SPEAKING OF PUPPY PLAY

Plenty of puppy play is low-key, while - as with any kink - there are aficionados who take things to erotic extremes. It can be as simple as improvised face-licking and tail-wagging.

On the kinkier side of things, the complexity of owner/pet relationships lends a spaniel-esque spark to playing with power: Put a collar around your "doggy's" neck and conduct a training session, swatting Fido on the haunch with a rolled-up newspaper if he misbehaves.

If fuller-fledged Rin Tin Tin role play is your pleasure, you can add a leash and a dog bowl, even a cage and dog bowl. "There's nothing like the sight of a naked boy on all fours lapping water out of a bowl to get me going," confesses one kinky topman. "And sometimes I'll feed him a bone. Mine."

Says one devoted would-be puppy, "When I pup out, I feel closer to who I really am. It's a spiritual thing, really. You know, like how Native Americans Indians have totem animals that represent their higher selves?"

As is the case with many a kink, actual sex may or may not be part of the tail-wagging menu. Says our spiritually inclined puppy, "I never have sex with my master when I'm pupped out, though I do at other times."

When it comes to esoteric eroticism, what gets one man hard may just leave another guy puzzled. Says one sexual adventurer who's decidedly not into dudes pretending to be dachshunds, "The whole puppy-play scene is one of those kinky things that seem not very sexy to me. It's more like kid stuff that sidesteps genital sexuality. I saw one scene where a guy was wearing floppy ears, and that just made me giggle. Harmless enough, though."

But if the thought of puppy play, with its intriguing blend of childlike cuteness and beyond-the-pale edginess, gets you frisky, rest assured you're not alone. Sure, it's a minority taste. And the full-bore "puppy lifestyle," with its leather pretend-paws, man-sized muzzles, and public "dog" show competitions, may be far beyond the bounds of those who simply want to sit up and beg for boners, or make Rover roll over. But with the rise of online sex-shopping, finding a suitable pup-play partner should be considerably simpler than dragging a genuine pet to the vet. So visit that virtual pet store - or put your wet nose up to the window and beg to be taken home - and you, too, can see Spot come.

Woof!

Simon Sheppard

San Francisco artist and activist Simon Sheppard is best known for his contributions to the erotic literary scene. He wrote hundreds of stories that appeared in S/M magazines; erotic anthologies; and over twenty editions of Best Gay Erotica and Best American Erotica. His Sextalk column has appeared on OutUK for more than 20 years. You can find out more about Simon Sheppard in this OutUK feature and tribute, or take a look at some of his many books that are still available:

       

Looking for something very sexy and just as smart? Man on Man collects the best and hottest gay sex writing by Simon, who is also co-editor of Rough Stuff: Tales of Gay Men, Sex, and Power as well as a collection of gay erotica called Hotter Than Hell.

In KINKORAMA : Dispatches from the Front Lines of Perversion he takes readers behind the unmarked doors and black vinyl curtains that lead to the sometimes shocking, often hilarious, relentlessly arousing scenarios of extreme sex. There are also stories of bears in Tales from the Bear Cult: Beat Bear Stories from the Best Magazines.