Do you spoil your dog?

[thevampirelestat]

I was looking for dog chews online tonight and ended up ordering a treat box from Betty & Butch (www.bettyandbutch.co.uk/collections/festive-deli-boxes/products/rudolphs-boredom-box) for a Christmas present for Ddog. Sent a link to my friend who also has a dog who responded: "Jesus, you spoil her".

Now I'll admit that it's a little posh as dog chews go, but I wouldn't have thought of it as spoiling her (that would have been if I'd ordered the 100 quid memory foam dog bed I was looking at the other day that she definitely doesn't need). And, she does have a few different jackets and jumpers, and sleep in the bed with me, and get fussed over, which I'm also told is spoiling her, although I think is just natural?

So, what constitutes spoiling a dog to you, and do you spoil yours?

Dog is thoroughly spoilt, all day every day. He has coats (won’t wear them, but they are ready for when he is elderly and might appreciate them), an organic cot mattress, duvets and blankets, a million different harnesses, collars and leads to fit to which kind of walk we’re doing, expensive chews and treats, the best food we can afford, warm towels when he gets wet on a walk and a rub down and massage every day. He also has a sofa to himself. He is absolutely worth it though, and despite the spoiling is actually a lovely boy!

Yes! We absolutely adore him, he's honestly the most wonderful dog and as the saying goes, such a good boy!

Mine is pretty spoilt - I sell natural dog treats as part of my business so my dog gets to be taste tester

He also sleeps in the bed.
He goes to my in-laws while I work and sleeps in his own bed by the fire all day
He has numerous coats and harnesses.
He has his own collection of blankets to snuggle under and his own teddy bear

Spoiling a dog to me would be to allow it to resource guard, run up to any dog or person it liked when on walks, feed it unsuitable food so it was overweight and not insist on basic manners (not going through a door first, not barking incessantly when outside if told to stop etc).

Decent quality food and treats are just that to a dog. Food. Same with bedding etc. what you want to spend on it is up to you, there’s no Right or Wrong, Spoiled or Not Spoiled as long as it’s suitable for a dog’s overall health.

Thanks to you my hound is also getting a Rudolph Boredom box under the tree

Good food, treats and a comfy bed are not spoiling - it just means you're a dog centered house

Like we are

Dog gets their needs meet so they have a lovely life

DDog1 & I are currently enjoying our post-breakfast cuddle ( he’s sprawled over my lap and I cannot move) while DDog2 lies asleep on the merry foam bed I bought for the older one.
They are both well mannered but thoroughly spoilt because they are my pets and need to be petted. 😍

Yes we have 2 & they are spoilt by me, although don’t sleep on our bed- mainly because there’s not enough space 😁 when I speak to the little one and remind him I love him, my DH often says in passing ‘yes he knows’ 😄 they are rescues so I can’t help it. The big one is spoilt also but he’s 19, blind, dead and arthritic. No one can deny him anything in that state, even in the street he breaks people’s hearts & they come over and hug him just on his walkies!! I challenge anyone to refuse him a treat. Not possible x

Deaf* not dead! What a typo!! X

I used to order from Betty and But h, if not call them posh in fact I think they are pretty fairly priced for natural dog chews, however ddog turned her nose up at every single thing in her last order. I definitely think she is spoiled. Plus she is lying here curled up at my feet under the duvet rather than banished to her bed (which goes permanently unused)

I don't let my little dog do naughty things, which would be my definition of being spoilt, but I suppose she's spoilt in that she sleeps in my bed and gets babied and snuggled constantly. I don't think buying them good quality food or beds is spoiling - it's caring for their needs.

Ours are outside working dogs but they could be described as spoilt, as they have turned into tyrants if we dare deviate from the routine.
Their two daily walks happen like clockwork or else there are accusing stares from the kennel, plus grunting, huffing and the occasional yip from the adolescent pup.
They come in for cuddles, play and treats in the evenings, and woe betide us if things don’t happen in the correct order, or someone thinks someone else gets more cuddles.
“Ruled by dogs” DH laments, as he trudges out into the wintry rain.

Yep, spoilt brat here.

Sleeps in our bedroom ✔️
Expensive memory foam bed ✔️
Expensive grain free diet ✔️
Expensive hair cut
Own chair & own space on sofa ✔️
Regular cheese treats ✔️

She says we don't spoil her at all.

I always feel really guilty!
They are not allowed on furniture or beds ( unless there is fireworks or thunder)!
I couldn't even tell you their birthday dates. One is September and one is November. They don't have parties or presents.
They don't have toys. Because they have zero interest, apart from tennis balls on walks.
They don't get presents from Santa. I do treat them to goose for their dinner on Christmas day, but that's it.
But.
They have 4 memory foam beds to choose from. They are raw fed. They have three walks every day, a beach walk off lead, a woodland walk off lead and a street walk on lead. They have holidays in my campervan virtually every weekend. They are groomed, loved, cherished.

