My love-hate relationship with dog clothes
And why I hate walking (other people's) dogs in the rain
I have a love-hate relationship with people who dress up their dogs. On one hand, I think it’s trying way too hard to make dogs into children — and I have never wanted kids. On the other hand, I’m excited to walk one particular Yorkshire Terrier because he’s always in a new coat. I’ve never seen him in the same outfit twice.
It reminds me of my mother’s repeated reason for wanting a daughter: “I wanted to dress her up and do her hair.” My mother, who has approximately 15 portable closets in her attic and at least 300 pairs of shoes, was not kidding. My wardrobe as a child was endless. And as much as I talked about how she bought “too many clothes,” I recently let a month fly by without doing laundry before I realized, “I’m running out of bras. Guess it’s time to do the rest of my laundry.” If not for boob support, I could’ve gone another month without wearing a repeat outfit.
Recommended Read: “Boots or no boots: Winter season is no fun for dog paws ~ Is it necessary for all dogs to wear winter boots?”
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My mother sighs at my protest against dressing up dogs. I insist that a dog should be a dog, not a daughter. She, on the other hand, has made her Shih Tzu puppy quite fashionable. She bought me and my dog matching outfits, which I returned to her right after I snapped these two photos. Two weeks later, she was back at it again, trying to convince me that both of our dogs need matching coats. Our German Shepherd and Labrador Retriever mix somehow escaped her clothes-buying craze, simply for being big — and one was sorta wild. But the Shih Tzu mix is definitely going to compete with my childhood closet.
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I have said “no” so many times I lost count. That is, until she asked me about a dog raincoat. I know how much my dog Junee hates walking in the rain and zooms around the living room to dry off. This raincoat would make rainy-day walks more tolerable. So how do I keep my anti-dog-clothes boycott going when I know a dog raincoat would come in handy?