I’m a millennial man and have recently fired up Tinder and Bumble again on account of the weather warming up. I’m not exaggerating when I say nearly half. HALF. Of all single women my age have dogs. It’s really depressing the amount of times I’ve come across a nice looking girl with similar interests only to see she has a big disgusting dog. So many “dog moms” it’s truly insane . You’re not a mom. You did not birth this creature. It doesn’t view you as it’s mother. I feel this phenomenon will only get worse as these women get older.

EDIT: just wanted to clarify I don’t believe this is exclusive to women. I’m sure dogfree women are having the same woes…. Actually it maybe a good idea for a dog free dating app? XD

I made a similar post last year, but I am once again warning women that in less than a week’s time (in the US, at least) you’ll be bombarded with all sorts of looney messaging about how it doesn’t matter if you’re a mom to a human child or one with fur, you’re a mom all the same. I want to encourage and remind the REAL MOTHERS OF HUMAN CHILDREN tha you have full license to completely disregard this messaging as the unhinged pathetic dogmommyslop it is.

My last post earned me a good bit of hatemail which only serves to further energize me because it is self-evident that dog moms are some of the most selfish, dysregulated, and emotionally unstable people walking among us, and I take great pride in offending them and the soft, fruity dog dads who white knight for them.

The work you do as a mother (whether it be biological, adoptive, foster, step parent) is invaluable to society. You are irreplaceable, and your life is infinitely richer for having nurtured children in a way that dog moms will never obtain no matter how much raw food they plop into Luna’s plate or how many times they pick up Zeus from doggy daycare. Your children are unique and eternal souls and dogs are…a dime a dozen at the pound. Make no mistake, dog moms are secretly envious of your standing in society and want to horn in on your day by co-opting the meaning of mother to include anyone who does anything for any species, including taking care of a dog.

“wHaT dOeS iT mAtTeR?” They’ll moan, trying to make YOU feel crazy for pointing out that taking care of a child is in no way the same as a dog. They will demand that you let them enjoy things, that it doesn’t affect you, that it’s all important work, that some of them can’t have kids (I at least have some sympathy here, but the truth is, that still doesn’t make your dog a child).

It matters because the truth matters. It matters because the more ground we give to these freaks, the worse off our kids are. The more dogshit we have to step in, the more dogs we have to tolerate at the grocery store, and the more dangerous our public areas become as more lazy entitled MoMmIeS tote their undisciplined parasite sacks around to jump on us, bite our kids, wilt our flowers with their urine, and congest the air with barking.

All dog moms know, deep inside, that considering a dog as a child is frivolity, but their egos won’t let them admit to it. And if you’re an offended doggo parent reading this, think of me as you bend over to scoop up your dog’s crap while I’m investing in my kids who will actually matter to society.

Remember ladies, you are doing important work and don’t let anyway take that from you!

There’s a debate in Sweden right now about this statement, made by an influencer on a TV show. When I first heard it, my immediate reaction was that it was an absolutely insane thing to say. I assumed she would get completely dragged online. But instead, I’ve seen so many people agreeing with her. People are saying their pets have the same value as someone else’s children, and that they love their dog in the same way a parent loves their baby. (Sidenote: I wonder if they would feel comfortable saying that to a parent who has lost a child. “I understand what you’re going through, my dog died last year.”)

This dehumanization of children genuinely scares me. Children are an extremely vulnerable group and they depend on adults to protect them. Their safety should always come first. I would sacrifice every dog I’ve ever met if it meant saving one random child.

I am genuinely concerned about where we’re heading if this kind of thinking becomes normalized. When did this become something people feel comfortable saying out loud?

Like seriously, apart from this subreddit, hating on dogs literally gets you CANCELLED. Like I was just in a group chat with some friends and we were talking about pets and they said dogs are the best pets. I said 'Nah, I think dogs kinda suck, they're really loud, disruptive and dirty' and they said 'HOW DARE YOU?? DOGS ARE LITERALLY ANGELS!' Like are you kidding me? Like who would be such a psychopath that you would react LIKE THAT to someone who just doesn't agree with you??

I'm glad that this community is somewhere I can vent about dogs. I feel like it's not welcome anywhere else.

