Dogs are the new kids...

[Nh3]

I went to a dog festival and i was quite disturbed to see dogs being treated like kids.

I disagree, dogs are animals and they should not be humanized and they should be respected for what they are.

 

[ferider]

My dogs are dogs ! Cheers,

Roland.

 

[Nh3]

In my first picture one of the dogs is wearing sunglasses.

I sure hope that dog is smart enough not to get stressed with the sudden darkening of his/her vision.

 

[teo]

I've seen similar things in camera show ;-) Are Leicas the new kids? 😀

 

[Meakin]

Hmmm.....

Where I live, a lot of "young" people have jumped on the hilton bandwagon, getting "cute" little dogs for themselves - however failing to realise that they are not just another "thing" that they can do with as they will and put away when bored of.

This results in little dogs - often running around with no leash (I live in the city) being generally rather annoying, and there so called owners acting in a very bad way, when they try to get control of them...(sometimes even violently).

Anyway here's my dog.

Cheers,

Meakin

 

[visiondr]

I'm with the OP on this one. Here in Portland (apparently highest dog:human ratio in the US) things are out of control, literally. Some people simply have no clue how to control their animals. If I take my preschool-aged son to the park to toss a ball around, I have to be careful not about other kids or adults, but about dogs running around either off leash or on leashes so long the owner has no way to manage them.

My attitude is this; dog are dogs, humans are humans. People around here treat their dogs better than their fellow human. Guess which public appeal garners more money; the homeless shelter, or the animal shelter? Which is more important to humanity; a dog or a small child - a child who could potentially grow up to be a huge benefit to humanity? Compare that with a dog which will always be nothing more than a dog. A fine companion or helper, yes, but still no more and no less than a dog.

OK, rant over and out.
And, for the record, I've had a dog or two in my life. I don't dislike them.

 

[ferider]

Fred,

our three dogs (we have a great Dane, too, go figure) are, by bread, working dogs not "Sporting dogs". This is largely unknown here in the US, but the Rottweiler is actually a shepherd, and behaviorly very similar to other shepherds. Completely diifferent from Pinschers (like the Doberman you mention).

We have plenty of room, they had professional training and get a lot of exercise.

My experience with small dogs in our neighborhood is completely different from yours. And I also grew up with farmers, in Germany. No small farm dogs I can remember. 50 pounds and up.

I would never own dogs in either apartment or central NY.

Also, my dogs don't eat my food and don't get into my bed 🙂

I consider dressing dogs up and humanizing as shown above as abuse. Not too different than abusing them by encouraging agression, fighting or even physical abuse.

Dogs are not toys. They completely depend on their owners and need to be treated, understood and developed as dogs.

Roland.

 

[bsdunek]

I think it is silly, if not derogatory, to treat dogs like little kids. My dog, Reilly, is a DOG! That’s what I love him for. My kids are my kids, and my dog is my dog.

 

[Ken Ford]

I prefer the company of my dogs to that of most humans.

Why would anyone care how a dog is treated so long as it isn't mistreated? "Mind your own business" is my opinion.

 

[jmkelly]

Humanizing dogs may seem silly but it is not destructive to society. I have a lot more issue with some parents I see "deifying" (for lack of a clearer word) their children.

I'm with Ken in minding my own business, but I'm with Ron when I take my kids to the park and they can't play without coming back covered in dog ***, or without being nipped or threatened by an aggressive canine whose owner's excuse is that their animal "just doesn't understand children." Unacceptable.

For the record, I like dogs - I had a couple of sporting companions back in the days when we had space and time to run and hunt with them.