Not spoilt, just loved completely by us all.

They’re rarely left alone, get lots of fuss, walks, lots of land to exercise and play on. They have lots of toys, good food, chews, a choice of beds but mainly choose the sofa. We celebrate their birthdays and they currently have an advent calendar. Don’t ask how much we’ve spent on their Xmas presents.😬😂 Some people have said they’re spoilt but they’re lovely, well behaved, playful but very loving. I couldn’t care less if others think they’re spoilt, we love them and give them the best life we can.

We have two and they're beautiful girls.

Spoiled rotten for sure.

They have favourite food and dh often has to go to several shops to get the right one.

They are fussy about treats.

They sleep in my bed. They don't have a bed of their own anymore as they don't use one. They sleep on the sofa, armchair or my bed. Often they break into ds's room and nap on his bed too.

I WFH and they have an armchair in my office (which only one sleeps on as the other curls up behind my back on the office chair both acting as a hot water bottle and giving me scoliosis all at once)

They know what time their walk is at. Dog 1 takes herself off to bed so I know its my bedtime too.

If we pet dog 1, dog 2 has her paws out tapping our hands to remind us to pet her too.

But they're the best.

Mine has a cracker from Fortnum and Mason for Christmas.
He’s well behaved though so not spoilt from that point of view

My dog probably is. I can’t help it though, we love him so much and toys and treats make him happy. We adopted him and he has just bought so much joy to our home. Whatever we give him is nothing in comparison to what he gives us.

Whatever we give him is nothing in comparison to what he gives us.

That’s so true.

Yes, even more so now they are elderly.

1. Never ever left alone
2. They have leather sofa, drawing room basket ( queen feather duvet and cover inside the basket), deck basket, study basket and they now sleep on their own blankets on human beds ( dh takes one and I take the other, separate sleeping due to dh snoring, the deaf dog goes with dh).
3. Organic meat from the butchers
4. Run of large garden including stream / river for swimming
5. Apres swimming fluffy towels ( dh once found house guest had grabbed the dog towel, guest was told it was the ‘dogs’ and towel was swapped for a somewhat crunchier variety).

6 air con is switched on when Boxer shows slightest need from heat, similarly wood burner is logged up and ready to go overnight during winter, spaniel paws at wood basket if cold , they then jostle for pole position with humans firmly on the second row.

1. Don’t even want to think of the tens of thousands spent on electric gates, fences etc to make sure they are safe, not stolen or running next door to convince nice but gullible neighbours that they are poor, starved orphans in a storm. And every time we move, we have to do the same ( moved 3 times in 11 years).

We adore them though and they make my life so much happier.

Only one of them. I can explain.
Corgi 1 is a ridiculously posh, ridiculously expensive pedigree (I didn't buy him. They are technically my mothers but I live around the corner and walk/look after them a lot). He seems to have come out of the womb in total self-assured knowledge that he is royalty. He is pretty indulged. He requires indulging. He's incredibly beautiful, incredibly intelligent and incredibly entitled. Because he's also very sweet and affectionate its quite hard not to pander to him. He is never aggressive to anyone or any dog but my God he has high standards and expectations. And though he is hilarious, you better not laugh at him. He'll know. And he'll be hurt.

Corgi 2 is kind of unspoilable. She is a rescue failed mother from a puppy mill. She has no expectations of anything and though she is coming out of her shell more and more, still doesn't seem to think she is allowed to play inside the house. She's getting happier and more confident every day, her tail is up now whereas it was down when we got her, and she now barks, whereas she was totally silent before. But I don't think its possible to spoil her at this point.

Here they are. As you can probably tell the ridiculous pedigree boy is the gorgeous tricolour, and the rescue is the very cute but slightly wonky-faced red and white. A few people have told us the boy is Crufts material, but to be honest he'd be disqualified for pterodactyl-screeching the second he wasn't the focus of attention. (He is getting a bit better about this now he's 1).

Yes, definitely. My hairdresser was near to Betty & Butch and I always used to get him stuff in there. He is spoilt but I don’t care, I love him so much and he brings us so much joy

Yes spoilt bitch here too but its mostly time & companionship spoilt, she is happy to be left but I am getting more reluctant to be going out and leaving her in the evening.

Does sleep on the human bed/sofa and thinks the dog beds, of which there are 3, are for the grumpy cat Love her to bits.

Ours is not spoilt he is just treated as an equal member of the family . He eats good quality food , has his own double bed , goes to the hairdresser every 4 weeks and gets lovely walks . Our son ( adult ) signed him up for a monthly subscription box which he thoroughly enjoys and he gets Christmas and birthday presents .