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A little venting about Online Attitudes

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Member Since 02/01/2013     Barked: Tue Feb 12, '13 1:57pm PST  Hey everyone, So my wife & I are adjusting well with our new Akita pup (Koga), and though things have not been perfect they have been what I'd call "pretty darn good." What's driving me nuts is- any time I look for information on the internet being inundated by the same things over and over from people... where, I hate to say it, but it seems like they have the "SQUIRREL!" mentality and can't bother to read past a few key words (since my puppy is equally ADD but also knows left from right... I think that actually makes him smarter than a lot of folks). I would not be saying this on this site if I had found it rampant here (not saying it doesn't exist here... but I've seen less). The MOMENT you say Akita you get bad attitudes from people who will basically quote the first thing you'd see if you were to Google "what to know about Akita puppies." That provides zero help. What I've found is there is a disconnect between INFORMATION and EXPERIENCE, and many of us are trying to bridge that gap only to be met with the same old stupid f***ing admonishments about neighbor kids and whatever else. Point received, now let's move on to what's happening here... in REALITY. For example- while researching I was trying to get info on the proper discipline for an akita puppy. The question I found happened to be from someone who's dog came from a less desirable source and the usual internet derpa-derp happened putting that person on the defensive about the breeder, the age of the puppy etc without ANSWERING THE QUESTION. Maybe they were trying to make a "point" (these "points" are often less "points" than a simple regurgitation of information though and a snide attitude designed to make the poster feel superior). Our pup came to us at 9 weeks (picked him at 8 and had to wait a week to get him), came from a reliable breeder etc, so none of this gave me any insight into degrees of discipline. Another issue I found this on was "tethering." People see the word "tether" TURN OFF their brain and explain that tethering is a cruel practice and then leap to about A MILLION assumptions just based off of that word. 9/10 times the person asking isn't asking if it's cool to chain their dog up and leave them outside... do you really think the a-hole that does that is going to bother to come online and ask? No, of course not. 90% of the time the person is a very compassionate person who simply feels guilty for leaving a dog outside on a tether for 30 minutes. Not some monster who wants to chain up a dog and walk away. And, in that circumstance, the answer is that NO it isn't cruel as a short time occasional thing. Heck, your dog can learn to work & be more dextrous on the lead without it descending into a constant alpha/beta struggle that way. But most of these people on the internet won't even read far enough to get to that- see one word, jump to conclusion... where's the clicker and my treat? Then there are the people who simply don't live in reality AT ALL. There is ideal and then there is realistic. I think we all could strive to be closer to "ideal" in a number of ways, but in the mean time most of us make do with the way things are. Yuppies talking about super pricey dog food, people claiming you can't work an actual ::gasp:: job and own a dog, it goes on and on. Thankfully I'm getting to the point of just skipping ALL those kinds of posts (because, and I mean this specifically to you if you are that type of person, F*** that), but it is still obnoxious. People do not seek information in order to give you your "morally superior" cookie, they seek information because-- surprise surprise-- they WANT INFORMATION. /endrant my posts [notify]

