Walking into a fraternity house, one may expect dim lighting and a dirty kitchen or even a mouse skittering across the floor. But some Northeastern University fraternities instead have fluffed dog beds littering the floor and plush toy mice ready for a cat to pounce on.

Northeastern offers numerous fraternal and sorority life organizations, including 13 cultural and identity-based social Greek organizations. Roughly 13% of Northeastern’s undergraduate population is involved in Greek life.

Though Northeastern does not have official Greek life housing, many fraternity brothers opt to live together off campus on their own dime. Brothers rent a house near Northeastern’s campus, and their home is transformed into a social hub. 

Occasionally, a brother living amongst their “frat-mates” will leave a little extra space for a dog bowl, a cat tree and a litter box in their luggage. These three Northeastern fraternities have an extra member, fur and all, who you can name when asked to “name five brothers.”

Meet the beloved pets of three Northeastern fraternities: Blue, Vinny and Bear.

The DKE Dog

Delta Kappa Epsilon, NU Alpha Chapter

Name: Blue

Age: 9 years

Favorite Treat: Beef jerky sticks

 The face behind “DKE Dog” is a powdered-sugar-coated snout, large ears and a name collar that dangles proudly reading “Blue.” 

Blue lives with the brothers of Delta Kappa Epsilon and was brought to Boston from Connecticut by Jonathan Grbic, a second-year business administration major.

Grbic got Blue when she was just a puppy and has been her primary caretaker throughout her whole life. When it came to his second year at Northeastern, Grbic said his parents told him that either Blue would be sent to a boarding school with a bunch of other dogs, or she’d come to Northeastern.

“It would be a lot cheaper and a lot nicer for me to have my own dog with me,” Grbic said. 

And just like that, the two were sent to Boston and are living atop Mission Hill. 

“The landlord was very chill with [Blue living inside the home],” said Nicklaus “Klaus” Ohlweiler, a second-year business administration major and roommate of Grbic and Blue. 

Blue, a German Shorthaired Pointer, was bred to hunt birds and waterfowl, but took a more glamorous lifestyle and began participating in different dog shows. 

“She got first once, and then [my family] just stopped doing [dog shows]. But during Halloween, she models a cheetah and then a policeman costume,” Ohlweiler said. 

Though Grbic is keeping track of many classes at a time, he said caring for a dog is a nice break in his schoolwork.

“It’s nice to have responsibilities outside of just going to school and doing homework,” Grbic said. “I wake up, get ready for school, take her outside, feed her.”

Blue has even become a place of emotional support in the home. 

“When we walk home from a tough day of classes, [Blue] is always there at the door wagging her tail. So she’s like a therapy dog,” said Timothy Vaquero, a fourth-year mechanical engineering major who lives with Blue. 

Also like her brothers, Blue is quite a busy girl. “Someone is always with her, always taking her out,” Ohlweiler said. 

“I’ll get home and Blue will just not be there, I freak out. And then someone will text, ‘we were taking Blue out,’” said Chase Houser, a second-year computer science major. Though she is always out and about, Blue is tracked with an AirTag to ensure she is safe.

Now, Blue has transformed the frat house into her own palace. “[Blue has] a couple dog beds around the house and has too many toys,” Ohlweiler said.

The brother from a different mother

Beta Gamma Epsilon

Name: Vinny McCatterson

Age: 1.5 years

Favorite Treat: Wet food tubes

Vinny McCatterson — also known as Vindawg to his brothers —  is the cat of Beta Gamma Epsilon, or BGE, who lives in Back Bay at the fraternity house. 

Now almost 2 years old, Vinny was adopted a year ago by Nathan Chatterton, a fourth-year mechanical engineering major. 

Vinny is not the first cat to patter the halls of BGE. The fraternity has had a long line of pets in their fraternity home, all given the last name McCatterson, the most recent being Kevin McCatterson. Luke Sanders, a third-year electrical engineering major, said that Kevin is doing well and is living happily with a BGE alum. 

After the news that Kevin was leaving, Chatterton decided he would take on the responsibility of finding BGE a new cat and went to the Animal Rescue League of Boston.

”[The fraternity was] looking for a male cat, because [the cat is] supposed to be one of the brothers,” Chatterton said.

By his third visit, Chatterton had narrowed down his choice to a female black cat, a littermate of Vinny’s. However, there was a mixup at the adoption center. Although Chatterton initially picked Vinny’s littermate, the adoption center unknowingly gave him Vinny because the pair looked so similar. 

“I took a video [of Vinny’s sister] and I was like ‘Oh this is not the same cat, well I think I got her brother,’” Chatterton said. 

Nonetheless, Vinny McCatterson quickly won the hearts of all the brothers.

Vinny isn’t living at BGE rent-free, though. He helps out around the house by kicking out uninvited guests. 

“[Vinny] will wait to see if he can find mice,” Chatterton said. “He’s caught a few mice, which is good.”

Vinny has wiggled his way into the brotherhood of BGE; they even look at him as the brother from a different mother. 

“He is a brother, so we treat him like a brother,” Chatterton said.

Vinny is incredibly popular inside and outside the fraternity. Whenever BGE has social events, many people go up to a brother asking to see him. Vinny has even achieved his own Instagram account, which has over 160 followers. 

“My mom follows the Vinny Instagram account,” Chatterton said. 

The bear under the porch  

Alpha Kappa Sigma

Name: Bear

Age: 3

Favorite Treat: Churros

While most bears live in the mountains, this one hangs out underneath the back porch of Alpha Kappa Sigma, or AKS. Bear, named after his large snout and puffy cheeks, belongs to Carter Horiye, a fourth-year business administration major, and has lived at the AKS house for two years. 

“I’ve had Bear for two years. He was a feral cat and I found him when he was 1 year old,” Horiye said. “[Bear] has lived here longer than any brother currently living in the house. He used to live under our back porch.”

When Horiye came home one day from co-op, a fuzzy, medium-sized kitten was given to him. 

“I was asked, ‘Do you want a cat?’ And I said, ‘I’ve never owned a cat before, but let me meet him,’” he said. 

Horiye and Bear have been inseparable ever since.

“I think Bear’s story is very inspiring,” Horiye said. “He’s a cat brought up off the streets. He has done a lot in his lifetime.”

A couple of months after his discovery, Horiye officially adopted Bear. Though Bear was a feral cat, he has a friendly demeanor and purrs like an engine. The big fluff ball has his toys scattered around the home and has his paw wrapped around Horiye’s heart and wallet. 

“I am definitely shelling out the most, probably a couple hundred dollars by now,” Horiye said of his spending on Bear.

During the summer, Bear stays in his natural habitat and holds down the fort of AKS.  

“My family is allergic to cats. I was actually allergic to cats before I adopted him,” he said. 

The brothers of AKS have developed a good relationship with their neighbors and are quite familiar with Bear. “So [the neighbors] actually come over and feed him and take care of him [over the summer],” Horiye said. 

Bear has even been expanding his territory. Bear is an indoor and outdoor cat and keeps his Roxbury neighborhood under surveillance. But just for safety precautions, he has a tracker around his collar to ensure the brothers can find him.

Bear is quite popular in the fraternity, even having his face painted onto a cooler. During social events, many people ask about Bear and send their best wishes toward the fuzzball.