The other day I posted a very small snippet about the differences between puppies and dogs, from my point of view (
click here to view). In that article, I asked for my fellow pups to write in on their opinions of the differences, but I also spoke to a couple of my friends and asked if they would be happy to write a bit for me. One of those friends is Scamp. Scamp, like myself is rather opinionated, and I was over the moon to see he had posted this entry in his blog, only moments before I jumped online this morning. And being such an early hour, my brain isn't at 100% functionality yet, so I'mma stop rambling (as I often do) and let you have a read of "Puppy Play or Dog Training? Yes, there IS a difference!".
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There seems to be a lot of confusion about what constitutes "puppy play"
as opposed to "dog play", "dog training", "wolf play", or one of the
million other variations. What I am going to give here is nothing more
than personal opinion, sprinkled with my own experience and the
opinion/experience of a few others. What you do with this information
is up to you, as I believe that everybody must find their own path, be
it religion, sexuality, kink, or even things less important.
Puppy play is commonly overlooked in kink situations, as it sometimes
has NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with sex. Yes, that's right. You might be
taken aback by this statement, but there is so much more to life than
just sex. Now, for the 25 percent of people who will continue reading
past that line, let us continue.
I am going to take this time to explain that this post is meant to help
give definition to some of the varying levels of this specific kink. By
this, I mean the most commonly accepted definitions, and you may have
varying ideas based on personal experience. It will not cover every
eventuality, and there will be some who fit into these categories and
many others. This is only meant to be an outline of what the "puppy
play" scene is becoming in current times, not a reflection of what it
may have been. Things grow and change. Nothing is as cut and dry as
most people would like.
~~~~~
Puppy Play
Many people call themselves a puppy because they don't understand where
they fit in. Puppy play is an attractive form of power exchange
because, for most, it still includes a tenderness reserved for a beloved
family pet.
The most common definition of a "puppy" is a person who has some of the
mentality of a puppy, and can enter a headspace of total puppy
awareness. These people might perk up if they hear a squeaky toy, stand
at full attention if they hear certain words (walkies, play, ball,
squirrel, among others), find themselves growling at annoyances in their
every day lives, or even wagging their bodies when they get excited.
These are all fairly common, and may confuse the pup until he realizes
the truth about himself.
While many pups are just as much a pup on 2 legs as they are on four
legs, they relish the time they get to spend in puppy headspace. It's a
full release from the cares and worries of the day-to-day human world.
A time where the pup can truly be himself. Many pups can't achieve
this state of awareness without a trigger.. It might be their handler's
praise, the jingle of their dog tags on their collar, a certain touch
(scratches behind the ears; WOOF!), or a number of things. The thing to
take from this is that it is common for a pup to not be in puppy mode
24/7. As a matter of fact, it is fairly rare to find a situation in
which a puppy gets to (or even wants to) live as a full time pup. The
necessary evils of the human world make this nigh impossible.
Puppies are loyal, playful, energetic, and loving. It is fairly common
to find a puppy edging closer and closer to his human (or even another
pup that he may have a relationship with), trying to get physical
attention. Personally, I am nearly constantly chewing on something
(straws, plushies, rope toys, pens, pencils, sunglasses...). The
behaviors that puppies exhibit are fairly easy to identify, if you know
where to look.
Dog Play
Dogs and puppies are different animals. To say otherwise is to try and
call children "little adults". It may have common practice in the past,
but growing and evolving needs have made the distinction a necessary
one.
Puppies often exhibit the physical characteristics of dogs, but "puppy
play" is more about the mental state of those involved. Dog play is
most commonly referred to as the act of acting like a dog, while
maintaining the mind and thoughts of a human. Am I saying that there
isn't some crossover between the two? No. It is nearly impossible to
have things this closely related without crossover. It's just a matter
of which one you feel yourself more drawn towards.
Dog play and puppy play are both entered into willingly. There isn't
usually humiliation connected with these acts. There may be humiliation
in other aspects of your kink and laid on top of puppy or dog play.
It's more about the mutual enjoyment of these activities which brings
fetishists together to enjoy them. Commonly, dogs and puppies will
gather together for events or play times. It is only small differences
which separate them. These differences wouldn't be worth mentioning,
except for the new and expanding interests in the puppy community. It
is important that those new to the "scene" know where they fit in, what
is commonly accepted practice, and that they are not alone in their
feelings.
As I have said, dog play focuses more on the physical, and puppy play
focuses more on the mental aspects of the kink. This is not true for
everyone, and this doesn't mean that dogs can't get into a puppy
headspace and puppies can't spend a few days on all fours. Individual
interests and desires shape and mold kink. If they didn't, we'd all
still be vanilla, wouldn't we? That being said, these two practices
(once again) are entered into willingly and because the pup/dog
thoroughly desires the time. There is a practice which is more forced
and more about humiliation, however.
Dog Training
Dog training is the act of taking a submissive and forcing him to take
on the mannerisms and role of a dog, usually as a form of humiliation
play. The Dominant will force the submissive to eat from a bowl, bark,
stay on all fours, and other things commonly associated with training an
unruly dog. This is accomplished after the submissive lets known his
desire (or at least acquiescence) to either a session or longer term of
humiliation play. I DO NOT CONDONE NON-CONSENSUAL POWER EXCHANGE.
The forced act of becoming a dog can be a very trying thing on the human
psyche, and aftercare should be observed if you are engaging in this
kink.
This fills the Dominant's needs to humiliate the submissive (or maybe
even a hidden desire to have his own pup or dog), and it also fulfills
the submissive's desires to be humiliated and dominated. This can be
fun, and there are some pups or dogs who also participate in this aspect
of the kink. Once again, it is not a "one or the other" scenario, nor
is it an "all or nothing" situation. Desires cross over and you may
find yourself in one or more of these groups, or even more.
~~~~~
I hope that my readers have found this to be informative. I will once
again remind everyone that this is mostly my personal
experiences/opinions and the experiences/opinions of others that I have
met who are involved in the pup community in one form or another. Also,
I used the male pronouns to fill out my definitions because gay male
puppy play is what I am familiar with (being a gay male puppy). This is
not to say that straight or lesbian members of the kink community might
not also benefit from this information. I was not trying to
dis-include anyone.
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I'd just like to say a huge THANK YOU to Scamp for allowing me to use this on my blog! You're awesome! If you enjoyed this article, make sure you visit
Scamp's blog! Don't forget to follow! =)
Till next time....
*tail wags*
