Dog breeds are now a Middle Class indicator?

[Brightonbabe5]

Or at least in my dcs school (private). We thought it was bad in September with all the new puppies on the school run... Mostly the same breeds poodle crosses (cockapoos, labradoodles) bichon friese crosses (cavachons, cavapoos etc)... Insta tells me Christmas has brought a whole new pack of fluffy things.
I said this during the lockdown that these particular breeds are now a status symbol & the new MC accessory. Although DH claims a land-rover is also needed to transport the fluffy dog. Friends agree they are also as these breeds tend to be non shed & hypoallergenic...
DC also want one in the worst way😢 We're refusing based on the fact that we don't want a dog type that's considered a status symbol in our area & they cost a bloody fortune.... They are irrestible though with gorgeous temperaments but out of our range unfortunately

Edit : Predictive inserted ''Decided'' rather than ''Decades'' ago

@snappyoldfart here he is he is 18 months old now and has so much personality

@LizDiz

I'd say a private school is more of a status symbol than a dog breed.

Exactly this.

@parado

I agree, I think designer crosses are the epitome of chaviness. I judge people who have them as slightly lacking in class.

^ did you have to be so snobby / rude?
I’m from a working class ‘chav’ background yet I’m not a fan of designer dogs... whereas as this thread shows plenty of mc families are 🤷‍♀️

I really dislike how comments like this are so accepted on MN, fair enough you don’t like something but why the need to (wrongly) bring class into it.

Despite not being a fan of said dogs, I’m much more likely to judge someone who makes rude snobby comments like that over the owners

Agree..People who are secure in themselves don't look down on others.

A ''Lord'' was jailed for wife beating/Class A's a few years ago.

Wonder if people would judge him as ''Lacking in class?''

It is the actions of the person that should be judged, not perceived 'Class'.

Poodles, yorkies to start, and I’m fairly sure there are more.

Not everyone wants a silly little dog.

Take it you know nothing actually about dogs. My granny had a poodle. It was huge and their original job was a hunting dog. (Which is why they often make terrible crosses for many domestic homes mixed equally energetic gun dog breeds) and just because the odd person puts a bow in a Yorkshire terriers hair doesn't take away from the fact they are incredibly brave little dogs who's origins were in rat catching, working down mines and even being used in the war.

JRTs or Border Terriers are cute and easy to train, not too big, can cope with 'proper' walks as well as little walks and older kids can walk them on the lead, if you are actually looking to get a dog OP.

And agree, posh people in our area have labs, spaniels or whippets.

Wow @Graciebobcat! Hilariously judgemental! I have a Cavapoo, a friends colleague was breeding from his with his father's poodle, I knew nothing about the 'trendiness' of the breed just knew that he was being bred in a family home by responsible dog lovers, the dog suits our lifestyle and is adorable. I previously owned a retriever, clearly my intellectual abilities declined and I chose an appropriate dog for my brain power

We have a rescue dog. He was bloody hard work (as a pup) but a bit better now. He is GORGEOUS and everyone who sees him says so!

The only reason to get a dog is because you want to care for the dog for the next 15 or so years. They are not a status symbol, they are a pet (and actually more like a family member).

I actually think the cocker poo types are incredibly cute and I can see why they’re popular. I’m just absolutely shocked at what people pay for them. It’s ridiculous. And it leads to puppy farming and thefts. My neighbours have two cocker spaniel and they’ve been the most placid dogs. The owners haven’t done much with them yet they’re so easy!’

I live in the country so regularly see the shooting set with their penchant for labs and spaniels. I think they’re pretty stupid people generally (despite their so called class). I have had three pedigree labs, all rescues, and the country set coo over my working type ones and mutter about how they’re more intelligent (nope they’re just more athletic and love to retrieve) and sneer at my choc lab for being chunkier. They say chocs are stupid, but she was way more intelligent than my other labs and would’ve been a fantastic assistance dog. I can’t bear this dog snobbery. Different people like different types of dogs, just like we fancy different people. I don’t agree with buying dogs for their name and I’d personally always have a rescue. Weirdly most of our dogs have found us and been free. When I was younger it was rare that anyone had a pedigree and nobody paid for them.

You see it in the horsey set too. Nowadays a lot of people want a well bred sport horse, but half of them can’t ride them!

PS our dog is little, he is gorgeous, as I said. Size is a matter of preference, some homes and gardens may be harder for a big dog.

Our was a mixed unknown breed rescue pup, so with no idea what breed he is we had to be ready for anything!

Thèse "désigner dogs" are just expensive mongrels.I once upset a friend when I posted on social media my thoughts on this but she spent a considerable amount of money on a cockerpoo.

Ironically I think I must be a middle class wanker as we have a Range Rover and a cavachon:well kind of.

