15 votes

Why are American dogs so obsessed with Lamb Chop?

15 comments

  1. [5]
    Hollow
    Link
    Turns out the answer is "we don't even know that they do": And we're sure that this isn't native advertising?

    Turns out the answer is "we don't even know that they do":

    In other words, we can’t know for sure that dogs really love Lamb Chop, but we like to think they do—and that might be enough.

    And we're sure that this isn't native advertising?

    37 votes
    1. [4]
      Promonk
      Link Parent
      Damn 1960s puppet dog toy industrial complex slipping covert marketing into–the Atlantic? Wtf? What even is this article? They're writing as though Doggy TikTok is awash in DIY Lamb Chop projects...

      Damn 1960s puppet dog toy industrial complex slipping covert marketing into–the Atlantic? Wtf?

      What even is this article? They're writing as though Doggy TikTok is awash in DIY Lamb Chop projects or something, then they're like, "lol dogs don't know Shari Lewis from Eve, stupid." What precisely is the thesis? "My friends all bought Lamb Chop toys for their dogs and I thought it was weird"? That's a 2 AM Bluesky post from a boring person, not a piece for the Atlantic.

      28 votes
      1. [3]
        Hollow
        Link Parent
        Someone has to still be selling them, and I imagine they're very happy to see an article that doesn't conclusively say anything, but is all about their product and call it by name....let's see,...

        Damn 1960s puppet dog toy industrial complex slipping covert marketing into–the Atlantic? Wtf?

        Someone has to still be selling them, and I imagine they're very happy to see an article that doesn't conclusively say anything, but is all about their product and call it by name....let's see, ctrl+f....fifty seven times. Whoever reads this will be left with a very definite search term to plug into Amazon.

        5 votes
        1. Promonk
          Link Parent
          A very definite search term, and no discernable reason to use it. This piece baffles me.

          A very definite search term, and no discernable reason to use it.

          This piece baffles me.

          2 votes
        2. DefinitelyNotAFae
          (edited )
          Link Parent
          This feels much more like the author has been thinking about this for too long and managed to make it an article than sneaky advertising. ETA: But I hope Sherri Lewis's daughter gets her bag for...

          This feels much more like the author has been thinking about this for too long and managed to make it an article than sneaky advertising.

          ETA: But I hope Sherri Lewis's daughter gets her bag for this and not just checks wiki NBC Universal? Unless they're all knockoffs

          1 vote
  2. Dr_Amazing
    Link
    Everything about this is like the opposite of my experience. I've never seen a Lambchop dog toy. I didn't know it was originally a show in the 60s. However, the 90s show was extremely popular when...

    Everything about this is like the opposite of my experience.

    I've never seen a Lambchop dog toy. I didn't know it was originally a show in the 60s.

    However, the 90s show was extremely popular when I was a kid, and I'd have assumed that most people who were kids at that time would have come across it. I'm sure I've still heard little kids singing The Song That Doesn't End

    8 votes
  3. DrEvergreen
    Link
    I live in Europe, and I cannot for the life of me remember a single dog toy that have looked like that. In real life, I mean. Can't say I've ever paid attention to dog toys in movies or tv-shows,...

    I live in Europe, and I cannot for the life of me remember a single dog toy that have looked like that. In real life, I mean. Can't say I've ever paid attention to dog toys in movies or tv-shows, so might have missed some there.

    What a neat cultural trait! It's fascinating to me what things become ingrained and invisible to us in this way. I love when people make observations like this about my own cultural blind spots too.

    7 votes
  4. skybrian
    Link
    From the article: https://archive.is/lGMV1

    From the article:

    Ask any random dog owner and there’s a good chance they’ll tell you: Lamb Chop is their dog’s favorite toy. They’ll say it with the confidence of having heard it directly from the dog itself. After witnessing my sister’s dog’s dedication to the toy, I spoke with more than 10 dog owners, all of whom were quick to send me pictures, videos, and anecdotes about their own dogs’ seemingly inexplicable Lamby love.

    https://archive.is/lGMV1

    6 votes
  5. [6]
    papasquat
    Link
    Thank God someone else has noticed this. My recently departed sweet boy was absolutely showered with lamb chop toys from both my family and myself in the last couple of years of his life. He...