I used to have dogs for 12 years. Had kids and they didn't respond well so got rid of them. Now being #dogfree I'm realizing how much of a nuisance dog culture has become for people who don't like dogs. Some children's places are "dog friendly" so I am scared to take my kids. My 3yo is still terrified to wear short sleeves in this Florida heat because a dog owner refused to share the sidewalk and he tripped and skinned his elbow. Then that got me to thinking about this woman that almost ran us down in her Jeep when we were walking our 2 dogs before kids because she thought we let our dogs poop in her yard lol. And I saw an article today about a homeless man that shot and killed a dog owner who's dog was attacking a lady. I really do feel so much relief not having dogs anymore but just curious how people really feel.

I feel kinda mean posting this here but I know I’d get crucified for this anywhere else…

I genuinely find all dogs ugly. Like even the “cute” breeds like corgis and “elegant breeds” like huskies and stuff. I hate dog snouts, ears, and especially the eyes. I find them really creepy.

People around me keep showing me pics of their buttugly doodle mixes and they look like racist old men trapped in a dog’s body and I feel insane for wondering how can anyone own this kind of thing.

It’s weird because I think foxes and certain wild dog breeds interesting looking but almost all domestic dogs are incredibly disgusting and ugly to me

I think I’m officially going to snap. I came across a post on Facebook from a mother whose baby was stillborn at 37 weeks. She was upset because some people had been telling her they understood how she felt because their dog had died. She was rightfully offended and essentially was saying please don’t try to compare because you simply can’t.

Oh boy. There are over 5000 comments, and as I’m sure you can guess, most of them are from dog freaks who are offended by her post. Yes, THEY are offended that they have insulted her by saying her child’s death is just as traumatic as a dog’s death.

The comment that really took it over the top for me and made me close the app was someone saying, “You can always make another baby, but you can’t get another dog with the exact same personality, they can’t be replaced!”

And to think, we exist on the same planet as these people.

Pitbulls and their asslickers are a specific type of banal, passive evil that is just as vile as those who actively intend to harm, and I'm sick of them getting away with it.

I just read about a beautiful 7 year old boy who was killed by a vicious shitbull that was scheduled to be euthanized but was saved by a group of psychopaths who then lied about his history and placed him in the home of a child.

My rage and sorrow at this story, and the literally THOUSANDS of others is off the charts. Every time a child dies, these pieces of shit come out of the woodwork to spew their braindead mantras: "it's not the breed, it's the owner! Pitbulls were known as nanny dogs, here, look at this picture from 1912, it's a pitbull with a bunch of kids! Do any of them look DEAD to you? Hmmm? No? How dare you demonize this breed" blah blah blah. ​At no point do ANY of them, EVER, express any kind of sadness or regret for the child that was killed. it's always ALL about the shitbull, all the time. they're only sad at the thought of the dog being put down.

These disgusting people see themselves as wonderful animal lovers and saviors of the "poor innocent pibbles who never do anything wrong yet some people are still so MEAN to them 🥺🥺🥺"

A lot of the parents of these dead children are like this, and it just makes me sad that innocent children die because of their parents stupidity. Beautiful children with no control over their environment, suffering horrific deaths because all the adults in their lives valued a shitbull over them. Disgusting, deplorable, and utterly evil

I’ve seen an uptick in anti dog videos. Especially on tik tok. I just seen a video on tik tok about this girl expressing her disgust for dogs and it got 40k likes, of course there was a fair amount of nutters in the comments, however there was a lot of support as well.

I’m so happy. I never thought I’d see the day

This isn’t my usual style of post, but I figured it was worth mentioning: Currently, on TikTok, there has been a significant increase in the amount of content I’ve come across that is either critical of dog culture, dog owners, dogs themselves, or even all three. And this stuff is getting a LOT of positive reception.

I don’t typically keep that app on my phone for very long, but this is making me want to have it stick around for longer. For once, it’s not just this forum that’s calling out dog culture. It’s actually entering a “mainstream” online space.

“Dog fatigue” is the term that I’m seeing people use in most of this content, if you’re interested in looking it up and observing the resulting discussion and discourse over it.

