While reading this article I found
myself really engaged, nodding my head and agreeing to some things while
utterly disagreeing with others; I found this article to be particularly
interesting because Martin not only gives us both sides of the industry but
also some statistics, such as Americans spending $55 billion on their pets in
2010, and how the pet industry actually grew throughout the recession. It was fascinating
to learn about some of the luxury items that people buy for their pets. I will
be the first to admit, I have two dogs and I do buy them the occasional bone, chew
toy, and sweater. I’m not ashamed, I love my pets, but I’m not going to show
them my affection by buying them outrageously overpriced dog cupcakes, aromatherapy
candles, or “vitamin-infused ‘ mountain-spring water’”. Maybe people buy these
things because they want their pet to feel like a member of the family, I
totally understand this, but is it really necessary to buy them overpriced
organic dog food; whilst comparing the all-natural vs processed dog food, Tony
Buffington, professor of veterinary nutrition at Ohio State, stated “if you put
them all in a plain brown bag, you’d probably be fine with any one of them.” If
this is really true, then why spend the extra money? Why would I waste hundreds
of dollars a year buying my dogs’ pheasant, trout, salmon, duck, yak’s mil,
venison, and organic vegetables when I don’t even buy those things for myself? I
could easily find a better use for the money. What about when my dogs get a
little overweight? Should I splurge and buy them their own personal treadmills?
The fact that they even exist frightens me a little, the line between man and
dog has been crossed, but more importantly, how far will society be willing to
go before realizing this?
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