mn hq, is it really wise to have topics that are deamed so agressive/scary that most members don't want to post there?

[wannaBe]

have just read a thread in the doghouse topic, and posts from a few posters saying that they never post there due to the agressive responses there.

Now, I know that hiding a topic could always be an option, but is it really in the spirit of mn to have separate topics that are deamed so unwelcoming/agressive that few posters actually want to post there?

I can of course see the need for certain sections, conception/sn/relationships, but it just seems against everything that mn stands for to let a topic exist that is frequented only by a few individuals while the majority feel that the responses there are agressive enough to warrant not feeling comfortable there.

Why can't we just go back to having a pets topic?

Empusa
Apologies, I got your name wrong earlier.

My point is, that this "How dare you" attitude is one that has come up in the past on the Dogshouse topic.

How dare you put your rehome your cat because your child is allergic to it

How dare you have your dog pts because it bit your child

How dare you say that you would not save a dog from a fire

and on and on

I have yet to see a thread where the OP looks for advice on rehoming a puppy and is told, "Oh, poor you. So sorry it didn't work out, but here are some ideas on how to proceed".

It is more likely to be "FFS, what did you get the dog for?"

if you really love animals how can you bear to own them and keep them as the playthings of your affection? I can sort of understand having working animals, but where is the dignity in a cat or dog or whatever having to dance (metaphorically)for you to ensure that you are affectionate enough to feed it?

it is a profoundly unequal relationship, and you sound a bit like slaveowners who claimed their slaves just loved living in the slavequarters and how well they treated them etc etc

just saying, like

Ooh, chibi, you minx you

Actually my old dog was a herding dog, he'd probably have tried to herd me out

Either way, he was my responsibility.

Empusa I would just like to know where you rate this responsibility when it becomes incompatible with your responsibility to your children, for example where you may save the dog (as your responsibility dictates) at the risk of making your children motherless.

And BTW I am not presuming the dog would be saved first, in this scenario, just that by (for example) going back into a burning building for the dog you are risking injury to yourself to your children's detriment (to put it mildly)

I am also speaking as someone who would definitely have to be physically restrained from saving my baby dog from a burning building (but don't have kids so no Sophie's Choice [smile[)

Wannabe I havent made this about any poster/s - I didnt start the thread

Chibi that's a bloody good point, actually. Fortunately mine was a homeless puss so my conscience is mostly clear, but I'd never thought of it like that. Although I suspect I am her slave...

chibi My dog was elderly with cancer, if we hadn't homed him and paid for his treatment he'd have died slowly and painfully. I don't think that really compares to keeping him as a slave.

Some people view pets as being on a par with people. Some people view pets as being on a par with a mobile phone or ipod.

People who have chosen to take on an animal and then want to get rid of it because it's inconvenient or they aren't willing to put the effort into training it. Threads where people say it's the pet owners choice if they want to get their pet neutered and how it might be nice for their children to see kittens/puppies born when they have no idea what they are going to do with those animals and there are already shelters full to bursting with abandoned pregnant animals. pups and kittens. People posting that they think their cat might be pregnant when they've let it out un-neutered for months. People posting that they think it's better for an animal to have one litter and that they couldn't get their pet neutered as it was too young who say they feel attacked when they are given links that show that there is no evidential benefit and their pet can be neutered.

Threads where people come on asking about what dog to get when they've been turned down by shelters because they are planning on leaving it alone all day, and are annoyed when people point out that dogs being left can lead to destructive behaviour or uncontrolled barking that will piss of their neighbours. The people pointing out these things have usually spend their time and efforts trying to find homes or shelters for dogs that are no longer wanted because of these very issues. When it's suggested that the shelter might be right they are being 'attacked'.

Threads where people come on and suggest that a dog that has shown aggression to a child should be automatically put down rather than being rehomed responsibly to an adult-only environment that is aware of it's history and will work on the issue. Even when this is what the owner has stated they want. People who call those who suggest responsible rehoming 'mad' and irresponsible and suggest that they are 'insane' and are risking children's lives.

chibi, have a

I would never post in dog house, i brought my dogs from the local paper, from what i've read i would be hunted down and hung for it.

People who decide they don't want their pups because they "can't cope" are the types that are flamed. One dog lover on here had a c section, was a single parent and still coped with 3 dogs. As she stated on a thread where some twat couldn't cope with their cat. Who can't cope with a cat?!

I think in a specialised area of a forum this is bound to happen. The comparison to Tiktok is quite a good one, but in her area of expertise, her "clients" need to be treated gently, with care and respect as they are going through vulnerable times. This comes through in her posts.
I imagine that the group who are being talked about here have the ideal personalities and amount of passion and dedication to be able to (metaphorically or literally) fight tooth and nail for the animals they help, who are in their care because of what their ex-owners have put them through.
Every forum I've ever been on has its fair share of characters. In RL it's possible to go about daily business without coming across people like this, and if we do, we can choose whether to spend time with them or not. You don't have that luxury on a forum.
It's a great pity some people feel they can't ask for advice in the Dh section (and I admit to namechanging for advice in the past - but not just in the Dh, I've found a few areas on mn to be, erm, feisty) but the way this thread has turned out is horrible. The op may not have intended it to become a witch hunt, but that's what it has become. This is not mn at its best.

oh sure empusa

and when old joe was too tired to pick cotton anymore, why, we still fed him and let him stay in the quarters with the other slaves

he was family you see

at jodie Now, if there were Liz Jones, Richard Littlejohn, your dog and a child in the fire, in which order would you get them out?

I bloody wish my dog was slave-like. The ignorant fool can't even make a decent cup of tea

chibi

This might've become a spot of a witch-hunt but to be honest, if it makes people check and examine their behaviour, and consequently the DH becomes a USEFUL, HELPFUL forum where dogs might BENEFIT from it because people are advised WELL, then that's gotta a bit good thing in the long run...

Oh God would you leave Liz or Richard to burn cheria. Good question!

Could I leave them both to die horrible flamy deaths?

Ok Chibi, whatever you like. I know that we improved his life, and I know our care for him wasn't conditional on anything he did. What you think is neither here nor there.

Cheria under those circumstances I think me, my child and my dog would be hiding the can of paraffin and the box of matches

i am being tongue in cheek but pet ownership does mystify me a bit, it seems like a relationship predicated on dominance

admittedly, you could say the same thing about parent-child relationships, certainly no one's children asked to be born, but at least children (theoretically) grow up and have some sort of agency within a relationship, are able to set the terms and ultimately leave the relationship if they choose to

fido or felix can't

(well maybe felix can)

Puffin
There is something between the my-dogs-are-my-family and my-dog-is-my-possession.

I share your abhorrence of irresponsible dog owners - I started a thread once to rant about my bloody neighbour who let her dog have puppies, even though the dog was just 10 mths and then left them outside all day. I ranted about her not looking for good homes, and I raged when she took both the puppies and their mother back to the pound where they had got the dog the year before.

We have not spoken since, because I was so upset at her treatment of the dog.

But some people are asking for ADVICE and being flamed.

at cats as 'the playthings of your affection'

Most cats I know come and go as they please and only interact with humans on their terms.