Clothes, Dogs and Fashion Sense

dogs, dress-up,clothngI have always considered dressing dogs in people-like clothes to be degrading and silly.  I’ll admit that I’ve seen (and enjoyed) some photos of dogs dressed up for Halloween that were really cute, and I marveled at the patience these dogs display in sitting still for a photo.  But to dress a dog in doll-like clothes and trot it around on a regular basis is…silly.  And I have always doubted that the dogs like it, so it must be something forced on them.

dog,clothes,
Cochise, spiffed up for visiting.

Accessories are another matter.  Even my own Cochise has shown a fondness for adding a splash of color when we go out to make our rounds at Christmas time.  But this does not restrict his movement or get snagged on things the way clothes do.

And protective clothes are an exception.  Our friends at Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary often put coats on their wards to help keep their aged bones warm in winter, but these are special made to conform to the shape of dogs bodies and to allow free movement.  And the dogs to seem to enjoy the protection from the cold.

It was, therefore, rather surprising to me to see Cochise’s reaction to being stuffed into a Tee shirt after he came in from the cold, shivering violently:

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A Fondness for People Clothes?

I offered, several times, to remove the shirt for him and he refused.  He kept it on all that day, all night, and most of the next day.  When I did finally take it off, he actually resisted; stiffening his legs to make it difficult to take them out of the shirt sleeves.  But by this time it needed laundering.  I’ll have Marie keep an eye out for a Vols shirt at the Goodwill.

Now that I’ve had personal experience with a dog that actually LIKES wearing clothes (although I suspect his objective was to keep warm) I have to reassess my opinion of people who dress their Yorkies in a tutu and hair bows.  Kids like to play dress-up, maybe dogs do too.  What experience do you have with dog clothes?

4 thoughts on “Clothes, Dogs and Fashion Sense”

  1. I think it depends on the dog, as well as necessity. We had a German Shepherd who absolutely refused to wear even a bandanna. However, when he got very old he lost a lot of fur due to a skin condition, and on cold and snowy days he began to grudgingly accept a sort of sweater my Mom made for him. The dog across the street (a little terrier mix) seems to love wearing his jackets and sweaters and happily sits to get dressed. And my son – well, he hated clothes when he was a toddler and would take any opportunity to tear them off and run around naked. Eventually he learned to like clothes. 🙂

    1. Thanks Lisa! I had a niece like that once: of she was quiet for more than 32 seconds she’d probably come racing into the room stark naked. They finally broke her of it once she graduated from college and had to look for a job.

  2. My mom was afraid when she sent me to school that I would take my clothes off during class. Even in winter, I would run around in just my underwear – outside. Luckily it was Mississippi, but it still got very cold there. That’s what you get with 9th out of 9.

    1. I had a step-niece who tended to flush her clothes down the toilet at grade school. Strange girl! 9th of 9, goodness that’s quite a procession. I was 1st of 4: the responsible one. Fortunately my siblings weren’t predisposed to exhibitionism. Thanks for sharing, Dianne!

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