Jason’s recent blog entry made me livid, as he can attest to after our dinner conversation this evening. I almost spit out my spanish rice. If you haven’t read his blog entry about stressed-out dogs, sneak over there now and take a peak. Dog’s receiving massages. COME ON! I don’t necessarily plan on having a dog in the near future, however I had a dog growing up, Princess.
As you can see from the picture, I too, had an issue with treating her like a human (yes, that is a pacifier in her mouth), but I was 10 years old! She was like a doll for me. I would dress her up and treat her literally like a “princess,” hence the name. By now you should know that I’m all about grown-ups “Escaping Adulthood” and resurrecting their 2nd childhoods. Apparently there is a fine line between being playful and being ridiculous.
I have 2 issues with this. Number one: I appreciate and honor the fact that dogs become part of the family, often times receiving middle names, fancy beds (if not their owners’ beds), and often getting free reign of the refrigerator. However, I find it hard to believe that a dog’s life is “so stressful” that the next logical step is to hire a certified massage therapist to come to your home to give your dog a massage. Is anyone else with me on this? If anyone needs a massage it’s the owner, who is hobbling along after the dog, bending over, picking up his “you know what” at 6 o’clock in the morning in the middle of the winter. Who’s got more stress? Number two: My next thought process with this situation leads me to assume that these owners who are opening up their wallets to pay for Fluffy’s massages really need to do something meaningful with their time – something significant, as it seems to me that they are attempting to be compassionate and caring through this act of hiring a massage therapist for their dogs, yet it’s a DOG! I have a suggestion. There are tons of groups out there where adults can volunteer to be a mentor for a child. You don’t have to look around too far to see that there is a real need for this. If you really want to make a difference, do it for a kid. Dog are great, but kids are even better- they’re human.
What is becoming of the pet industry when our pets are getting better treatment than many people are? I do fully agree that pets have a very important roles in people’s lives from giving comfort and companionship, but when they become more important than people, that’s where I draw the line, I guess. One thing I do know is that the pet industry sure is making a killing on it though.