By Olivia Gelbaugh
While the great debate of how dogs should wear pants seemed to be a thing of the past, the question was never fully answered. So, I set out to see how the students of Northern High School felt on the issue.
How dogs should wear pants was a Facebook and internet debate of 2015, that involved mostly adults, which left me to wonder how a different generation felt on the issue. The image itself was created by Norbert K., and was shared onto Facebook from Twitter by Jared Keller, which was noted by The Washington Post. The article also mentioned that the image was created because Norbert had seen a dog wearing pants on its hind legs and thought they should wear them on four legs since they technically have no arms. After he posted his image, it went viral in just 2 hours, sparking one of the largest internet arguments.
On Reddit, there is a huge argument on the issue. Ryancarp3 is a user who feels very strongly that the pants should be worn solely on the hind legs of the dog. They make the point that when a dog wears a sweater, it is put on the front legs, making it only logical that the pants go on the back legs, the same way a human would wear the pants. In addition to this, they argued that when a dog wears a diaper it is worn on just the hind legs, and since pants are supposed to cover underwear, it makes sense for them to go on the back legs. Ryancarp3 closed out their argument with the idea that it would be impossible for a dog to wear pants on all 4 legs without suspenders, as they would fall off.
On the opposite side of the argument, the user Nepene posts, “See what a dog who runs through snow looks like. Look at the sadness in their eyes, their legs caked with snow, their belly covered in more. Would you really deny a dog the warmth and comfort of full leg jeans.” The user also added pictures of sad dogs in the snow to try and drive home her argument.
Another user, Hypranormal, shares that pants are supposed to cover the legs, and since a dog has four legs, the pants should cover all four legs. They close their argument out with the idea that when a dog is seen wearing shoes, it usually wears them on all four feet, making it the only logical response to have the pants cover all four legs.
At our own school, students have their own arguments. Kale Laurey believes that the pants should be worn on all four legs. He shares that, “The front legs are still legs and pants directly cover the legs.” While he believes this statement to be true, Laurey does admit that he has never seen a dog wear pants like this, as well as that this style may constrict the movement and range of motion of the dog.
Another student, Josh Cook, believes the opposite to be true, and says that pants should only be worn on the back legs. His argument is, “When a dog stands up, it stands on the back 2 legs like a person.” Unlike Laurey, Cook can admit to seeing a dog wear pants the way he believes they should be worn, although he has not seen it for a while. He is, however, concerned about a dog wearing pants at all, as it may cause chaffing or an allergic reaction.
Overall, in a poll, students at the school see both opinions, and some even argue that dogs should not be wearing pants at all. These students believe that putting clothing on animals at all is inhumane and not fair to them. When it comes to the overall opinions of students, it seems to be the overwhelming majority that believe dogs should wear their pants on just the back legs, but those who believe the opposite share the same opinions as those in the reddit posts and Laurey.
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