PETA plays the shame game
When I attempted to shame dogshaming — all in good fun, of course — my post drew some comments, the majority of them criticizing for me for being uptight and having no sense of humor.
There’s nothing wrong, most of the commenters said, with posting a photo of one’s dog, along with a sign describing how he or she has misbehaved, on the Internet.
What dogs don’t know won’t hurt them was the common refrain. Dogs don’t get on the Internet, and wouldn’t be smart enough to be humiliated even if they could. The photos, many added, are posted in a spirit of humor and love (at least most of the time). How dare I suggest that, rather than making a sign, taking a photograph and posting it on the Internet, some pet owners might be better served by applying that time to fixing the dog’s recurrent misbehavior?
How dare I raise the question of how humans might like it if they were the subject of “shaming” posts, presented of course in a spirit of humor and love, and all in good fun?
And shame on me for expressing my personal opinion — that I wouldn’t want my dog’s lasting and permanent legacy to be photo and statement of misdeed on the Internet. And for pointing out that, as species go, humans have much more to be ashamed of than dogs.
Dogs would never post pictures of us misbehaving on the Internet, I don’t think, even if they could.
But PETA would, and has.
PETA has come out with a series of photographs — these are but a few of them — that turns the tables, depicting humans confessing to their misdeeds when it comes to their pets.
As PETA notes, “Dogs give us all their love and affection, but what are some people giving them in return? Dog shaming. Dogs don’t deserve that, but we can’t say the same for some guardians.”
You can find more shame on PETA’s official blog, The PETA Files.
(Photos: The PETA Files)
Posted by jwoestendiek September 17th, 2012 under Muttsblog.
Tags: animals, behavior, dog, dogs, dogshaming, guardians, humans, misbehavior, owners, pet owners, peta, pets, photos, shame, shameful, shaming, the peta files, training, websites
Comments
Comment from Brandi
Time September 17, 2012 at 11:28 am
PETA should have one of Ingrid holding a puppy/kitten and a sign saying “I get almost 35 million dollars a year in donations and still kill almost every pet that go through my shelter”
Comment from Miss Jan
Time September 17, 2012 at 12:16 pm
I just might have to rethink my poor opinion of PETA (same opinion I have of all IMO extremist policy organizations while still firmly entrenched in support of animal welfare issues). Good on you, PETA.
John, you have been a highly regarded journalist for so long, I hope you will be able to set aside the snarky and insanely stupid remarks of the lowest common denominator types who criticized you in the most sophomoric and juvenile ways possible for expressing your opinion. This is YOUR blog and you are entitled to discuss YOUR opinion and the rest be damned. Some of the people who posted replies in your “shaming” coverage should instead be delivering their explosive verbal diarrhea on something like Topix.
Comment from vida
Time September 17, 2012 at 5:52 pm
I usually have mixed feelings on peta, but this is great. Absolutely love it.
Comment from BaltimoreGal (Ann) (@BaltimoreGal)
Time September 19, 2012 at 11:48 am
PETA should have this sign added:
We think “almost without exception” that pit bull owners are “attracted to the “macho” image of the breed as a living weapon, and seek to play up this image by putting the animals in heavy chains, taunting them into aggression, and leaving them outside in all weather extremes in order to “toughen” them.”
http://stubbydog.org/2012/08/a-letter-to-peta/
Comment from Stephan
Time September 20, 2012 at 1:20 am
If this is just your blog and only your opinion is allowed, maybe you should not allow comments. This is a BLOG. It’s about dialogue. Some people, including myself, disagreed with you. You obviously took it very personally. This second post on this topic sounds quite snarky and defensive. Perhaps some comments hit too close to home? If you’re going to be a blogger, you need to get thicker skin.
I love the dog shaming site and find it hilarious most of the time. I also find the PETA response highly amusing. Humans can be just as silly and ridiculous as our dogs and I love laughing at both.
Comment from jwoestendiek
Time September 20, 2012 at 8:42 am
If only my opinion was allowed, your comment wouldn’t have appeared. My posts containing opinion do generally contain my opinion, as I am the one writing them. I wrote what I wrote, you wrote what you wrote, I, in the PETA related piece, responded to some of those comments, and now you’re responding to mine. Seems like a dialogue to me. As for my skin, I’m not sure how thick it is, or should be.
John / ohmidog!
Comment from Von
Time September 26, 2012 at 7:16 pm
STILL fuming over Dogshaming? By the time you reach a few more people, the trend will have lost its novelty and died out. The more energy you put into criticizing them, the more momentum you give them.
Get over it already.
Comment from Ben
Time April 3, 2013 at 8:57 am
Adding fake signs to pictures of dog owners shows PETA doesn’t get it, yet again. Dog shaming consists of pictures of dogs who have actually done the things the signs state, as described by their owners! That, combined with the fact that dogs have successfuly evolved, thru human breeding, to show faces that mimic human emotion, is what is funny! Nothing but contempt for PETA’s ignorance!
Comment from robert schlosser
Time September 17, 2012 at 9:39 am
I was one of those you are talking about although I hope I wasn’t that harsh. I do respect everyone’s own opinions. And I’m not a fan of PETA but I am glad someone countered dogshaming with humanshaming! Tit for tat.