Dogsey

I don't see this as being all that much different to what is happening here:
Dogs' Trust appeal for furry footy squad

People will be choosing those on appearance too. They are being given a 'better chance' of rehoming from the publicity than dogs not featured in such a gimmick.

Well I wouldn't use the app but don't most of us choose a dog by their looks initially. I'm not sure I'd want a dog that was the image of my dead dog tbh and if I did I'd go for a pup so that they may well grow up to be the image of my dead dog but not immediately.

Yep, i agree we all have breeds or types of dogs that we prefer ...... but this goes a bit far and trivialises dog ownership somewhat, bit like a lot of things on social media!

I agree Trouble. I wouldn't want to have a dog that was slobbery for instance (so I suppose that comes under appearance?)

But the same could be said about shows like Paul O'Grady. The dogs he 'features' or 'spotlights' do of course have a much higher chance of finding a new home than those not shown on the programme. Some might say that's unfair.

To be honest, I think ANYTHING that results in more people being made aware that there are rescue dogs out there that need homes and steers them towards them is a good thing. When only ONE dog finds a good new home it's a good thing.

We can't have a world where a dog is 'foist on people - sight unseen' because they are willing to offer one a home. For what? To PROVE they are genuine dog lovers by not being concerned with the aspects of the type of dog?

*having said that I've just taken on a cat sight unseen! Still haven't got a clue how old it is. But when I committed to taking it I didn't know what age it was, what colour it was or how big it was nor how serious its injuries were or how affected by them it would be. I just knew it had been terribly cruelly treated (knew it was female because it had recently given birth!)

But there is not the VAST difference in size and appearances in cats that there is in dogs. A chi for example is a very different animal to an SBT!

Looks come into it in my view when we CHOOSE anything in life. We don't choose even furniture on functionality alone. (Most) of us would be shopping for something we 'liked the look of'.

The people (and entities) obsessing over something like this remind me of PETA. The awful organization of cultists who:

1) Murder most dogs and cats that came into their shelter (over 99% compared to the average 44% in ALL other shelter in that state) and say it's because they are too sick
2) Disagree that dogs and cats should ever be kept as pets saying that they aren't happy as pets (the REAL reason they kill tons of perfectly healthy animals)
3) Disagree wholly with no kill shelters, saying they are all dirty overfilled disgusting places full of unhappy and un-adoptable animals (clearly not true, a pure lie)
4) Waste tons of resources advertising and harassing people and do very little to actually HELP animals.

LOT less talk, bit more doing would be helpful in these situations. I don't think the "app" is a big deal and I think maybe it will help people. Even if it does "cheapen" the idea of owning a pet, maybe some pets will find good homes because of it. Sometimes it's good to try something out before you instantly condemn it.

I know when I was looking for another dog after being without one for several years and not wanting to get another 'big' dog (and having no experience whatsoever of little dogs) I scoured all the doggy websites out there looking at breed descriptions and traits and all that. And, of course I was looking at 'what they looked like' too. When I was half mind made up I bought books about the breeds I was interested in read them and pored over all the photos in those too. Decided I wanted a CKCS, a bitch, and a Tricolour.

Maybe that makes me shallow and trivialised my purchase of a dog. But to be honest, even back then, 15+ years ago, I knew it was going to be a commitment for at least 10 yrs of my life, was going to cost me minimum 500 quid so yes - I did want a dog I 'liked the look of'. And one that my then 10 yr old daughter would think was the 'sweetest thing this side of heaven'.

People go to 'view puppies' before they can take one. And how many times have we read that 'as soon as I saw him/her I just knew it was the dog for me'. That is directly related to what the dog LOOKED LIKE.

Mine all have 2 things in common, they may be vastly different sizes but I'm gradually moving over to small dogs. They all have short coats and floppy ears. I dunno why pricked ears don't do it for me but they don't and I'm bone idle, well not really but short coats require very little attention and after owning a muck magnet cocker spaniel it's of great importance to me. Does that make me shallow or practical? I do know I don't like grooming so why would I ever get a dog that needs lots of grooming.

Makes total sense, Trouble. I agree that many of us picked the dog we liked the look of. For me my only requirements in a new puppy are: must be male, must be a "lab mix" or "lab type", must be younger than 4 months. That's it! Don't care about color, don't care about size of puppy, don't care about ear shape, don't care about coat, don't care about anything else. If I was looking for a new puppy, I could use something to match me up to a dog that I find "attractive".