First of all you may be thinking “do pets have a political economy?” Well, of course they do. The first article I stumbled across, and the article that truly inspired the theme of this paper, is “Go Go Dog!’ And German Turks’ Demand For Pet Dogs” by A. Caglar. In this article the author discusses the functions of the pets that the German Turks own. There are three categories of dogs that are owned: The fighting dog, the guard dog, and the lap dog. Each dog serves a specific purpose, and therefore has certain ideal traits with which to serve that purpose. A guard dog is protective, and frightening; a fighting dog is macho, strong, and fierce; a lap dog is affectionate and loveable. People desiring to supplement their current identities with such traits own such dogs. The dog’s qualities become a part of the person’s image, and even status. I agree with the overview that Caglar presented in this article. Pets add certain qualities to their owners by their actions, pedigrees, b

reeds, and behavior. In this paper I will be referring to dogs, as they are stereotypically the most common pet choice from within our culture.

Competition in the specialty pet food market further defined the discourse surrounding pets and their ownership. Supermarket brands of pet food started to manufacture specialty brands. Distribution channels became more common and as market competition drove entrepreneurs in search of an untapped market, the Internet business became the next logical step. We’ve all seen the Petco ads, and commercials or online pet stores. With the shop-at-home convenience of the Internet, retail pet stores expanded their services out to the community. By strengthening their ties with the community, and by making moves like getting rid of some selections of pets by substituting them with shelter adoption programs, the retail stores increased their business.

The classical reasons behind pet ownership are of course another interesting aspect of the political economy surrounding the ownership of animals. In a survey performed by the American Pet Association Polls, 79% of pet owners commented that security was one of the reasons they ascertained their animal. Pets, often maintained for security reasons are not just that anymore. Even the discourse behind having a dog for security reasons is particularly intriguing. Having a dog says “I’m here and I’m not alone, I’m protected.” The bigger the dog, the more ‘protected’ one appears. In the case of the young German Turks the appearances of their fighting dogs was integrally important. A tough dog will offer more protection. Many young Turks claim that they possess the animals not only as ‘toys’ but as modes of protection against the recent outbursts of violence proliferated against German Turks by young skinheads. It is evident however that protection is not the only reason behind the ownership of these animals. The opposition the older generation of Turks harbor toward the animals means that young men can’t have the animals unless they can afford to live alone. On top of being able to afford personal living quarters the additional fees of having a dog in Germany is another financial hurdle the men must clear. It is quite obvious that you can’t have a dog in Germany unless you could afford it. This simple fact implies that a specific status is thus assigned to the ownership of a dog.

So why do people spend so much on their pets? It just so happens that the current economy that we live and participate in crea

Some topics in this essay:
German Turks, America People, , Association Polls, Dogs” Caglar, I’m I’m, german turks, pet industry, lap dog, political economy, pet stores, security reasons, pet ownership, fighting dog, 43143849 dog owners, guard dog, dog owners,