are these puppy dancing videos mean or abusive?? be honest please!

[msjenn]

hey ladies,
i have two little maltese babies that i just LOVE to death and i've had youtube videos that i made of them "dancing" for about two months now.

i originally showed them to my friends from my computer and they all loved them and everyone told me to put them on youtube. i posted them up and made them public for everyone to see and lately, it's been bothering me because i have gotten a few very mean remarks about them, especially the one of the teacup dancing. these comments have comments ranging from " you are an animal abuser, this is animal cruelty" to "shame on you, if you can't take proper care of your dogs, let me adopt them" to " OMG, i feel bad for the poor thing, you animal abuser!"

i know everyone is entitled to their opinion which i appreciate,but these comments can't help but upset me. anybody that knows me knows and see how much i love and cherish my little ones, they are my babies and i would NEVER do anything to hurt them! it breaks my heart to have people say such horrible things about me. fyi, my bf knew these comments were making me really upset so he went into my youtube account and deleted most of the mean remarks.

if anyone has time, i would appreciate if you guys clicked the video links in my signature and gave me your honest opinions. if it does seem in any way "abusive" or "mistreating" them, i would like to know and will gladly take them off youtube. these were only made for the entertainment of my family and friends. sorry for the long post but i would love honest replies, and i promise i won't be offended. i respect everyone here and would love to hear what you all think. tia!

 

[purly]

The first video is fine. The second video bothers me a bit because your dog is being moved around by you, not doing it of his own volition. Honestly it looks a little uncomfortable to me, but it looks like he's going along with it because you're his mommy.

On that note, I think the internet is a place for people to say exactly what they want. I want you to know that I'm not trying to be insulting.

I think particularly on YouTube, people **snipe** a lot because their responses get buried under a great many others. I also think that it's human nature to judge people.

There are a lot of obsessive animal lovers out there that even go so far as to say LOLcats is out of line. I hate politics, but that's the way it is. In this case though, I just don't know about those nelly-furtado dancing videos.

 

[Cat]

I would remove the dancing videos simply because their movements are being munipulated and unnatural to dogs.I looked at all three clips and understand why some may find them abusive in nature though I know you meant no harm.

 

[msjenn]

thanks ladies, and i am NOT at all offended or insulted. i appreciate each and everyone of your thoughts on this issue. thanks so much for taking the time to watch those videos and reply. i do agree with you that it's human nature to judge and criticize. My friend also pointed out that out of the 5,000+ people that viewed them, only a few(maybe 6 or so) commented negatively, so maybe some of the other people liked it or were neutral about it. After all, most people who are neutral probably wouldn't want to take time out to leave a comment but people who are angry about something would right? That makes some sense to me but I still hate to think I am offending people and being deemed a "animal abuser".

Originally I put the videos up for my family and friends who know my dogs and I personally so that they could view them even if they are not with me on my computer. I'm not sure this video file would be able to be emailed to them since it's so big.

I appreciate the honesty of each of your replies and would love to hear from anymore pf'es. Thanks again!

 

[asark]

Abuse or cruelty requires an animal to be in distress... and I don't see your little loves in distress as all . Just please be cautious when assisting them with dancing (I noticed an instance or 2 in the 3rd vid where the dog was lifted off the table by it's front legs = potential shoulder dislocation or spinal damage). I know you were just trying to be cute and loving, but please keep in mind how delicate their little bits and pieces are .

 

[kissmyace108]

Abuse or cruelty requires an animal to be in distress... and I don't see your little loves in distress as all . Just please be cautious when assisting them with dancing (I noticed an instance or 2 in the 3rd vid where the dog was lifted off the table by it's front legs = potential shoulder dislocation or spinal damage). I know you were just trying to be cute and loving, but please keep in mind how delicate their little bits and pieces are .

ITA agree with this! I go thru this also, I have a toy poodle! Your puppies are adorable btw!

 

[purplekitty]

First of all, your doggies are absolutely ADORABLE!! Very cute!

