Question for owners of rescue pets

[Anonymous]

We live near a dog park so people are often walking by with their dogs. My kids sometimes say something to passersby, like "your dog is adorable!" And 9 times out of 10 the response is a variation of "thanks, he's a rescue."

Do the rescue groups tell people to answer that way? My kids don't really understand what it means (or at least they didn't at first), so I don't think it's a flex to look like saviors or something. Is it like a subtle advertisement for rescuing pets? Or defensive, like not wanting to look like they support bad breeders? Just curious why this is almost always the response.

[Anonymous]

I do it as a kind of precursor I guess? Like I'm not exactly how old she is or her exact breed.

But no, it's not flex or judgy. Just fact.

[Anonymous]

who rescue dogs usually, imo, feel very strongly about adopt don’t shop. So, they are probably just trying to show you that rescue dogs need love too.

[Anonymous]

It's conversation. Also people are proud to adopt from shelters and rescues - and I think should be.

It doesn't have to be complicated. Tell your kids that they mean the pet was homeless one time, but now they are in a home where they are very loved.

[Anonymous]

For me, it's not wanting people to think I support breeding. That's it. Just a clarification of something that means a lot to me.

[Anonymous]

Partly it’s because I can’t answer the breed. But mostly I feel like it’s an opportunity to educate the public that there are many wonderful animals available to adopt/rescue.

[Anonymous]

Some want to be worshipped for being saviors, I guess. Most are just using it as shorthand for "mutt of indeterminate ancestry" which is the exact type of dog most likely to elicit "your dog is adorable" comments.

I think it's strange that you let your kids yell comments at perfect strangers and then spend time dissecting whether those people deserve to be judged for their responses when they've said nothing rude.

[Anonymous]

As someone who cares deeply about rescuing, I normally abhor people who insist on pointing out that their dog is a rescue. It often very much feels like virtue signaling.

That said, in this case, as it's a response to the "adorable" exclamation, I think it's simply a continuation of the conversation. The dog owner is agreeing that their dog is adorable and adding, isn't it cool that he/she is an adorable mutt?!

[Anonymous]

It’s because they don’t know the breed details. Cute leads to “what kind of dog is that?”

[Anonymous]

I have a rescue and no, I never answer this way. It wouldn't occur to me to mention it unless someone asked. I also don't judge people who get pets from breeders (assuming a responsible breeder, some of them are terrible but there are also shelters that are bad). In fact I think if we get another pet after this one passes, we may go to a breeder because I've developed allergies as I aged and I think I'd do better with a more hypoallergenic pet.

[Anonymous]

I have a beautiful dog. She was a plain little brown lump of fur when I adopted her as a puppy and she grew into a gorgeous dog that everyone comments on.

I say "she's a rescue" to pre-empt the constant "What kind of dog is she?" questioning that I get because of her looks. She isn't any kind of dog; she's a mutt. Her genetics testing revealed some lab, some gsd, some aussie cattle dog, some "terrier," and mutt history. That takes forever to explain so I just say "she is a rescue" and that usually nips the conversation I don't have time to have in the bud.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As someone who cares deeply about rescuing, I normally abhor people who insist on pointing out that their dog is a rescue. It often very much feels like virtue signaling.

That said, in this case, as it's a response to the "adorable" exclamation, I think it's simply a continuation of the conversation. The dog owner is agreeing that their dog is adorable and adding, isn't it cool that he/she is an adorable mutt?!

It's not. I honestly don't want people thinking I bought a pet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone who cares deeply about rescuing, I normally abhor people who insist on pointing out that their dog is a rescue. It often very much feels like virtue signaling.

That said, in this case, as it's a response to the "adorable" exclamation, I think it's simply a continuation of the conversation. The dog owner is agreeing that their dog is adorable and adding, isn't it cool that he/she is an adorable mutt?!

It's not. I honestly don't want people thinking I bought a pet.

That is virtue signaling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As someone who cares deeply about rescuing, I normally abhor people who insist on pointing out that their dog is a rescue. It often very much feels like virtue signaling.

That said, in this case, as it's a response to the "adorable" exclamation, I think it's simply a continuation of the conversation. The dog owner is agreeing that their dog is adorable and adding, isn't it cool that he/she is an adorable mutt?!

It's not. I honestly don't want people thinking I bought a pet.

That is virtue signaling.

Nope. I don't go out of my way to tell people to rescue. But when someone believes I bought a pet, yes, I will correct their erroneous information. Correcting bad information isn't virtue signaling, sorry.

[Anonymous]

It’s 100 percent virtue signaling, unless you ask what breed the dog is, and then it makes sense.