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HT Brunch Game Show: Which pup account is slaying it?
The doggie siblings, the self-anointed “superdog” who keeps his captions short, or the puppy who feels Reels are not enough to tell a tale
Poppins
@triplesundae
Male, Beagle, 5 and a half years old
Humans: Simran, 37, and Rajit, 38
How often do you post from the account?
Everyday. My parents, with whom I share the account, upload a post or story daily, and Reels several times a week.
When did you make your IG debut?
In 2021, during my first train journey from Delhi to Goa. Both my humans love to travel. So, when I met them, I joined them on their outdoor adventures. Their friends suggested all three of us have an IG account. We also post about pet parenting tips and home decor.
Tell us about your caption game.
Simran writes the captions. I voice segments like Walk Talk (reportage from my morning walks). We have long captions. A Reel isn’t enough to tell a tale!
What is your priority while posting?
To give information and spread awareness about issues like puppy mills and adoption.
Any causes you’ve addressed?
Unethical breeding, violence against animals and pet abandonment.
Do your humans post more this account or their personal ones?
Yes. Our account has the max activity!
Butter and Topchi
@butterandtopchi_ goldenbrothers Male, Golden Retrievers,
both 1 year plus
Human: Akriti Agarwal, 34
How often do you post from the account?
Not as often as we’d like. Only when my human has time.
When did you make your IG debut?
My human made my account the day we got Butter, a year ago. She puts up cute and funny pictures of us.
Tell us about your caption game.
They are sometimes in first person, short and crisp, addressing how naughty we are.
What is your priority while posting?
The aim is to ensure we get immortalised digitally. Our human complains that we are too quick for her to capture Reels, but she manages to capture cutesy stories.
Any causes you’ve addressed?
Posts from We Exist Foundation and helping out peers who are lost/abandoned. The latter is kind of the aim of the account now, after the pandemic.
Do your humans post more this account or their personal ones?
My human posts more via her account, but my account shares more stories.
Simba
@superdogsimba
Male, Labrador. 3 years old
Human: Ridhima Malhotra, 27
How often do you post from the account?
Twice a week.
When did you make your IG debut?
When I was three months old. My grandad and mom collectively picked the page’s name because I used to always sleep in a Superman pose! We have a lot of funny content.
Tell us about your caption game.
The captions are really short as we leave it to the video/story to describe what we want to convey.
What is your priority while posting?
To give a peek into my daily antics in everyday life. We mostly focus on Reels. I want to make people smile and my human also says that she would like to spread awareness about how my friends and I can be the best stress busters.
Any causes you’ve addressed?
Anything and everything to do with my community-food and safety being a priority.
Do your humans post more this account or their personal ones?
Mine!
And the winner is…Poppins
“Don’t just get a cute dog to get followers”
“Pet accounts, dogs, get more engagement. Everyone likes cuteness. But it’s important to go beyond just the surface level of what you can do via it. Poppins is posting about issues dogs deal with,” explains Jitendra Sharma aka Ted The Stoner (@tedthestoner).
“The first thing is to focus on indie pet adoptions. Buying shouldn’t even be a choice,” he says. Teacup Poodle accounts have millions of followers. “But they are bred unnaturally. So, they live in pain and their life span reduces to four years. Don’t just get a cute dog so that you get millions of followers. You are just contributing to animal cruelty. And, don’t teach your dogs complex tricks in a cruel manner just for IG.”
“What you can do is promote a pet adoption drive, start an animal welfare fund for strays, and help sick pets get access to compatible blood,” he concludes.
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From HT Brunch, December 3, 2022
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