Regardless of the dog owners that this conversation is pissing off, I think this could be a really good thing. While I don’t know about any big cultural shifts in the near future, I think that this is a wonderful step in the right direction. People are finally talking about dog culture in a meaningful way.

i hate this logic. One of the worst feelings in the world is a dog coming and forcibly shoving its nose in your crotch. It’s violating! I hate it! As a woman it disgusts and makes me so uncomfortable.

These dogs are genuinely sexual deviants. They hump things, get themselves off, shove their faces into everyone’s crotch or butt. If this was a human, he’d be charged with sexual assault.

but then the general consensus, apparently, is that this doesn’t count. Somehow, because they’re “just animals” , they can’t “sexually assault” anyone. Especially a human. They’re just following instincts!

I can’t stand it. If an animal is being FORCIBLY SEXUAL, it is assault in my opinion! unwanted, forceful sexual contact. especially the god damn humping. so many, they’re horrifically forceful. they WON’T LET GO. won’t LEAVE YOU ALONE. it’s so violating and it’s one of the main reasons i can’t stand dogs.

So I'm unemployed and looking for work. Today I went to what was the supposed to be a second interview with a company I've interviewed with last week. They seemed to like me, I liked them, and we agreed on a salary. They wanted me to come in one more time to do some trial work and if everything went well, I would be signing a contract.

They're in a great location, close to my home, the salary is acceptable, and the people are likable enough. So I was really hoping to get this one.

To my horror, when I rang their doorbell and the door opened, I was greeted by a barking poodle that jumped on me. A young woman was standing there, and when I shouted "No," she shooed the dog away from me. I had no idea that they had a dog in the office. It must have belonged to the woman who greeted me because I hadn't seen her last time.

When I walked into the office, the boss who had interviewed me told me to take my coat off and grab a seat. But before I did anything, I asked if the dog was always there. They said yes. I told them that I'm not OK with having a dog in the office, thanked them for their interest, and proceeded to immediately leave. I casually mentioned that they might want to state in their ad that they had an office dog because not everyone wants to have animals in the office. One of the workers said, "But nobody ever had a problem with that before." I replied, "Well, I have a problem with that."

The boss' jaw dropped and she looked at me with her mouth open. It's as if her brain was trying to do some hard computational work to grasp the idea that some people do not want to be around dogs.

This really sucks. I think that as little as 10 years ago, it was virtually unheard of to have a dog in the office. And then something changed overnight after covid. So many job ads are now advertising pet-friendly offices as a "benefit." Um, no. It's not.

Every time I walk by a grown man with a dog, I think they expect me to react like “omggggg your dog is SOO cute can I pet it omgggg who’s a good boy” as a typical 20-something year old woman in big cities would. I can tell because they always look my direction as they approach to see if I want to stop and talk, which I never do.

Instead, I make sure he sees me side-eye his dog, then at him, then physically move away so that it’s incredibly clear I’m not interested in his ugly dog nor talking to him (I have a theory these grown men who get dogs think that it will help them meet girls who psychotically love dogs and flock to them, but that’s for another post).

It’s not enough that they see me simply avoiding them and their dog, because they could wrongly interpret that as me being afraid, so I need them to know that it’s not fear, it’s DISGUST 😊

It didn't always used to be this way. At one point, when I was little, I used to like dogs.

However, it has gone from like to indifference to hate.

The more nutters who don't train/contain their shitbeasts, the more I hate the damn things. I'm also on the spectrum, so the constant need for attention etc from dogs is crazy overstimulating, not to mention the BARKING.

Im in my mid 20s and know many people 25-35 and are starting their families. I notice a lot of them/ almost all of them express concern over their dogs that they used to obsess over as they are planning for kids.

A friend joked before she was pregnant that shed NEVER get rid of her golden doodle even if it bit her kid. Her husband made a joke that hed put down the dogs if they bit their kid and my friend was horrified… however when she had her baby, the goldendoodle snapped at her baby for no reason and my friend immediately rehomed that thing.

3 other friends rehomed their dogs when they had kids due to resource guarding and aggression.

I think its funny that an animal called man’s best friend is often aggressive towards babies. Im glad that the dogs were rehomed and the babies are now safe but I notice older people not caring as much.

