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Doodle with your pen, not your dog: brand alert!
Labradoodle… Goldendoodle… Cockapoo… Pugapoo… Peekapoo… Maltapoo… Saint Berdoodle…
Okay, where to begin? Normally I’m a tolerant and understanding pooch, but this craziness is driving me mad (“flipping my wig” mad, as it were).
What was so wrong with the original… poodle!?
Why’d everyone have to start monkeying around with us (and believe me, that’s exactly what some of ‘em look like to me: monkeys!). The fancy word nowadays is crossbreed or hybrid. I just call it a mess.
See, most folks are looking for, let’s say, the temperament of a golden retriever and the hypoallergenic coat of a poodle. But guess what… there’s no guarantee! You could end up with the shed-like-crazy, sneeze-inducing coat of a retriever and the temperament of a Real Housewives of New Jersey poodle. And then I’d laugh my heinie off (what, you don’t think dogs can laugh?).
(Uhmmm, and why don’t they try this nonsense with cats?)
Moreover, since I hang out everyday at a branding shop, I’m none too pleased at the turn this is taking in that regard.
Back in the day, a dog stood for something: golden retriever=loyal; labrador retriever=energetic; beagle=food hound; poodle=smart(ass). Now they’re boiling it all down to what might be less than the sum of the parts: take the poodle for this, retriever for that, throw in a little beagle for good measure—and hope for the best.
I understand the desire to have the “perfect dog”, but how about working with us here? We do our best with what God gave us… and we unconditionally love our humans, warts and all. If all the energy, fuss, and expense were directed instead at understanding, appreciating, selecting and nurturing the right breed of dog for you, wouldn’t we all be happy in our own skin?
Are these good branding (let alone genetic!) decisions, or are crossbreeders simply slapping together what people will buy?
Me, I’d rather Dad get us a true mutt… a hybrid by nature.
Categories Branding, Outside the Square, Quadrupedal Posts
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Enjoyed your blog piece, it’s the perfect place to include a mention of and link to pet adoption/animal rescue:
http://www.mspca.org/
“and why don’t they try this nonsense with cats?” you ask. Because we wouldn’t stand, sit or recline with our hind legs in stirrups for it. And neither should you. When, as a species, will you give up on that “pleaser” mentality. It’s clearly not working for you.