Now my honest opinions. That first video of your dog doing tricks was fine, I saw nothing wrong with it. But the two Nelly Furtado videos, I don't know, it looks like he was uncomfortable, it seemed too rough, honestly. Like Asark mentioned, keep in mind how delicate your little ones are. I know you had good intentions and you are not an animal abuser at all. I would just be cautious when wanting to "make" them dance, instead I would stick to things like in the first video where the movements were voluntary on your dog's part, kwim?
Also, people's comments on youtube seem to get a bit out of hand a lot. I've noticed how when there is a video where something negative can be said about it, some people seem to thrive by posting negative comments.

 

[queen.asli]

*1

*2 & 3 I don´t like when people think that there animals are like toys

 

[Liberté]

One is fine, two and three seems a little harsh on the poor dog.

Your dogs are awesome looking cuties though! I love maltesers!

 

[rosieroseanna]

Being totally honest the first one was absolutely fine, I was taught how to do that at pupply training. The second two they look uncomfortable as their moves are being manipulated by you. I have a Jack Russell who is very small and although he likes jumping up at you he doesn;t actually like standing on his hind legs and I can't imagine many dogs do, they weren't made to so it is probably uncomfortable for them.

 

[sarahcantiik]

I agree with others... video 1 is totally okay.. I love it too, your maltese is such a good boy, mine can only sit and shake hand. I tried teaching him to roll over but always failed, LOL!

Video 2 & 3 are not okay imo coz the movements are not voluntary. Seeing the videos, I was afraid you might break their legs.

I totally know you meant no harm to your cute lil dogs and I believe you when you said you love them to pieces!

 

[ilzabet]

the first one is great but the other two seem really rough on your babies' legs and spine (like the others said). if someone was making me move that way forcefully, i would think it would hurt or at least be very uncomfortable. i know you didn't mean any harm, but i probably wouldn't do that anymore.

ETA: i voted before i watched all three....so the one "not at all" is me. if i was voting now it would be for the first one.

 

[duranie70]

Sorry, like the others, 1 was fine, 2 & 3 had me wince a bit.
Your dogs are cute... please don't lift them by their front legs though..

 

[sarahcantiik]

Geez, I forgot to add.. a friend of mine also thought doing these kinds of things to your pets (make them dance, do tricks, dressing them up, etc) are abuse and not okay. A couple of days ago I was participating in the "Post pics of your pets halloween costumes" thread and so I put an afro wig and a pink sunglasses on my dog (see my avatar pic). I was showing her (my friend) the pics and her response totally baffled me. She said I was cruel, abusing, bla bla bla... I was stunned, I didnt know what to say, I just open my mouth but no words came out of it. I did it only for fun, and I dont think I was doing any harm to my dog. I was putting the wig and the glasses with care and I gave him cookies afterwards. Only thing I did was lift his head to face the camera coz I think he was quite overwhelmed by this strange thing in his head and his nose, but he wasnt resisting or shown any discomfort, otherwise I would stop.

 

[asark]

Geez, I forgot to add.. a friend of mine also thought doing these kinds of things to your pets (make them dance, do tricks, dressing them up, etc) are abuse and not okay. A couple of days ago I was participating in the "Post pics of your pets halloween costumes" thread and so I put an afro wig and a pink sunglasses on my dog (see my avatar pic). I was showing her (my friend) the pics and her response totally baffled me. She said I was cruel, abusing, bla bla bla... I was stunned, I didnt know what to say, I just open my mouth but no words came out of it. I did it only for fun, and I dont think I was doing any harm to my dog. I was putting the wig and the glasses with care and I gave him cookies afterwards. Only thing I did was lift his head to face the camera coz I think he was quite overwhelmed by this strange thing in his head and his nose, but he wasnt resisting or shown any discomfort, otherwise I would stop.

If I were you I'd tell your friend to check out WSPA, SPCA and other animal welfare websites... I think she'd lighten up on you!!! She needs to learn to choose her battles and reassess her definition of "abuse".

IMO it is not friendly to accuse someone of what is considered a Criminal Code of Canada offense. She should apologize and put her energy into helping pets really in need of assistance... or some other positive outlet.