My MIL is dog obsessed and said she would not get rid of a dog for a grandchild… so guess who will not be seeing her grandkids

I am currently viewing online dating profiles and the amount of people that list their dog as their best friend or "most important person in their life" is insane. They WILL choose their dog over you and they want you to know that. Some don't even post decent pics of themselves. All you see is a picture of a hairy dog and a dirty couch full of dog hair. This is their profile. Are they expecting this to be appealing?

How are they not embarrassed? How did things go this far? Is the billion dollar dog industry at fault? Is this the result of the participation trophy generation? Is this the result of people giving up on life? I am lost for words.

I will start off the post by saying i am by no means anti-dog. I love all animals and respect them as they are. I always thought i was a dog lover because i grew up having multiple outside dogs (we had land).

I just spent a weekend flying across the country to visit my cousin and had the wildest time. To preface, she rescued a dog about 3 years ago. In this time she went from being a normal person to a full blown nutter. In the four days i spent in her home..

• Her dog demanded complete and utter attention. Any time spent not petting her was met with side eyes, space invasion, and assertiveness. This behavior was obviously encouraged.
• We went on walks and i watched my cousin let her dog shit all over public parks without cleaning them up. Because "there aren't any trash cans nearby".
• Her dog was POSITIVELY REINFORCED for all of her behavior, including naughty behavior. The coddling and cooing was insane.
• No washing of the dirty dog from walks so she tracked dirt all over the couches, and me.
• When my cousin did wash her (i mentioned she walked through poison ivy), she smelled WORSE SOMEHOW. Like fish and wet dog.
• If we tried to take showers, it still lingered of wet dog.
• Any time my cousin would feed her or put down licky pads, they reeked. Dog food mixed with yogurt or sweet potato. The smell was nauseating.
• She let the dog sleep in the guest bed that was designated for us ..... So dirty dog and dog hair all over my pillows and sheets. Yes it smelled at night.
• The dog was obsessed with my boyfriend and refused to let me be near him. She got defensive if i tried to sit next to him and naturally always laid in my spot on the bed if we left the door open during the day.
• The dog would bark at anything near the window. Was positively reinforced.

Every behavior was rewarded, and glamorized by my cousin. She thought everything her dirty dumb dog did was hilarious and adorable.

I am besides myself. How are these people real? Anyways. Safe to say dog culture is insane.

Recently heard conversations:

Woman complaining about not spending time with her husband more. This is because she goes into work later in the day and stays later so they always have someone home to be with and watch the puppy (basically taking shifts to be with it). She also said when she is home taking important calls she has to go to the opposite side of the house and hide from the puppy or else it will bark its head off.

Woman talking about how they usually go on a family trip to Florida this time of year, but she has to stay and work while parents go because they need someone to stay and watch the dog.

Guy talking about his mom being a professor at a local university and she always saved up and took her sabatical whenever they got a new dog so she could be with it and help train it.

These people are complete slaves to these mutts

Yesterday I went to a sewing supplies store and noticed they taped not one, but two "no dogs" signs on the storefront. One was on the door, and the other one was on the window right next to the door. It's as if one sign just wasn't cutting it with the nutters, and so they had to put up another one. Lol!

A while back ago, I went to a carpet store and there was a hand written note taped to the door saying, "Don't bring your dog inside." I loved how unapologetic, straight to the point it was. It didn't say "pet," it said dog, making it absolutely clear what type of animal was unwanted.

I thought, what sort of idiot would try bringing a dog into a carpet store? Aren't dogs well known for relieving themselves on carpets? Oh, that's right - a dog nutter would. And so store managmenet had to literally spell it out for them.

20 or so years ago, I don't remember that there were so many "no dogs" signs. It was simply unfathomable that one would encounter dog in a carpet store, fabric store, restaurant, or any other retailer. Once pet shops started popping up, dogs would be brought there, but that was it.

Nowadays, dog-friendly is the default. If a place doesn't welcome dogs, it needs to explicitly state so. It's so refreshing strolling down the street and seeing all of these "no dogs" or "no pets" signs on storefronts. I'm especially happy to see them posted on restaurant doors. It reminds me that there is still some sanity left in the world!