    Thank God someone else has noticed this. My recently departed sweet boy was absolutely showered with lamb chop toys from both my family and myself in the last couple of years of his life. He admittedly did love the toys, but about the same as he loved any similarly furry toy he could rip to shreds and murder (yikes).

    I have been constantly wondering why a now obscure puppet character that most people under the age of about 40 have probably never heard of was suddenly constantly packed in every single place that sells even one dog toy.

    4 votes
    1. [5]
      balooga
      Link Parent
      Is this true? It’s probably true, I’m just in denial. My kids definitely know “The Song That Doesn’t End.” Do they know the puppet who sang it? Maybe not. I would guess the likelihood of them...

      a now obscure puppet character that most people under the age of about 40 have probably never heard of

      Is this true? It’s probably true, I’m just in denial. My kids definitely know “The Song That Doesn’t End.” Do they know the puppet who sang it? Maybe not. I would guess the likelihood of them knowing the names Charlie Horse or Hush Puppy or Shari Lewis are nil. Not that it was an especially great show worthy of being remembered, but it still makes me sad to watch in realtime as things I remember are collectively forgotten.

      My kids also know “Skinnamarink” but I think they’d resent me if I ever tried to make them watch The Elephant Show with Sharon, Lois, and Bram. It’s obnoxious. That fact doesn’t lessen the nostalgia goggles effect though.

      7 votes
      1. [3]
        1338
        Link Parent
        I'd put the number closer to 30 (at least in the US). I remember lambchop being referenced randomly in different shows and movies and the character is sufficiently self-explanatory for passive...

        I'd put the number closer to 30 (at least in the US). I remember lambchop being referenced randomly in different shows and movies and the character is sufficiently self-explanatory for passive awareness without having seen the original show. I'm below 40 and the main reason I know of it is from having a hand-me-down stuffed lambchop.

        2 votes
        1. [2]
          F13
          Link Parent
          I'm early 30s and I have no concept of this character as anything other than a dog toy.

          I'm early 30s and I have no concept of this character as anything other than a dog toy.

          6 votes
          1. crialpaca
            Link Parent
            Same. I worked at a pet supply store where we always had these, and I was so baffled when people got all excited about them. Sure, they're soft and vaguely cute... eventually I figured they...

            Same. I worked at a pet supply store where we always had these, and I was so baffled when people got all excited about them. Sure, they're soft and vaguely cute... eventually I figured they originated from something particular, but I never put the pieces together while I was working there.

      2. blivet
        Link Parent
        Yeah, I’m quite a bit older than most of my coworkers and I sort of have to watch what I say sometimes. I once made an offhand comment that the next meeting would take place “same Bat-time, same...

        it still makes me sad to watch in realtime as things I remember are collectively forgotten.

        Yeah, I’m quite a bit older than most of my coworkers and I sort of have to watch what I say sometimes. I once made an offhand comment that the next meeting would take place “same Bat-time, same Bat-channel” and got a bunch of blank looks.

        I know it’s not important in the grand scheme of things, but the Batman TV show was a huge cultural phenomenon in its time, and it’s weird to have seen it vanish from the collective memory.

        More significantly, there are major historical events that I remember experiencing in real time that young people nowadays are apparently unaware ever happened. I read somewhere recently that most young people have never heard of Bobby Kennedy’s assassination, for example. That’s disturbing for a number of reasons, not all of which have to do with my getting old.

        2 votes
  6. zod000
    Link
    This is strange, my dog does actually have one of these toys and and does love it. We didn't realize it resembled the Lamb Chop character until way later.

    This is strange, my dog does actually have one of these toys and and does love it. We didn't realize it resembled the Lamb Chop character until way later.

    1 vote