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I catch a lot of guff for some of the shenanigans I put my dogs through.
He’s not impressed…but that has nothing to do with the photo. He just hates waiting for his treats.
It seems like there are a whole lot of people out there who are vehemently opposed to dogs in costumes. Reactions to my dogs in silly garb range from “cuuuuuuuute” to “That poor dog” to people who actually believe the things I ask my dogs to do are abusive. Abusive. That’s a pretty heavy word to toss around.
Sassy dog doesn’t *look* abused…does he?
LET DOGS BE DOGS! is their battle cry. “Dogs don’t wear clothes in nature. They don’t dress up for Halloween.”
On a lot of levels, I agree with them. When we don’t appreciate our dogs for who they innately are, we miss out on so much of the joy that comes from sharing our lives with them.
In order to share our lives though, we ask our dogs to do a whole lot of things that might not come naturally to them… and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
We potty train them. Teach them to sit and lie down on command. Feed them prepared foods instead of live prey. We make them walk on leashes and help them live peacefully with their mortal enemies, the cats. We teach them a lot of skills to make life together more pleasant and to keep them safe. We teach them skills to keep their brains active and to keep them mentally healthy.
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LOL, Kol’s face! That’s his “Can I have my treat now” face.
The costume opponents seem to think that those who dress their pets do it as an attempt to humanize them; to make them more like us. They see a dog in a costume and write me off as just another crazy dog lady. I may laugh and joke that my dogs are going to shiv me in my sleep for dressing them up, but the truth is, my dogs love these photo shoots and I do them for their own good. If I happen to have some laughs or make a few dog lovers smile along the way? Well that’s just a bonus.
There are some totally legit reasons to dress up your pet.
The number one reason that I dress up my pets is that it’s good training.
Once, a few years ago, Koly got bit by a bee. He had to wear a cone, pretty much 24/7, for close to a week while the wound on his nose healed and he hated every moment. We had never practiced wearing a cone and he found the sounds, the shadows and the movements pretty scary. Watching him not understanding why I had wrapped him in this cone of terror broke my heart. We decided to consult our trainer and find a better way.
It all started with hats and bow ties. The idea is to get your dog used to “weird” things on their body and to associate those weird things with great things, like awesome treats, their favourite toys or whatever makes them happiest. We practice often and with all sorts of different costumes, our custom made “face signs” and all manner of bandages, safety equipment and the like. We practice smearing things like syrup or peanut butter on their paws and not licking it off.
As a result of our training, my dogs know that if I put something on them, then it needs to stay on. I will never put something on them that is dangerous. I will never put something on them that they find truly stressful or scary and when I find something that is scary, I will work with them to help them overcome that fear.
Felix, wrapped in corn syrup blood soaked bandages, for the Vancouver Zombie Walk.
It works like a charm.
We practiced, and continue to practice, and I’m pleased to report that these days, my dogs will wear most anything that I ask, happily. In fact, my dogs get excited. A new costume means a chance to practice wearing it and that means treats and games!
Our training isn’t all fun though. Last year, Koly cracked his dew claw. After a trip to the vet, he had a bandaged claw, some antibiotics, a natural pain killer and instructions to cone him, so that he wouldn’t chew the bandages off. My vet scoffed when I told him the cone wouldn’t be necessary. I was right though. Koly wore his bandage without a fight for over a week, never once unraveling it or chewing at it.
Our costume and photo shoots help Koly practice his obedience and tricks.
Frequent practice keeps Koly’s mind working and helps him stay mentally “with it”. The less training we do, the more of a wild child my sweet puggle becomes. Felix is getting a little older and I figure, if playing brain games help senior humans stay mentally astute, maybe learning and brain games for dogs can help too. Plus, did I mention they like the treats?
In the cold, wet Northwest, a canine raincoat is kind of a must.
No one likes to be wet! Our raincoats not only keep them warm and dry, but they also help cut down on wet dog smell and reduce the number of baths they need. (Now baths, they genuinely do hate.) Both dogs are happy to walk a few miles in their raincoats, but the start pulling me home after only a few minutes in the rain without them.
My dogs love to go on adventures with us and I take them a lot of places. Just last week, as we sat on the patio at Starbucks, I noticed that Koly was shivering and made a note to buy him a sweater. He hates to be cold. Buying him the clothes he needs to ensure he can continue to share his favourite outings is the furthest thing from abusive, don’t you agree?
Other people use costumes to help their dogs overcome stereotypes.