Yeah? Your dog loves you so much and is so loyal? Is that why it needs constant training, leashes, fences, barricades, etc. to not run away from you?
Over 10 million pets in the US alone go missing and run away, the majority being dogs.
Your dog doesn't love you. You hold it captive.

"Dogs are a man's best friend" yet they bite and attack over 4.5 million Americans a year?

Make it make sense.

I grew up in the 70/80/90s and most dogs were outside on a chain with a doghouse. Fast forward to today and look where we are at. How did this happen? I generally see two groups that are crazy dog people. People under 40 and over 60s. Us Gen X people seem to be the only group, generally speaking, saved from this. My dad used to complain how dumb crazy dog people are....guess what.....he's 75 and his dog is 'everything' to him. Its insane. It seems like they are substituting it for a baby, grandkid, etc. Young people are using dogs to substitute for a girl/boyfriend or a kid. We used to be different, as a society, when it came to dogs and now its just crazy. This is truly a problem. I wonder what changed? How/why did this start?

Here’s a perspective from a former seasoned veterinary professional dealing with dogs and their owners. I just finished my last week of being a veterinary technician for almost a decade. I don’t have another job lined up yet cause I’m trying to get into human med laboratory sciences but it is very competitive right now. For my mental health, I had to leave the field cause my god, I cannot stand dogs and their humans.

I originally went into the field to gain experience for veterinary school. Like many, I had a childhood dream of becoming a veterinarian cause I loved animals, mostly horses. Then, I decided not to go to vet school so I stayed as a tech since I was really good at it and liked the technical aspect, I was an absolute boss at venipuncture from drawing blood to placing IV catheters and I loved it. But, I was surrounded by SO MANY dogs and dog nutters who were clients, coworkers, bosses, they were everywhere. I had no idea how crazy these people were and how stupid dogs were until I was well into my 2nd job. I started out as a kennel tech at a really shitty low-income clinic so I just assumed that because the clinic was low-cost, it attracted real shit people. Nope, it remained as a “constant” in any clinical setting I worked at, from emergency to even speciality.

I started out really young and naive thinking “omg animals are precious, of course I’m gonna love working in the vet field!” Little did I know that I would come to hate the field simply because of dogs and their owners. I’ve worked with many other species as well including reptiles and large animals. I enjoyed them all, except dogs. Why? Because they’re garbage, JUST LIKE THEIR OWNERS.

1. People don’t train or socialize their dogs. Every day was a fucking nightmare wrestling with dogs trying to get diagnostics done like bloodwork and imaging. We had to get real creative dealing with those fuckers to get the diagnostics we needed. Owners refuse to give sedation meds beforehand cause they don’t believe their angel child “misbehaves” in any way. The entitlement these people have is INSANE. Like owner, like dog. Completely oblivious and expecting all the love from everyone despite their shitty actions and attitude. I was known as the tech who “doesn’t take shit from anyone” by the people that liked and knew me. The people that hated me (a few clients and coworkers) thought I was just “mean”. No, it’s that I don’t allow people and animals to run me over!! It was very clear to me that most dog people don’t have boundaries and don’t respect other people’s boundaries…JUST LIKE DOGS LOL

2. People just don’t understand dogs at all. Dogs were bred to work or have a specific job, not to be another human walking on all-fours that barks/whines instead of talk. People literally treat their dogs as if they’re just another human because dogs don’t have the mental capacity to judge or be self-aware so people feel “accepted” and “loved” by them. I’ve witnessed people literally talk to them like they understand what they’re saying and it’s a form of attention so dogs LOVE it of course. And when the dogs are left alone since their human has to go to work, the dog tears up the house, eats everything in sight, and has to be brought in for a foreign body surgery. Also, people cook and feed dogs human food as if dogs can digest the same foods we eat. Human food can cause a dog to be so sick due to high fat content and when the owner shows up to the ER with their dog that has raging pancreatitis the owners say “BUT I COOK FLUFFY REAL FOOD LIKE STEAK AND BURGERS EVERY SINGLE DAY, WHAT DO YOU MEAN HES SICK AND HAS TO EAT DOG FOOD NOW??” The dog has to now be on an expensive low-fat prescription food forever, congrats! And what’s even better, is they still feed the high-fat foods while feeding the low-fat dog food and when the dog gets pacnreatitis again a month later, almost dies from it, the owner goes “oh but I only fed him like 1 or 2 fries from my mcdonalds, that shouldn’t have caused it, right?” It sure did ma’am, congrats again! 🤦‍♀️

