Een Hondenleven

The bundleofbullies case is currently making waves across the internet.
In short: four of a dog influencer’s seven bully-breed dogs got into a fight at a daycare. In the end, three dogs are dead, one injured, and two people were also bitten.

Attacks within a pack like this are not rare, especially when dogs with strong genetic “grab-and-hold” tendencies, and with unknown or unstable backgrounds, are kept together in groups.



What’s really interesting is not the incident itself, but the narrative that came before it. A dog influencer is, at the end of the day, just someone who makes money by putting animals on display. In this case, the focus wasn’t on tricks or training, but purely on showing the dogs off in “cute” or silly outfits.

Dogs in wigs and lipstick. Dogs in full-body costumes. Sometimes even a whole string of lights wrapped around their bodies. The cuteness seemed to switch off all common sense in the audience.

In most of these images, the dogs look absolutely miserable: ears pinned back, stiff averted stares, frozen bodies, total passivity. That is not what a dog expecting a reward looks like. It’s the classic posture of tolerating something they feel uncomfortable with, the look insecure dogs give when something is being forced on them for a photo.

The difference is that in normal families this might happen once or twice a year. Here, it was happening every single day to produce content.

The most frequently used “prop” was Raffie, the result of poor breeding aimed at creating the most squat, compact bully possible. His severe facial and dental deformities only made him look even “cuter,” which is why he was featured so heavily in “feeding frenzy” videos, where he was given all kinds of food for the camera.

The story behind it is designed to pull at heartstrings and evoke sympathy:
seven dogs with the worst pasts are now united in love. They are called furbabies, besties, brothers and sisters. Finally free from abuse, they are shown as their sweet, adorable true selves, the way dogs of these breeds are said to be at their core; big babies with no bad intentions, interested only in cuddling and affection.



The commenters are delighted, and feel their beliefs confirmed:
bullies are the sweetest dogs, the owner determines how they behave, breed doesn’t matter, it’s all about how you raise them, love heals, and rescue dogs are the best.



And now, fast-forward to the present: the narrative has completely flipped.
Dogs are suddenly said to be unpredictable under any kind of ownership, regardless of the handler, and capable of attacking at any moment.

The “furbabies” who were, just yesterday, lifelong besties who would stick together through thick and thin, are now described as canids who will eliminate a pack member the moment it shows weakness.

Where people used to say dogs were better than humans and loved unconditionally, animal emotions are suddenly no longer comparable to human ones.

Dogs who were just praised as being “smarter than people” are now framed as purely instinct-driven, empty-headed creatures who, under stress, might randomly bite others to death.



The question now is: how many people are getting bullies under the false assumptions that flood the internet before every dramatic incident?
How many believe, thanks to influencers like this, that dogs of this caliber are basically dress-up dolls who will give nothing but love if they’re treated with love?
How many are letting potentially unstable shelter dogs interact with their children, their other dogs, or their pets, believing that nothing bad could possibly happen?

Elian schreef: 07 jan 2026, 19:25 Gets, nu heb ik wat van die filmpjes door gescrolld en word ik er straks mee doodgegooid.

Desiree schreef: 06 jan 2026, 19:08 En toen had ze er nog maar 2. De aanvaller is ook dood.

Célie schreef: 06 jan 2026, 17:23 O dat is dat mokkel waarvan die ene hond met dikke lippen dr vreten jat toch.

Loraine schreef: 05 jan 2026, 22:57 Jep, ze is Nederlands.
Heb haar account net ff gecheckt, dacht ff dat het om 3 honden ging maar één ervan komt met meerdere (bij)namen langs.