Rocco Ritchie, Madonna’s son

Ritchie (2), Allard (45) and Cesar (35)

After I see Ritchie, I see Allard standing behind him: a jolly guy who is trimming beards in Amsterdam. Ritchie was gifted to him and Cesar by Cesar’s mum when they were still living in the Dominican Republic. Ritchie is a Labradoodle: his mum, a fancy poodle, ran away and got jumped by a big street dog which was part labrador. ‘Poor thing, the street dog was so big and rough!!’ Allard laughs out loud as he tells me the story. When they went back to Holland they left Ritchie with the neighbours and their pitbulls for a few months. ‘At that time we called him Rocco, but all the neighborhood kids call him Ritchie. So now he is Rocco Ritchie, just like Madonna her son!’ This time Allard laughs so hard that the shop windows are trembling. As he continues he says: ‘Cesar and I are real barbers, so we cut beards. Normally also Ritchie gets a good trim when it is not too cold. We like to cut him so that he looks like a lion. Rocco Ritchie the Lion!’

(Amsterdam, the Netherlands)