"You wouldn't do that to your child, why would you do that to your dog?"
Ugh.
I hate this phrase. I hate it.
I've seen this mantra repeated multiple places on the internet, written by dog lovers, sometimes even by professionals who work with dogs.
They say "Oh, you're sending your dog to a no-kill shelter because your child is allergic to it: would you send your child to an orphanage if your dog was allergic to it?"
They say "You wouldn't use (insert aversive tool of choice here) on your child, why would you use it on your dog?" (By the way, in terms of discipline people in our culture are far harsher towards our children than we are towards our dogs (dogs do have it harder in other ways, such as getting euthanised frequently); and that's a subject for a different post).
"You wouldn't do that to your child, why would you do that to your dog?"
Ugh.
One's child is not the same thing as a dog. It just isn't the same. It just isn't. This is a bad analogy. It really is.
First of all, a human being does have more worth than a dog. Secondly, a parent's relationship with their child should be closer, more loving than their relationship with a dog. But even if it isn't, a human being is worth more than a dog.
Don't get me wrong; the bond between human and dog can be very close. Sometimes I think I'm closer with my dog than with any human. He certainly treats me better. But all the same, a human being, even one whom I hate, is objectively worth more than my dog whom I love.
So, the action towards dogs which you are criticising might be wrong or ill advised, it might be, but don't use this phrase to argue against it. Because a human being is not the same thing as a dog. And one's child is not the same thing as one's dog.
Edit: P.S. I would like to clarify that I believe we have a moral responsibility to treat animals well. There are some things that one shouldn't do to a dog. So I agree with people speaking out against inhumane treatment (what treatment is inhumane, and what is justifiable is another question, and a complex one). I'm not complaining against such speaking out. I'm only complaining about the use of a very specific phrase, a particular bad analogy, a specific weak argument...
Ugh.
I hate this phrase. I hate it.
I've seen this mantra repeated multiple places on the internet, written by dog lovers, sometimes even by professionals who work with dogs.
They say "Oh, you're sending your dog to a no-kill shelter because your child is allergic to it: would you send your child to an orphanage if your dog was allergic to it?"
They say "You wouldn't use (insert aversive tool of choice here) on your child, why would you use it on your dog?" (By the way, in terms of discipline people in our culture are far harsher towards our children than we are towards our dogs (dogs do have it harder in other ways, such as getting euthanised frequently); and that's a subject for a different post).
"You wouldn't do that to your child, why would you do that to your dog?"
Ugh.
One's child is not the same thing as a dog. It just isn't the same. It just isn't. This is a bad analogy. It really is.
First of all, a human being does have more worth than a dog. Secondly, a parent's relationship with their child should be closer, more loving than their relationship with a dog. But even if it isn't, a human being is worth more than a dog.
Don't get me wrong; the bond between human and dog can be very close. Sometimes I think I'm closer with my dog than with any human. He certainly treats me better. But all the same, a human being, even one whom I hate, is objectively worth more than my dog whom I love.
So, the action towards dogs which you are criticising might be wrong or ill advised, it might be, but don't use this phrase to argue against it. Because a human being is not the same thing as a dog. And one's child is not the same thing as one's dog.
Edit: P.S. I would like to clarify that I believe we have a moral responsibility to treat animals well. There are some things that one shouldn't do to a dog. So I agree with people speaking out against inhumane treatment (what treatment is inhumane, and what is justifiable is another question, and a complex one). I'm not complaining against such speaking out. I'm only complaining about the use of a very specific phrase, a particular bad analogy, a specific weak argument...
