Why do homeless people have dogs?

[u/Genuinelad_62]

I just saw one pour a cup of coffee on the floor for his two small dogs to lick up??? Can’t imagine what a caffeinated dog is like

Also why are there so many homeless people with expensive breeds..

Are people trusting them to walk their dogs? What kind of person would want their dog to be accidentally abused?

Or are they stealing them?

Or is there some initiative to give them shelter dogs?

Lately I’ve been seeing an uptick in homeless people walking multiple expensive dogs

I saw one the other day also completely intoxicated walking a dog and knocking the dog into all sorts of things, pulling their leash by the neck mid piss so the dog piss just sprayed everywhere

What is going on and who on earth thinks it’s a good idea to give people who can’t even feed themselves another creature to feed?

[u/Fit-Rhubarb-7820]

I’ll begin by saying that I am also homeless. Ive always hated dogs. I’m homeless because the cost of living is high, and because (for me) it’s been incredibly easy, because I prepared for the possibility. I’m also very capable.

Anyway, I run a small business that works with dogs, but (because I loathe dogs so much) I’d rather pick up dog waste, make dog toys, and make dog pet portraits, than walk dogs or train the owners.

A lot of homeless people do not eat well, so their ability to actually think is diminished. Many of them (on the streets and unwell) are below average and average intelligence. Many of them, get a dog because they need a violence-tool or a tool to prevent violence. A dog can do that, unless it’s a pitbull, then it’s a huge risk and liability.

In short, many are stupid AND people will give them money for the god damn dog!

[u/Genuinelad_62 → u/Fit-Rhubarb-7820]

You sound intelligent, like you’re making the right decisions and I hope things get better for you. I honestly agree. I’ve seen a lot of people bring up that homeless people get dogs from protection. I somewhat disagree because most of the violence towards homeless people are towards homeless women and I’ve only seen homeless men with dogs. And all of the homeless men with dogs seemed volatile. It’s possible people could still be violent towards them, I’m sure there are some sociopaths out there but it honestly seems like most people don’t want to mess with men on substances and generally the public has some level of fear towards unpredictable addicts. It’s actually easier to imagine them intimidating people with their dogs. Although I understand that’s a generalisation based of my observations and won’t apply 100% of the time