Friday, March 25, 2011

Perception

The perception people have of something or someone goes far.  Sometimes even beyond your circle of influence to areas you can never imagine.  Of course, these perceptions sometimes become stereotypes and gets played out in popular culture as well as many times in the Simpsons "Release the hounds" clips.

Good example: Doberman are dangerous and aggressive.  In fact, many apartment complexes specifically outlaw the ownership of this specific breed when you are living in their facilities.   Some insurance companies may not insure you if you own this type of dog.

I owned one, and know of many people who own them.  All of the most common rumors you hear are completely untrue.  The brains of Doberman don't get so big they swell inside their skull and go crazy, in fact, sometimes I wish my dog has a little more smarts. They are not needlessly aggressive, although they look aggressive.  A lot of how the Doberman, or any dog for that matter, behaves is how they are trained and raised.  In fact, even with a kid, how they are brought up do affect who they become.

The best analogy I can draw is to people driving Rice Rockets.  They look fast but really are not -- all show but no go.  They don't like small dogs though, but that's mainly because they look like yappy cats.

This is what I see 90% of the time as a fellow Doberman owner.  The other 10% he's hiding away in his covers cause he's scared, or pooping in the yard.


They are wonderful family dogs and are great with kids.  They are intelligent enough to know that they need to be more gentle with kids or toddlers (even my previous pet, a Golden Retriever, did not know that).  They are very social and love interacting with people, to the point of whoring themselves out.  They hate being left alone.

Sometimes, they can be overbearing because they're so needy, and constantly want your attention (or food).

Overall, they just want to be, with you.

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