorable and got the chance to say hi to him and pet him with consent. It helped improve the mood and morale for everyone in attendance; and Jackson loved the attention. While I was making sales, I took care of him and made sure he had his bed, aside from when he had to be walked by one of my parents. And he had his special bed at his side.
On Saturday— things took a different turn. His bed was left behind in the rental car and he had no where to rest except for the hard surface floor. At one point, he hid underneath the table, shaking, because he was afraid of the noise around him. I was very concerned for him so I picked him up and cradled him like a baby so he felt safe. At some point, he got to meet a friendly little French bulldog named ‘Pickles’ whose owner was watching him the entire day as well. Once Day 2 came to a close, he stayed with me while my parents went to get the car to pick us up. After I closed down my booth, we both waited outside the front entrance of the convention center. A few minutes had soon turned into an hour due to the heavy congestion of the traffic that my parents had to go travel through. We had waited out by the entrance and we had discovered that the reason why there was so much traffic in the area was because of a major baseball game between the Detroit Tigers and the Baltimore Orioles, that wrapped up. And soon, we were met with a swarm of Baseball fans/attendees that were leaving the stadium and walking down the convention center. Thus, I kept a close eye and tight leash on Jackson. With the hour past and the crowd was gone— my parents arrived and we all went back to the hotel.
On Sunday, it was more or less much the same— only this time, Jackson was being watched by my parents back at our hotel before arriving at the venue that afternoon. And honestly, it was for the best to help Jackson rest before returning. Upon arriving— he was once again left without a bed and we had to take turns to keep an eye out and hold him so he knew we were here. In the end, we did not have to wait around for hours to be picked up. Instead, we were all present and packed up the car and returned to our hotel. And it just goes to show that even the most supportive emotional support dog needs a little support now and then
Despite many of these challenges, it was a positive experience for my dog and I to spend time together at Baltimore Comic Con. As a person on the Autism spectrum, it helped me feel adjusted to the event while I was getting used to knowing people. Interactions were always something of an interpersonal challenge for me — which is why it was helpful to have someone like Jackson, who is also now a licensed emotional support dog, to be at my side. And in a way, it helped with both the morale of my vending neighbors, my self esteem – and with sales. The economy has been stressful for the United States this year so any small help can go a long way. Because throughout all three days, sales kept climbing higher and higher until I went past breaking even and selling more than at previous venues.
What made the entire experience feel like a community is that there were other vendors at Artist Alley who had their pets with them at the convention. Whether it be a little French bulldog named Pickles, or a trained service dog named Sydney— there were a ton of dog owners and dog sitters taking care of their pets that weekend while participating at the convention. Honestly, it goes back to what some peers and other people have said over the years: our pets are like our children. And being a parent to your pet while selling art and comics at a convention is almost like a ‘take your kid to work day’. It’s a new precedent that’s being set at conventions and I hope it becomes more normalized for pet owners and people with disabilities.
[Editor’s note: At our request, Jeremy provided some of his art to accompany this article.]
Jeremy Fuscaldo is an illustrator, and comic artist based in New Jersey who graduated from William Paterson University with an MFA in Visual Arts. He has self published webcomics featuring his original character, Amelia Enmity, as well as Drawtober sketchbooks.
