Now your moment of insensitivity

[featherynscale]

Note: Despite what I am about to say, I love dogs. Mostly all dogs, even small yippy dogs that attack your ankles for no reason other than sheer doggie spite, and giant drooly dogs that insist upon licking you in the face and nearly drowning you.

*BUT*
I hate it when people refer to their dogs as "furbabies" or "furchildren". They are dogs. They are not midgets in fuzzy suits. Midget in fuzzy suit = Ewok, and I think we all know the difference there, which is spears and other primitive weaponry.

Which brings me to my next point: The Rainbow Bridge. While I appreciate the impulse to assign your pet a happy afterlife, seriously, kids, that one's taken. Every time I hear about the doggies and kitties going to the Rainbow Bridge, I think of Heimdall, up there, chasing your dead shih tzu away from the foot of Bifrost, where she's just piddled and washed some of the color off. Yep. Heimdall the Guardian, riding herd over a billion pampered and inbred showdogs, while the giants chip away. Showdogs = Ragnarok. I've always said so.

Comments

Amen, sister.

[saffronhare.livejournal.com]

I've used phrases like "doggie heaven" to explain to my children what has happened to Katy and Logan...and sort of feel comforted by the image of a (fenced off) area of wonderful things to roll in and chase.

But it's always chapped my ass that a person can get 57 emails or posts of sympathy for a pet's passing and yet none for a beloved grandmother.

I spoil my dog(s) and perhaps give them more credit for thoughtfulness and internal monologue than they deserve, but I do it knowing that it's a silly indulgence, you know?

[greektoomey.livejournal.com]

What's even more irksome than people referring to their pets as children is people treating their pets as children - and doing a piss-poor job of it.

I swear to Moloch, if any child was raised the way these people raise their "furbabies" - *cough* *choke* *snarl* - that child would grow into the most obnoxious, spoiled, offensively neurotic dipshit you could imagine.

Don't get me started.

Yes!

[capriciouslass.livejournal.com]

I had a coworker years ago try to equate having her dog with my having children. My response to that was, "If I left my children home alone with nothing but a bowl of dry food and a bowl of water, I'd be arrested for neglect. Don't ever try to equate your dog with my children ever again."
Admittedly, she did treat this dog as if it were her child. I've heard that she's actually had a child since then. It makes me wonder if she ever remembers that statement and cringes now...

Re: Yes!

[saffronhare.livejournal.com]

You've got a point. However, I have found it very useful to describe toddler behavior to friendly, non-breeding babysitters as something like "puppies with thumbs."

Nature vs. nurture?

[triadruid.livejournal.com]

that child would grow into the most obnoxious, spoiled, offensively neurotic dipshit you could imagine

And lo, most of the furbabies do.

[agrnmn.livejournal.com]

I find it funny that the Rainbow Bridge mailing address is in Fishkill NY, I guess it is only for furry pets.

As far as being a dog owner/lover/spoiler my main rule for dogs is they are not alpha to any person in my house, how they rank themselves with other dogs I care not but they are omega as far as people go. When they are dead...well let's just say I plan my funneral expenses to be enough for some firewood and the dog is still omega in death.

[kittenpants.livejournal.com]

I think of Heimdall, up there, chasing your dead shih tzu away from the foot of Bifrost, where she's just piddled and washed some of the color off.

I smell a cartoon in the works... Let me email you and let's see if we can't work out a storyboard.

[pete3great.livejournal.com]

preach it sista'. aminals ain't peoples.

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Nah. It's the other way round. People are animals. But I still don't treat kids like dogs, or dogs like cats, or man-eating tigers like cows.

[diermuid.livejournal.com]

On furbabies - I generally associate this with people who use pets as their children. Keeping this in mind, I would prefer those people stick to furbabies rather than fleshbabies.

On the rainbow bridge - I have no issue with the concept as a non-denominational afterlife for pets. I assume my fish can go there too... but the problem I have with the .com-ification is that it is no longer a flexible lore, but a static website.

I like the idea of the rainbow bridge, although I will stick to the meadowlands theology. Otherwise I envision my dead pets being hassled with Care Bears, Rainbow Brite, and all that '80's drama-toon mess. ;-)

Showdogs = Ragnarok

[triadruid.livejournal.com]

Can I get an amen yiff flaming sword?

I'll show them 'fancy'...

In unrelated news

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

Despite my horror of furrydom, I think the word "yiff" is pretty damned funny. I like the sound of it, but it's better in an inquisitive tone.
"Yiff?" might be the sound the WTF Anubis makes.

Re: In unrelated news

[triadruid.livejournal.com]

I'll let *you* ask him that.

Preferrably not in our house. Or at least, not on the carpet.

Re: In unrelated news

[featherynscale.livejournal.com]

eh. Maybe more of a "yrf?"