Cobain ADC,- SGDC, CGN More Bored- Collies     Barked: Tue Feb 12, '13 3:54pm PST  Sounds like you may have had an encounter with Yahoo Answers? Definitely a lot of unhelpful answers seen through there. A lot of know-it-all children as well...who don't know as much as they think. While I admit as a contributor, I can get a little preachy with some issues, the things you seem to be most concerned with aren't something I'd say warrants such responses. I have found Dogster to be quite a good place to get respectful information. There are a lot of Akita owners on here that contribute frequently, maybe if you make an account and post specific questions in the behaviour and training forum, they can help you out As long as you're not asking or doing something undesirable or ridiculous (which again, I don't think you are from reading your post), then you should receive some helpful thought out answers. Best of luck. I'm sorry you've had such trouble with people on other sites. Oh and I highly suggest making a profile, because I'm sure we'd all love to see some puppy pics~ Edited by author Tue Feb 12, '13 3:56pm PST my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Colt A cute little- devil.     Barked: Tue Feb 12, '13 5:22pm PST  I've never personally been the victim of internet nastiness, probably because I lurked on the dog side of the internet as a kid for years before my parents let me actually post. I guess I figured out how people react to certain words. I think its one thing when someone posts, say for example, "I chain up my dog," and leaves it at that. I don't think nasty remarks are warranted or helpful, but I understand why people feel the need to post them. But why, when you make it clear in that same post that you tether out of necessity and not for long periods of time, why do they need to tell you how bad neglectful chaining is? It's obvious that you already know... (yes, my dog gets tied up, and he's very well taken care of, thank you). One thing to consider is that most of the people on the internet are terrible writers. Sometimes what they mean to sound informative and helpful comes across as arrogant. That's why I think emoticons are a valuable tool for the grammar of modern internet authors But honestly, it can happen to all writers, not just bad ones. On the other hand, there are also just a lot of people who try to look more intelligent than they are, and my hands are not so clean I'm afraid. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Sonja It's all about- me.     Barked: Tue Feb 12, '13 9:23pm PST  OMG...would LOVE Akita puppy pis!!!!! my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

The Boys The Three- Stooges.     Barked: Tue Feb 12, '13 10:44pm PST  I quit another site because all of their answers seemed preachy and bitchy rather than helpful. I said something because I felt that they made people afraid to ask for help or advice and holy crap did they jump down my throat. I found dogster soon after that and have always found that more often than not people here want to help. There are differing opinions but you usually get some useful information. Both my kids have to tether their dogs because they are runners and escape artists. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Nare Woo-woo- whineybutt     Barked: Wed Feb 13, '13 12:00am PST  I go to school from 7am - 2pm and work from 4pm - 9pm. Factor in the 30 minutes there and another 30 minutes back, each. Man i must be horrible to subject my dogs to hours of no supervision, meaning they can chase the cats, play, chew and pee on whatever they like... Not that they do, but the opportunity is there lol. i will honestly say that if i post something, i don't read the replies unless you're.. well, like here, Cobain. I've seen her post around a lot and she is sensible and knows what shes talking about. You've gotta prove yourself before I think about listening to one word you say, in other words. There are lots of crazies on the internet. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Tuck CHIC CH. Tuck- CDX TDX RN VNEX- TDI SAR-W3     Barked: Wed Feb 13, '13 10:22am PST  tethering is cruel? Really? You mean attaching a puppy to your belt in order to monitor it while you go about house chores? Why is this cruel? my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Sonja It's all about- me.     Barked: Wed Feb 13, '13 1:32pm PST  I meant "pic's" I am NOT interested in puppy pis my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Member Since 02/02/2013     Barked: Wed Feb 13, '13 3:33pm PST  Guilty as charged. I have this peeve about dog parents giving advice to other dog parents that their food has too much protein. I mean, it really bugs me. And I can get quite preachy about protein. And I guess if I think about it, the post can be construed as arrogant. But you know, this is the Internet. You're dealing with a jillion people of a jillion different personalities all putting their unprofessional 2 cents in. I'm willing to bet you can't put all these people in one room without a bloody fight breaking out in less than 15 seconds. So, I'm just thankful that I can actually just ignore whatever kookoo things they put online. Nobody can offend anybody unless somebody chooses to be offended. Ok, did this post sound too preachy? my posts [notify]

Addie CL1- CL2 NAJ if it moves,- I'll chase it!     Barked: Wed Feb 13, '13 8:51pm PST  I understand fully, as addie is half pit bull. I get a lot of nasty assumptions, even in real life. People are really not generally smart, or have much common sense. My best advice, though hard at times, is to do your best to ignore it, seek out those wh oreally try to help and do your best for you and your dog, that's all that really matters. There are some good people out there, too.. you just have to look a little harder my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

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