Thé RR is my DH's company car (not entirely his choice) and the chavachon is mixed with a terrier;someone's precious female cavachon was defiled by the neighbours terrier and the resulting litter was turned over to a rescue.He's a funny looking little thing;people can never guess what he is and guess beagle cross but I can see the terrier (think Jack russell) and the King Charles cavalier in him

@MrsFluffyMuff

My sister paid £2500 for her cockapoo, and it was clear he had not been looked after properly whe she brought him home. He had fleas, mites, and worms and it cost another £100 just to treat that. And now he has terrible resource guarding issues which will need a behaviourist to sort out to ( also very expensive.) To be honest I think she's bitten off more than she can chew, cocker spaniels and poodles are both fairly high energy working dogs that need lots of physical and mental exercise. And I don't think the average Joe can provide that. I know my sister only got hers because she thought he looked cute, she didn't actually do any research into the breeds.

Sounds classic.

Only a very badly reared pup will have these parasites {All pups are born with roundworm, so these need regular treating}
But fleas and mites?

That is bad.
He probably was puppy farmed with little care.

We had an RSPCA pup, supposedly wormed...and to my surprise I saw wriggling proglottids on her bedding and on my hand after stoking her.

Went to the vets and the vet said ''We don't routinely treat for tape {worm} in young pups, only when symptoms are seen''

A pup with fleas could well have tapeworm.

Might be advisable to use an all spectrum wormer if the pup is old enough?

I agree with you. It’s been like bloody Crufts on the school run where we are. Not a private school but in a particularly wanky area so MC parents do try to out do each other etc on the school run. It’s. Bad enough that some people treat their kids like status symbols, now getting dogs involved too. Just waiting for someone to bring a Doberman along to eat the whole lots of the cocker/cava/whatever poos!

I've not noticed any more Cross breeds round here. Loads of French bulldogs and husky type dogs, which in my mind are not a dog for a normal family

JRTs or Border Terriers are cute and easy to train, not too big, can cope with 'proper' walks as well as little walks and older kids can walk them on the lead, if you are actually looking to get a dog OP.

This is exactly why we got our JRT. She's so clever and her recall is already amazing at 10 months. She can go days with just short walks and not care but equally can go all day. My 10 year old walks her. She's small enough that our small flat is still a fun playground for her where I think a big dog would get frustrated. She's basically a Doberman(she's Black and Tan) trapped in a tiny body!

I wouldn't spend a fortune on a designer crossbreed. I'd either go for a proper breed like a poodle through the kennel club, or just go for a mongrel from the rescue centre.

@oakleaffy whippets are a poor man's greyhound - literally - (lord of the manor got to have the big sighthounds and the staff had their smaller versions) Essentially the same thing though.

When you look at art from Romans to medieval Flemish and Italian, to 18th Century and onwards the dogs are clearly sighthouds - or spaniels - in most cases. So much history there. Our family (get the epitome of middle class cliche here- I wear my badge with resignation) always play 'hunt the whippet' if we go to an art gallery or NT house. There's always one. In our defence we also try to find a picture of a camel (usually there's one)

No surprise that class comes into this so much. Dogs are so fundamental to the evolution of humans and culture

I can't believe so many grown adults are discussing class like it is a real thing and trying to insult people by suggesting they are working class. This is much more embarrassing than someone buying a cute dog.

Let's be honest, in England everything is a class indicator.

That being said - these cross breeds are very lower middle class / working class.

Absolutely not upper middle class.

Personally I don't care about class but I do like to observe these kind of things.

@AwkwardPaws27

I'd actually disagree. I used to work in a central London veterinary practice. Established middle class tended to go for traditional working type breeds (spaniels and labradors, mostly), rather than designer crosses.

^ This.

Middle class dogs are labs, spaniels, and other 'proper' breeds.

@umpteennamechanges nails it- everything is linked to your class and social mores.
Breed of dog has always been linked to what kind of family you are.

I think they are more of a symbol of somebody who has more money than sense and doesn't mind risking keeping a puppy farm in business. To me a status symbol would be getting your pet from a sanctuary and paying them what you'd have paid a puppy farm.

Dog breeds have always had particular class associations, since antiquity.

Agree with pp that these poo mixes (which i rather like) are try-hard Boden wannabe upper middle class dogs.

I can't believe so many grown adults are discussing class like it is a real thing and trying to insult people by suggesting they are working class. This is much more embarrassing than someone buying a cute dog.

I'm as lower class as they come - single parent on a very low income but you can't pretend there isn't a lot of people who aspire to a certain look or stereotype or those that naturally conform to one. Due to my job, my previous jobs, my interests and they areas I've lived and now live I've observed it widely. I don't have any issue with or judgement about it, I find it quite interesting and also can be funny which is why the majority of British comedians use it in their sketches. I find it funny also that people deny it is something that exists in British culture.