The Irwins have come under fire after promoting a certain breed of dog on their social media.
Robert Irwin recently took to Instagram in a joint post with the account of the family’s pet pug, Stella.
The video showed the dog wandering around various sites at the Australia Zoo.
However, not everyone was in love with Stella, and some followers took the opportunity to complain about the health problems inherent to the dog breed.
“Stop breeding pugs, they are harmful to themselves,” one user wrote, sparking a fierce debate in the comments.
The Irwins have come under fire after promoting a certain breed of dog on their social media. Robert Irwin recently took to Instagram in a joint post with the account of the family’s pet pug, Stella. Both in the photo
The video showed the pug wandering around various sites at the Australia Zoo. Many fans expressed their joy for the cute dog’s adventures, but some followers took the opportunity to complain about the dog breed’s health problems.
‘Not all pugs have health problems. When they have a good pedigree they are perfectly healthy. But the black market is destroying that,” another commenter responded.
However, one Instagram user took issue with this response, stating that while not all pugs have health problems, “over 95% of them benefit from BOAS.” [Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome] surgery.’
Due to their specific physical traits, pugs often have anatomical problems that restrict their breathing.
‘Not all pugs have health problems. When they have a good pedigree they are perfectly healthy. But the black market is destroying that,” wrote one commenter.
BOAS surgery typically involves widening the nostrils, shortening the soft palate, and removing excess tissue around the voice box to increase airflow.
Dollytrev continued: ‘The Irwins really shouldn’t be promoting brachycephalic breeds. “I know they care about animals, so I wonder what cognitive dissonance is going on here for them to have one.”
But another Irwin defender took issue with this line of questioning: ‘In what world are they promoting a short-nosed breed by posting a cute video of their dog?’ It’s not that they raise them. They have had Stella for years.
Due to their specific physical traits, pugs often have anatomical problems that restrict their breathing. Typically, BOAS surgery involves widening the nostrils, shortening the soft palate, and removing excess tissue around the voice box to increase airflow.
“Normalizing these breeds by posting “pretty” photos of them is promoting them without realizing it,” the other user responded.
‘The Pugs exist independently of Irwin’s influence. They are allowed to post a cute video of their dog. “I’m sure Stella lives a wonderful life wandering around her property and the zoo,” was another response.
‘They just took a video of their dog, are you PETA or something?’ wrote another follower, to which one of Irwin’s critics responded, “if I were PETA, I’d be calling for pugs to be euthanized.”
Earlier this month, Irwin matriarch Terri also posed with Stella in recognition of National Pet Day.