My mom thinks she is so funny. DO I tell her she isn’t? Yesterday she came up front all excited about my latest fashion accessory, I know I am not sure why I need more then my collar but I guess I do. Anyway, she came up front and excitedly announced that I am officially a hot dog! I don’t know why I needed a scarf to punctuate this fact but whatever. Mom then produced this scarf that looks like it was designed by Jesse James and the crew of West Coast Choppers or Ed Hardy. It is black with flames all over it, hence the hot dog remark. Then as if one hot dog was not bad enough she produced a second scarf for Rome. Now she has 2 hot dogs. Well this whole phenomenon of the need to dress up your pet made me wonder how do other pet parents dress their four legged members of their family. Turns out this industry generates million of dollars annually, all so that people can dress there pets up as bumble bees and pirates on Halloween and as Gucci wearing, studded leather jacket wearing canines and felines the rest of time. I was online last night and I found everything from cowboy boots to swim wear for pets. I don’t know if I should feel offended by my new hot dog scarf or slighted that I didn’t get an astronaut suit complete with a full re-breathing set up in case I need a day off from the VOG.
Honestly, I really had no idea that there was so much I was missing out on. I was not excited when I got my new fancy behave collar but at least it doesn’t jingle like the 3 piece band that hangs around my neck on a regular basis. I also didn’t know that there are stores filled with every imaginable shaped animal made just to chew on. They also have hundreds of different types of treats. Sometimes it is better to be in the dark, I am allergic to beef and all sorts of other things so I get stuck with the HYPO-Allergenic adventure brought to me by Hill’s Science Diet. The other day my brother went to the giant pet super store and he said if he dies he wants it to be in the ball isle. There is a ball isle really? He said not only that but there are whole bins filled with treats and they have all sorts of different reality programs playing. They have the turtle channel, the bird channel, and two separate fish channels; fresh water and salt water for those interested in the more exotic things in life. They also have a furry critter channel, and you can watch rats sleep and guinea pigs eat. He also said they have a whole isle filled with pet clothing. He then said not to worry he didn’t see anything in my size, unless I decide to become a miniature poodle or some other small dog, I am safe. That is assuming my mom doesn’t decide to become the next Ralph Lauren and design island wear for the long legged canine set...
I wonder what I would look like in a nice crisp pair of linen pants and an a Aloha shirt and a little fedora, laying on the beach in a hammock, like you see in the Tommy Bahama catalogs..... just me wind blowing through my hair sipping a nice tall drink of water with a splash of carrot... Wait a minute, what am I saying. I am a dog, not a model for Gucci, geez Pike back to reality.
It is interesting though to think about of well dressed pets, waiting each day for their mom and dads to dress them out in the posh pet finery. I don’t want to say I feel neglected by not getting fawned over in the morning while getting dressed for the day. There is something to be said for just making sure I don’t wet my fur (sometime I fail at that). Maybe my mom does know best and realizes that despite my abilities sometime less is more and in my case that is probably true. I am glad that my “hot dog” scarf is all I have to contend with, I have so many other things to think about each day, choosing what to wear would most likely be to much for me. I have wondered when I see all of our clients dressed in normal clothes, why my parents never dress like everyone else. Everyday they put on the same thing the only choice they have is what color is clean and out the door they go. There is a simplicity to this type of lifestyle that is nice and when you consider the cost of regular clothes vs. scrubs maybe my parents are on to something. My mom has on red scrubs today and while red can be an alarming color, she wears it well. Maybe I could loan her my flaming scarf as an accessory then she could be one cool cat. RUFF!
