GILDING THE LILY

I was commenting over at Facebook about something that really bugs me.

It's the odd and apparently burgeoning practice of dressing dogs up in tacky outfits.  

I hate it.

At Woofstock in Toronto, where we had fundraising booths for a few years while trying to pay for the case to overturn Ontario's noxious dog ownership ban, we used to see all kinds of people with their dogs dressed in human-style clothing.  Putting aside the fact that in hot weather on black asphalt it's dangerous, it's also just plain ugly.

Why do people want to hide the beauty of their dogs?

I'm not talking about a winter coat or boots to protect the feet.  I'm talking about dressing a dog up as though he is a baby or a doll, usually making no attempt to match the colour of the dog or the history of his breed or type.   It offends me deeply and I'm pretty sure my friends the dogs aren't keen on it, either.

I don't think it's cute to humiliate your dog and make a public fool of him.  I think it's a sign of a syndrome I like to call Head Up Your Ass Denial.

It's symptomatic of the way people are today about almost everything - all surface, no depth -  but I won't blame 'reality' TV.  Dogs are, unfortunately, "in" right now so all kinds of people who know little about them and have no personal history with them are acquiring dogs.

A dog barks.  People freak out.  A dog snaps.  People freak out.  A dog bites.  ZOMG it's on the front bloody page.    Dangerous 'breeds'.  Danger, danger, danger.  Or sicky sicky cutesy.  Where the hell have the dogs gone?

People really need to get out more.  Of all the beings to fear, dogs are at the bottom of the list. Trust me on that. They've been hanging with us for, at the last find in Siberia, nigh on 35,000 years.  They live in our houses, sleep on our beds, play with our kids, have millions upon millions of daily interactions with us, yet fewer than .02% of them ever hurt anybody in even the most inconsequential way.

I wish our own species had that kind of a record.  We could learn a lot from our dogs, especially about discretion and valour, if we weren't trying to pretend they are something else.  Square pegs and round holes come to mind. 

Are people dressing them up because they can't face the nature of a dog? Do they believe that by disguising the dog as a little human or a doll, it means he isn't really an animal, a scavenger and lazy hunter, who rolls in dead things and eats carrion  - and worse?

Or is it that thanks to modern marketing techniques, they have been sold on what amounts to a very bad idea.  All you have to do is look at the faces on these dogs to see how unhappy and ashamed they are. 

Why would someone want to turn a noble, gentle, intelligent, kind, polite animal into a mock-human?  The safety record of that species puts them at the top of the list of dangerous creatures, just ahead of the mosquito. 

Comments

[mikken]

Well, looking at the outfits, it's clear that many of these dogs are substitute babies. And while I feel for the dogs (I really do!), I think that if it helps prevent some of these owners from breeding (themselves), then perhaps the sacrifice of the dogs' dignity is worth it.

[Terrier]

I don't think dogs particularly care that they have on a goofy bandana or whatever. If it's a constricting or uncomfortable costume that's
a different story.
My profile picture shows a pit bull that has on a bandana that made a lovely contrast with his fur. When I checked back on him (I was not going to let him die), he had 35 potential adopters interested in him.
I think it's nice to walk down the rows of cages at a shelter and see the dogs with nice clean and bright bandanas on. I think it shows that someone cares and says"hey, look at me".

[nnels]

gosh, lighten up. I think it's great to see dogs and cats with outfits, colorful leashes, even painted toenails, as well as with no outfits but with nice groomed fur. Because that means their human is putting time and energy into the relationship with that animal. They are not mocking them, and frankly who cares what other people will think about the situation? It's not our business as long as the dog is happy and cared for. And who is doing the anthropomorphic work here if you claim you can judge an animal's thoughts by one photo?

[Caveat]

Bandanas are a great idea, Terrier, and not at all what I'm talking about.

I'm talking about a syndrome that wants to deny the dogginess and pretend it's something else. And, as a person who has spent decades among dogs, "nnels", I can assure you that their facial expressions and postures reveal a lot about their moods. If more people knew that , fewer people would be bitten, not that many are anyway.

It's typical for certain humans to assume that assigning moods and feelings to another species is "anthropomorphism". LOL

I suggest to people who put diapers - yes, it's true, and nothing to do with being in season or housetraining - and baby dresses on their dogs that they might try getting a doll, and leave the dogs to the people who truly appreciate them for what they are.

Dogs look ugly in clothes designed for apes.