Mr. B and Ms. M from Two Pitties in the City are spokesdogs for bully breeds and they use cute costumes to break down barriers and show people how approachable they are. People who might be otherwise afraid of pit bulls or other bully breeds can’t help but be won over by Mr. B is a dashing hat or Ms. M in her fairy wings. (I mean serious, how adorbs are those two anyway?!)
At the end of the day, the benefits of teaching your dog to feel safe and comfortable, outweigh the bad, in my opinion.
The key is to do it in a way that lets them feel safe and comfortable. If you happen to have a few laughs or get to take them to a few fun events along the way, all the better.
Weigh in: do your dogs wear costumes? Why or why not?
Well said.
I prefer my dogs naked. But you’re right on the money that we expect lots of things from our dogs in their lives with us that they would never experience “in the wild.” As if life in the wild is such a great experience for a dog.
The best thing we can do for our dogs is to spend time with them–whether it’s walking, hiking, training tricks, or playing dress up.
And anyone who would ever suggest Jodi Chick is a dog abuser is insane.
Abusive is an extremely harsh word. I don’t believe in dressing up your pets in costumes if they are truly uncomfortable. Mauja doesn’t get dressed up because it causes her anxiety.
We are, however, doing exactly what you mentioned. We are teaching her that it’s okay (even good!) to have things on/near her in case she needs to be bandaged or something similar. It’s a great idea to have your pets prepared just in case.
I see so many dogs that truly love being dressed up. They know that means fun, tricks, and treats! Atka simply tolerates being dressed up, but he’ll tolerate anything for a nom 😉
ImSO agree with this comment…”And anyone who would ever suggest Jodi Chick is a dog abuser is insane.”
I,cannot even talk about some of the things my son saw when volunteering at a local animal shelter. It sickens me to hear some of the stories that come out of bichon rescue.
You did all the right things! My dogs love to play games! That is a wonderful treat for them! Don’t you just love those Canada Pooch coats. They work so well for us!
I agree with Pamela, anyone suggesting you are abusive is insane and Kol and Felix should probably pee on them.
I love dressing Petal up. She loves any sort of challenge and treats, of course, and the attention from me. She has learned so much patience from it all and she has made me and other people smile and I can’t see how any of that could be a bad thing. If you do it right it’s harmless fun and great training.
I think it’s awesome that it ended up really paying off when Kol had to wear a bandage. Not awesome that he got hurt, but awesome he didn’t have to wear the cone of shame and add insult to injury.
This is probably one of the best arguments I’ve seen in a long time. I feel like I should take a page out of your book and start training my dogs with bowties and hats to prevent the need for cones in the future. Thanks for sharing, Jodi.
And I agree with Pamela & Marquie — anyone that calls you abusive is clearly misinformed.
While I love the idea of training Blueberry to get used to a bandage and not mess with it – I still wouldn’t extend that to dressing her up. She barely tolerates her “jacket” I sometimes have her wear in the colder months to keep her from shivering.
I’ve never been a fan of dressing dogs up – it’s very odd to me. That being said, if someone, like you, for example, dresses up their dog(s) and I see the dogs aren’t unhappy about it, I think it’s fine. It’s the people with dogs (or other pets) that they insist dressing up even though the dog, etc is clearly not enjoying the whole process.
To me, it’s like anything else. There are owners that are just as clueless about the fact that their dog is NOT enjoying a hike, a walk in a crowd, going into a store, etc. Dressing up is no different – if you are going to do it – I can see no better way than to make it a positive experience as you do!
P.S. – Blueberry WOULD really shiv me in my sleep if I did try to put her in a costume. 😉
we love dressing up for any occasion!
Coco dresses for Halloween every year. We usually walk in the Halloween parade by my house too. But they only do a contest for the kids. I think they should add a pet contest too because so many people walk their dogs in it. This year she is a Starbarks Latte!
Last year, I had a penguin dog. This year, I have a Southern Belle.
I would dress Nala up but she freezes when I put clothes on her so no cute costumes for her.
Raincoats are a must for Mr. N too. Clothes for Mr. N are practical AND fun!
We just got a dog so we haven’t tried a costume yet!
Our dog probably couldn’t handle much of a costume!
Too cute! My pup is going as Cat Woman this year.
Yep my dogs dress up for halloween!
Ha, dog costumes are awesome! We love dressing ours up.
I get a kick out of seeing dogs in costumes. My dog refuses to participate and quickly rips things off so I stopped trying.