There's various things we do to dogs/pets that they don't consent to, but they just have to be considered on a case-by-case basis. Tattooing a dog, IMHO, i similar to piercing ears for a baby or toddler. It causes some physical harm, carries with it some risk of permanent injury (infection etc), and only suits vanity. Same goes for cropping of ears and docking of tails. The easiest test for these sorts of answers is to consider the net welfare of the animal.
It's funny, because when I was in high school, this is exactly the question I asked in a Law class, and everyone just sort of laughed and considered me a crazy person. I think the actual question I asked was "Is it morally ok to tattoo flames on a small hairless dog?"
My argument was that indeed, that it does cause some suffering to the dog, but after it healed, that would absolutely be the coolest dog anyone had ever seen, so it would probably get a huge amount of attention, and considering attention is like crack to a dog, it would be a net positive in its life. Not to say ALL dogs should be tattooed but I digress.
Mostly it's just hilarious to see that I'm not the only person who asked the question, and others didn't laugh at them and call them insane.
Very simply, the dog cannot consent to have it done so it's wrong. And it's nice that the tattoo was done while the dog was under anesthesia, but the healing will be done while the dog is awake.
I spent the night up there once. No electricity, no plumbing, no noisy crowds of tourists. Really peaceful. And cold. Upon checking into the 'hotel', the old man gives you a candle (to see your way to your room with), a thermos of hot water (for either washing or making tea), and the room consists of nothing but 1 bed and 1 heavy quilt (that's the heater). No food, no TV, no karaoke. It was great. The cost was 10 RMB/night. I might have gotten cheated, but I didn't care; the heavy quilt was worth the dollar.
I want one. I cannot believe this amazing technology has been lost in the mists of time! I imagine that getting small boys to take a bath would be no challenge with one of these.
Intriguing idea, but flames are a problem, steam doesn't "rise" in zero gravity, distilled liquid doesn't drip, and yes, there are cameras on them all the time.
My argument was that indeed, that it does cause some suffering to the dog, but after it healed, that would absolutely be the coolest dog anyone had ever seen, so it would probably get a huge amount of attention, and considering attention is like crack to a dog, it would be a net positive in its life. Not to say ALL dogs should be tattooed but I digress.
Mostly it's just hilarious to see that I'm not the only person who asked the question, and others didn't laugh at them and call them insane.
The cost was 10 RMB/night. I might have gotten cheated, but I didn't care; the heavy quilt was worth the dollar.
I see what you did there!