3. People don’t plan and save money before getting a dog…like people usually do when they plan to have a family and have kids? Then they blame us when they have $0 to treat the ailments that they cause by being completely irresponsible. Example: big dog gets out of the yard because it was being reactive towards another dog on a leash, attacks that dog, and gets hit by a car. Shows up to the ER vet super upset with $0 to their name and an aggressive dog in pain from a broken pelvis. All we can do is euthanize for free cause they didn’t get approved by CareCredit since their credit score is like 300 (again, irresponsible). Either, dog goes home to die a painful death, or we euthanize for free, they choose to euthanize. After the ER visit, same owner writes a google review saying “they killed my dog and refused to help us!”…..this situation appeared every emergency shift I worked for 5 years, in just different variations with the same punch line. Irresponsible owner lets something happen, has $0 to pay for it, blames everyone else for it. Make that make sense? Pets are a privilege, not a right, people.

4. Dogs are just plain stupid and offer nothing but superficial love. People really do believe that dogs “love” them. Dogs simply just want attention and get angry or fussy when they don’t get it. They’re just attached to those who give them attention, that’s not love! It’s an unhealthy co-dependency. When their owners are absent to give them all the attention, they have extreme separation anxiety. After a year of only taking care of over 30 ICU patients at a time every day, several dogs will literally whine and scream for 13 hours straight because no one was sitting next to them petting them or within their sight. It was absolutely ridiculous and so annoying.

These are just a few reasons I left but there’s so many more.

I know there are others like me, stuck in the vet field, suffering. If you read this, hang in there, vet med is not the only thing out there for you, work till you can find a job outside of the clinical setting like laboratory or sales rep.

Keep on living the dog-free good life ya’ll xoxo

I’m a 31-year-old woman, and I genuinely believe dog ownership is one of the most successful self-delusions adults participate in.

Every time I step outside, it’s the same degrading background noise:

“NO. Princess. STOP.”

“Come here.”

“Leave it.”

“Why are you like this?”

Always yelled in that panicked, embarrassed voice of someone who hasn’t experienced peace or autonomy since the day they decided this was a good idea.

Dog owners never look relaxed. They look managed. Tense. Apologetic. Permanently alert. Like they’re escorting a liability through public space. Walks don’t look calming or healthy, they look like active disaster prevention. Leash pulling, trigger scanning, hovering over a squatting animal like it’s about to detonate.

I have a friend whose life is currently falling apart because another dog bit hers. Now it’s vet visits, insurance calls, paperwork, “reactivity,” and constant anxiety every time she leaves the house. And of course the money. Endless money. Training, meds, special food, emergency vets, replacing furniture because the dog “got anxious.”

And if it’s not biting or being bitten, it’s destroying something. You can’t even open YouTube without seeing:

“MY DOG ATE MY COUCH 😭”

“HE SWALLOWED A SOCK AGAIN”

“$5,000 EMERGENCY VET BILL LOL”

“HE CHEWED THROUGH THE DOOR 🥰”

And people post this like it’s cute. Like chronic destruction and financial hemorrhaging are quirky personality traits. That’s not funny. That’s an animal that can’t be trusted to exist unsupervised for five minutes.

And then comes the biggest lie of all:

“But he loves me.”

No. He doesn’t.

Your dog doesn’t love you. Your dog is obsessed with food.

This is an animal that will inhale anything remotely edible. Socks. Rocks. Tampons. Trash. Vomit. Dead animals. Other animals’ shit. Literal shit. They will happily eat feces off the ground and then try to lick your face five seconds later.

And we’re supposed to believe this creature is experiencing some deep emotional bond?

They don’t “miss you.” They’re waiting for food.

They don’t “care.” They associate you with resources.

They don’t “choose you.” They’d follow literally anyone holding a snack.

