Concerning the Gendering of Canines

The Continental Cut

A Standard Poodle checked in at work today for daycare. This Poodle (Peyton) and I are buddies, so when my coworker said that he didn't like Poodles, I had to wonder why. When I asked, he said that they were too feminine. You guys, it's a dog. What in the world makes one dog more feminine than another? "They're ugly and have those stupid, high maintenance cuts," my coworker said. They're high maintenance. That's what makes them feminine? What? Ladies and gentlemen, that is an unfair assumption and an incorrect one at that. Let's have a discussion, okay? Poodles are a highly intelligent dog. They were bred for intense hunting and retrieving purposes. That show cut is a dramatized version of the same cut used to protect the vital organs from cold water. But despite all of that bad-assery, people are convinced that the breed is effeminate because it requires a bit more care and attention than other breeds.

Are women supposed to require more upkeep? Is that mandatory? I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm doing it right, then. While we're at it, why is this femininity such a bad thing? Why is it that being a "girly" breed is such an undesirable thing and why don't people seem to be bothered by gendering breeds as "masculine?" Let's look at the Labrador Retriever, shall we? The should (ideally) be athletic. They make excellent hunting dogs. Relatively low maintenance (Lab owners, please remember to brush out your dogs). My coworker loves Labs. He's never said that he thinks they're masculine, but why not jump to that conclusion? As a side note, Labs have had the intelligence bred out of them over the years, so take that for whatever it's worth.

And here we see a Westie being girly and staying clean

And then there are small dogs. All small dogs are girly because they're breakable (that's my assumption, anyway). They are loud and annoying so they're girly. I'm sorry, but people that say things like that have no idea what they're talking about. Those small dogs were usually bred to hunt down and kill small game (see:
every terrier ever).

Look at how manly that dog is

So let's turn this around. Let's look at the Pit Bull. Super masculine, yeah? Muscular and "mean." Wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Guys, if you think owning a Pit makes you tough, you are wrong. The Victorians referred to the Pit Bull as the "nanny dog" because they were so good with children. They are loving companions and incredibly gentle. So all those "macho men" you see on the streets with their Pitties... well... behind the scenes they probably aren't so tough.

Why have we felt the need to gender our dog breeds based solely on characteristics? As I've pointed out, the criteria for what makes a dog feminine or masculine is highly biased and based off of what are society values when it comes to humans of a certain gender. Those assumptions are often wrong or unfounded, though. Maybe you should think really carefully before you get all up in arms about a dog being too girly or manly. Also, Poodles are way cool; so there's that. Tatty bye!