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Social media reacts to opinion piece calling dogs 'parasites'

An opinion piece in the San Diego Union-Tribune argues that dogs are parasites and the Internet is not happy about it.

A column in the San Diego Union Tribune's opinion section has dog lovers all riled up. The Wednesday article, titled "Let's be honest, America: Dogs are parasites, not man's best friend" makes the argument that dogs evolved to mooch off of people and view humans as nothing more than a meal ticket.

The article criticizes pet owners who pamper their pooch, excessively spending money on their "fur babies."

The author, Chris Reed, seemed to know his opinion would strike a nerve on Twitter, where it sometimes seems the only thing anyone can agree on is that dogs are good.

It didn't take long for the replies to flow in, from simple quote tweets expressing disagreement to some elaborate conspiracy theories. At least one user accused the author of secretly being a cat for his anti-dog opinion.

Another common take on the article was to say that it doesn't matter if dogs are "conning" us. If it makes us happy to keep them around, humans are justified in pampering their furry friends.

Another user pointed out that the science quoted in the article was old and later disproved.

But perhaps the best example of hijacking the replies to a tweet in recent memory belongs to Morris Animal Refuge, a rescue organization in Philadelphia. They knew the original tweet was going viral, so they took the opportunity to promote their adoptable dogs.

For more information on how you can add a parasite four-legged friend to your family, visit The Shelter Pet Project to find a rescue organization in your area.

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