If dogs were capable of loyalty the way people claim, they wouldn’t need constant training, correction, restraint, and supervision to stop them from eating garbage or attacking something.

And let’s talk about the filth, because dog people love to ignore it.

They shit everywhere. Sidewalks. Lawns. Parks. Trails. Beaches. Right in the middle of paths. And even when owners pick it up (big when), there’s still smeared residue, stains, smell, and piles conveniently forgotten when no one’s watching.

And piss. Everywhere. Walls. Doors. Benches. Bike racks. Car tires. Building entrances. Entire neighborhoods permanently soaked in dog urine. Cities smell like an open sewer because thousands of people decided their pet’s bodily functions are a public issue.

Nothing is clean. Nothing is neutral. Everything is marked.

And none of this is rare. None of this is bad luck.

This is the baseline.

At 31, I cannot understand voluntarily choosing a lifestyle built around noise, filth, stress, restriction, embarrassment, and constant vigilance. Your schedule revolves around the dog. Your social life revolves around the dog. Your finances revolve around the dog. You can’t leave. You can’t travel. You can’t relax. You can’t even walk outside without managing piss, shit, barking, lunging, or apologizing.

Your home stops being a home and becomes a containment facility. Furniture chosen based on chew resistance. Floors chosen based on piss tolerance. Everything arranged around preventing destruction and masking smells.

Dog people call this “love” or “fulfillment,” but what it actually looks like is adults being emotionally, financially, and hygienically enslaved by an animal that would abandon them instantly for a handful of kibble.

The barking. The pulling. The lunging. The stink. The fur. The slobber. The piss. The shit. The destruction. The constant anxiety. And somehow we’re all expected to pretend this is wholesome, meaningful, and aspirational.

Every time I hear someone my age screaming “PRINCESS, STOP” while their dog eats something disgusting off the sidewalk, I don’t feel envy.

I feel second-hand embarrassment for a lifestyle built on denial.

They are too hygienic

They respect boundaries

They are financially savvy

They plan their futures

Their emotions don’t override their disgust queues

They understand owning a dog is a huge responsibility and value the time and freedom dog ownership takes away

They spend their money on buying nice things for themselves, their partners or children rather than spending thousands at the vet

They think independently about what feels right for them even when pressured by society

They want their walks to be calm rather than about controlling the impulses of their dog in a constantly high alert state

They prefer peace and quiet over yelling/barking/noise

They prefer to not degrade themselves by picking up poop of the ground instead of loving poop

They don’t like being manipulated emotionally

Yes, people who dislike dogs definitely cannot be trusted

I’ve officially had enough. Yesterday, I was in Walgreens, and someone had their dog with them in line. I’m allergic to dogs, this isn’t an exaggeration, so I stepped aside, hoping to avoid a reaction. Unfortunately, the coughing, sneezing, and throat tightening still happened. The woman with the dog looked at me oddly, and I looked right back, just as puzzled.

I asked the manager why dogs are being allowed inside, and she said, “San Francisco is a very dog friendly.” “And?, if I have an allergic reaction, who covers my medical bills, Walgreens, the City of San Francisco, or the dog owner?”

I’m genuinely tired of this trend of dogs being allowed everywhere. They don’t pay taxes, they don’t contribute to the economy, and yet I’m expected to accommodate them and even feel lucky to pet them. i’s socially acceptable for dogs to be anywhere and everywhere. Even if i weren't allergic, I do not like dogs. they are needy, loud and annoying. And their pet owners are insufferable with no other discernible personality outside of having their stupid dog.

I plan to start researching and filing complaints with businesses that disregard health and access laws. My issue isn’t with individual dog owners, it’s with establishments that don't enforce the rules. Service and emotional support animals should, of course, be respected *always*, but there needs to be some level of verification. I’m done tolerating this and plan to take a stand.

Edit to include fuck ppl treating you like an asshole for not liking dogs.

My friend said that she prefers dogs everywhere than kids. Im child free rn but they are not the same. the hope for kids is they will become productive members of society! They have rights, rational thought, feelings and intention. Plus, they, for the most part, dont bark, drool, shit and pee on the floor in the middle of a store lol and kids understand language so you can tell them to stop or whatever.

Its not the fucking same thing