14/08/2024
I love my dogs. But this is the Unpopular TRUTH!
My dog is not my child.
My dog is not my furbaby.
I am not her mother.
My dog is my friend, she is my partner and my companion. To treat her like a child, to infantilize her and make it seem as though she needs my constant coddling or protection, would be unfair to her.
She is an adult carnivore that I have brought into my human world. Because of that it is my responsibility as her owner:
1) To communicate with her in a way she can understand.
2) To provide leadership, discipline and mutual respect.
3) To understand her instincts and needs, and provide appropriate outlets for them.
4) To train her and provide her the skills to function effectively in our human world, including acceptable manners and behaviors.
Our dogs deserve to be given responsibility and allowed to be adult creatures, not perpetual babies. Please, don't try to make them tiny humans, they aren't and they don't want to be. Dogs are wonderful because they are dogs. Let them be dogs. Teach them to be good ones.
Also, since apparently being told the furry mammal they live with isn't actually human is terribly upsetting to some people. My point is that dogs aren't people, or children. Trying to make them into tiny people very often leads to insecure, anxious, reactive, fearful or aggressive behaviors.
If your dog can be your baby with zero negative consequences, ok. Enjoy your unicorn dog. But if a person's dog shows any of the above behaviors, the babying is the first thing that needs to change.
No one really cares if you call your dog your baby. It's treating them like one that causes issues.
-K. Carter
