Am I The Only One?

[Guest hankodie]

Does it count as OK if your dog sometimes actually resembles a strange looking baby with fur? ........ or E.T. :laugh:

Edited February 21, 2014 by hankodie

[_PL_]

OMG that's a kissable face!

[mita]

Considering the amount of nicknames that are apparently appropriate I don't know why people are so offended by furbaby.

And the call names people give dogs are frequently human names. Our pets have had human names... Sarah, Katy, Danny, Shelley, Annie etc. One even became known as 'Grandma' after a nickname when she was 13 years old, turned into a name by the time she was 22.

I think there's a difference between not liking the word 'furbaby' yourself ... & strongly not liking other people using it. I don't use it myself because it conjures up a baby covered in fur. I just find it awkward & can understand why some don't like it. But others might not feel like that ... and use it. Fair enough, IMO.

Even if there existed some study which found that people who use 'furbaby' tend to have little sense of the dog being a dog ... it still wouldn't predict for every individual who uses 'furbaby'. Only way to find out their knowledge, & applied knowledge, about canine behaviour as opposed to human behaviour, is to ask them and observe their management of their dog.

(And I don't know of any such study, BTW.)

Edited February 21, 2014 by mita

[Bjelkier]

I don't call the dogs furbabies but I do call them 'the kids' on occasion. This does not mean I treat them or think of them as children. I also call them the pack, the legion of mad fellows, the hoard, etc.

I couldn't care less what anyone calls their dogs provided they care for them properly.

[leec]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

[mita]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

[Erny]

What does it matter what people call their dogs. I call our dogs "furkids" not 'furbabies' when I am talking about them. I have had my family and now our dogs are our family, they live in the house with us, but are free to come and go as they please. It really is only just an expression, not harming anyone, the same as skin kid referring to a human kid.

If you consider that what people call their dogs is a reflection of how they treat them, I think it matters.

Erny's post suggests that this is the case.

I think it's a stretch to correlate the two for a lot of dog owners. I call Nacho 'the bane of my existence' when he's being particularly tiresome, it doesn't mean I treat him accordingly. :laugh:

Don't get me wrong ….. I wasn't suggesting it IS the case for all people, but I do often find it is a reflection of what I see in my work. I would say "a lot" of dog owners, but not all. And it has caused me to cringe when I hear the term. Hence I don't like it. I'm not personally offended by it. It's not as though they are calling ME their puppy-duppy, lol.

[Weasels]

I'm actually more worried I'm going to end up treating our baby like i do the dogs O.o

*click, milk*

[Guest hankodie]

I'm actually more worried I'm going to end up treating our baby like i do the dogs O.o

*click, milk*

[leec]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

Sorry mita, exactly what case is that? I'm not sure if I am one of your 'no idea owners' or one that may have an idea???

[aliwake]

I'm actually more worried I'm going to end up treating our baby like i do the dogs O.o

*click, milk*

I have no doubt! I was already using basic commands on my niece and nephew when they stayed at Christmas :) The poor kids got quite a few 'sit', 'stay' and 'come' commands... Was pretty funny - my husband and my sister were both cracking up!

[Dame Aussie]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

Sorry mita, exactly what case is that? I'm not sure if I am one of your 'no idea owners' or one that may have an idea???

Im sure mita means you're that you're one of the good ones :)

[Little Gifts]

Nah, you're not the only one!

I've been known to refer to myself as mum, my mum as Grandma, etc. But my dogs are dogs, they're not fur children or furbabies

I do this. I often tell my dogs that 'daddy' is home. I'm Mummy and my parents are nanny and poppy. I refer to them as mummy's babies and other terms of endearment but when talking to others about them I call them dogs.

I don't care what other people call their pets as long as they treat them well and appropriately :)

Because my sister lives with me I often say "your other mummy is home!" I know they love me best though....

And Tempeh adores her "Grandma" and goes all silly when she comes for a visit, even though Grandma never even brings her presents!

[Marion 01]

What does it matter what people call their dogs. I call our dogs "furkids" not 'furbabies' when I am talking about them. I have had my family and now our dogs are our family, they live in the house with us, but are free to come and go as they please. It really is only just an expression, not harming anyone, the same as skin kid referring to a human kid.

If you consider that what people call their dogs is a reflection of how they treat them, I think it matters.

Erny's post suggests that this is the case.

I don't treat our dogs as humans, they are much loved dogs and I am their pack leader and they are very well behaved and not feral. In most cases "furkids" is just an endearing term as far as I can see.

[mita]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

Sorry mita, exactly what case is that? I'm not sure if I am one of your 'no idea owners' or one that may have an idea???

Im sure mita means you're that you're one of the good ones :)

Thanks, Aussie. You're dead right!

Leec, you gave a perfect, good example of what I was talking about. Just because someone uses the term 'furbaby', it doesn't necessarily mean they mix up their dogs with humans. I should've give you a thumbs -up rather than just a smile.

Edited February 21, 2014 by mita

[mita]

Double post.

Edited February 21, 2014 by mita

[leec]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

Sorry mita, exactly what case is that? I'm not sure if I am one of your 'no idea owners' or one that may have an idea???

Im sure mita means you're that you're one of the good ones :)

Thank you, being new to the forum I haven't worked out the personalities yet :)

[leec]

I call them furkids, this includes my horse. No, I don't have human kids.

I don't treat any of my animals like humans, although the dog does get to sleep in my bed if my hubby is away. He also has an assortment of clothes - wet/cold weather gear, an Essendon shirt and a rashie t-shirt for when we spend long hours in the sun - he is white and burns. I have put a lot of time into training my previous dogs, and at present we are putting a lot of time into training our new dog, he is a dog and needs to know his boundaries. He is loved very much though and is part of my family.

I rest my case. :)

Sorry mita, exactly what case is that? I'm not sure if I am one of your 'no idea owners' or one that may have an idea???

Im sure mita means you're that you're one of the good ones :)

Thanks, Aussie. You're dead right!

Leec, you gave a perfect, good example of what I was talking about. Just because someone uses the term 'furbaby', it doesn't necessarily mean they mix up their dogs with humans. I should've give you a thumbs -up rather than just a smile.

Thanks mita, nice to think I might be on the right track.

I really can't abide misbehaved animals, especially large ones, they can do a great deal of damage if they don't know the rules :D

[Loving my Oldies]

And Tempeh adores her "Grandma" and goes all silly when she comes for a visit, even though Grandma never even brings her presents!

Totally unacceptable I'm reporting her.

[OSoSwift]

We call our cats 'the boys' we also call our children the boys, so we do get some confusion.

My dogs have people names and one child in particular seems to get called Lewis.

The dogs get, Lewis?Rommi?, Wilson, whichever shithead you are, do as you are told!

Usually I call them the whippets or puppies as a collective.

I don't think I have ever called them fur kids, could call the cats skin kids though :)

My whippets do have a bit of a wardrobe, as do the cats, but they feel the cold. They don't sleep with me as I already have two cats that do. I would probably have them sleep with me if I was by myself though.