02-05-2007, 07:44 AM
Good article on the designer dog frenzy in the NYTimes, w/some interesting things to chew on, so to speak (...Speak...). Here's an ancillary bit I liked; funny, but spooky:
“Manufacturers asked themselves, ‘What’s a pet sitter really doing?’ ” Vetere went on. “ ‘He’s feeding your pet and letting your pet out. Well, we could do that.’ ” Over the last decade, the industry has devised an almost Jetsonian, automated existence for our dogs, and the outpouring of products alone suggests how eager we have been to resolve a number of curious problems. Dogs can be attended by timed, refrigerated feeders and water fountains, monitored by Webcam or consoled through PetsCell cellular telephones around their necks. Cutout kitchen doggie doors were good, but new doggie doors — like the motorized Power Pet, triggered by a sensor in the dog’s collar — are better, since homeowners worried thieves might shimmy through. The Power Pet slides up and swiftly deadbolts shut again (“Your pet will think it’s on the Starship Enterprise!” the manufacturer claims), permitting dogs to safely exit and relieve themselves, perhaps on the specialty sod patches now replenished each week by delivery services. Small dogs are increasingly being litter-trained. Minefields of mildly electrified mats keep curious ones off of furniture. “Now,” Vetere said, “if you want to keep your dog and still want your freedom, there are things you can do.”
“Manufacturers asked themselves, ‘What’s a pet sitter really doing?’ ” Vetere went on. “ ‘He’s feeding your pet and letting your pet out. Well, we could do that.’ ” Over the last decade, the industry has devised an almost Jetsonian, automated existence for our dogs, and the outpouring of products alone suggests how eager we have been to resolve a number of curious problems. Dogs can be attended by timed, refrigerated feeders and water fountains, monitored by Webcam or consoled through PetsCell cellular telephones around their necks. Cutout kitchen doggie doors were good, but new doggie doors — like the motorized Power Pet, triggered by a sensor in the dog’s collar — are better, since homeowners worried thieves might shimmy through. The Power Pet slides up and swiftly deadbolts shut again (“Your pet will think it’s on the Starship Enterprise!” the manufacturer claims), permitting dogs to safely exit and relieve themselves, perhaps on the specialty sod patches now replenished each week by delivery services. Small dogs are increasingly being litter-trained. Minefields of mildly electrified mats keep curious ones off of furniture. “Now,” Vetere said, “if you want to keep your dog and still want your freedom, there are things you can do.”