Black Girl in a Doggone World™

Black Girl in a Doggone World™

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Black Girl in a Doggone World™
Black Girl in a Doggone World™
The puppy vs adult dog debate

The puppy vs adult dog debate

Joseline "The Puerto Rican Princess" had a point on "College Hill: Celebrity Edition"

Shamontiel L. Vaughn's avatar
Shamontiel L. Vaughn
May 14, 2023
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Black Girl in a Doggone World™
Black Girl in a Doggone World™
The puppy vs adult dog debate
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Photo credit: Tobias Tullius/Unsplash

“Who the f*ck is going to buy a dog and be knowing they’re going to die in like 15 years?” reality TV star Joseline “The Puerto Rican Princess” Hernandez blurted out during the first episode of “College Hill: Celebrity Edition.”

Anyone who has sat through one episode of “Love & Hip-Hop Atlanta” or “Joseline’s Cabaret” would not be surprised this comment came from Joseline. Sensitive, she is not. The question was sparked by Tiffany “New York” Pollard, another reality TV star known for “The Flavor of Love.” Tiffany was explaining to a co-star on “College Hill” that she gained 20 pounds from overeating due to missing her “dog-ter.” She missed her dog, who she had for 13 years, so much that she brought a stuffed dog with her to the show. But Joseline being Joseline, she heard the news and immediately ridiculed all dog owners. Very on brand.


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Truthfully though, Joseline does have a point—an insensitive point, but a point. Pet owners are fully aware that their dogs on average do not live more than 15 years. And the bigger the dog, the shorter the life.

Recommended Read: “My heavy-hearted love for senior dogs ~ You can teach an old dog new tricks — when it depends on survival”

This rationale is what makes it tougher to debate aspiring pet owners who solely focus on puppies, specifically smaller dogs. The smaller the dog, the longer the life. The younger the dog, the more time a pet owner will have to spend with it.


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But there’s a piece of me that is completely annoyed by this logic. It’s the same energy that Marques Houston and Chris Rock give to dating older women. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard dog lovers dismiss older dogs as potential pup-adoptees.

  • “They’re set in their ways.”

  • “They’re too hard to get along with.”

  • “They’ll misbehave because of how they were treated before.”

  • “It takes too long for them to get over the past.”

Recommended Read: “Finding pretty dark-skinned girls is not equivalent to finding Waldo ~ Marques Houston, if Redman, Ne-Yo and Nelly can find them, so can you”

Disturbingly, it sounds a lot like how older (usually) men view the problem with dating women their own age. Oddly, the one thing the 40-and-up women’s club have going for them is men (so far) haven’t dismissed us as “She’ll die sooner.” With that said, here’s why this rationale doesn’t make much sense.

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