If you've been to a dog show, you probably know there are these strange creatures that "assess" and "evaluate" pooches and give them sub-par scores. I don't know what criteria they're using or even who they are, but the rascals must be mad—I've seen dogs and in my book, they're all immeasurably cute!
Luckily, there's an online project that agrees with me. It's called WeRateDogs and it does exactly what the name says. Started by Matt Nelson, it attaches witty captions to fan-submitted pictures of their pups, giving those fluffy ears, stubby paws, and pointy tails the praise they deserve. Oh, and a "grade" that exceeds the perfect 10, of course!
We at Bored Panda love this pure-hearted internet delight, and have already written about it here, here, and here, but Matt and his team keep themselves busy, so we have to keep up with them. Here's a new collection of their latest posts!
More info: WeRateDogs.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Nelson initially started WeRateDogs on Twitter just to brighten up people's feeds. But the account gained thousands of followers overnight, and that figure has kept climbing ever since. Currently, it stands at a whopping 9 million. Nelson was even able to turn the account into a business, selling merchandise and posting branded content.
"[I] got addicted to trying to make people laugh in that constrained character space," he told CNBC Make It. At that time, a tweet could contain only 140 characters.
As Nelson tweeted, he noticed that "every time I would post a picture of my dog or any content that had to do with dogs, it would do much better than my other content... That signaled that the internet loves dogs just as much as I did."
What the hell is wrong with people. How could they get any type of pleasure from seeing that suffering? Here's hoping there's a special place reserved for them one day..
"People" like former pro football player Michael Vick, who Nike was quite pleased to pay serious sponsorship money to even after his conviction for running a dogfighting ring.
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I hope people who frequent and put on dog fights rot in hell, I hope they have to live in the Arctic until they die with NO coats, I hope they only have rotten fecal matter to eat.
I volunteer to give up my Atheism on the day they die just so they have a place to burn for eternity.
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How can people do this to this beautiful creatures? This breaks my heart
It blows my mind anyone would treat an animal like that, allowing this to happen. I'm so very happy she found a loving forever home.
Not only do these sub-humaniods "allow" this to happen --- bait dogs are deliberately offered to the fighting dogs to make them more vicious.
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May the people who did this, roast in the fires of damnation, forever.
Couldn't we just tie them naked to a wooden post, with strings of sausages all over them, and let the dogs loose? Please?
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Sending a lifetime of hexes to the monsters who abused her. Special level of h*ll waits for you.
I hope the bastards that did that to her never see the light of day!
Unfortunately most of them are never caught, charged or prosecuted. The rare few that are prosecuted are seldom jailed or serve disgracefully little time. Heartbreaking.
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Hard luck pups become the best pups with a little love. They give much more than they get.
And before they take them off to jail, in they go to find out what it's like to be used as "bait people".
At first, you may see a fearsome toothy snarl, but the reality is that it's just a big goofy toothy grin! So glad the poor little lady has been rescued and in a better place now. Dog Fighting is a disgusting thing to do and the humans that put these poor creatures through that deserve the death penalty if you ask me.. or worse.
OMFG I HATE SO MANY HUMANS!! But I truly love the kind ones like the ones who saved this sweet soul. Live long and well with loads of love sweet puppy!!
What a precious baby. I don't even know how she can trust anyone!
What a bunch of bastards! How can you do that to any animal, let alone a dog! The fact she still loves humans is amazing.
She looks like my dog Berne... going to have nightmares of my poor girl ending up like that. I hope that the people who did this to this sweet dog, will forever have a lego stuck under their feet
I'm not a violent person, but when there's animal cruelty, I become murderous.
Thats terrible can we have a moment of silence for all the bait dogs out there ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ thank you.
Cruel bastard's. I once dreamt my little dog was stolen and used as bait. I woke up crying and was completely upset for weeks. Damn now the thought is back in my head. These bastard's should be treated the same as these poor pups. Id certainly pay to watch the get the crap beat outta them by bigger guys.
Oh......that poor baby. There is a very special place in hell for any and every one connected in any way to dog fighting.
My blood boils when I read/hear about dog fighting (I plead the 5th on what I would do do someone involved in this barbarous, evil and amoral activity) and my heart breaks for the victims...
I hope anyone involved in her torture went to prison and was treated the same as she was. Bastard a*****e.
A warning for people the don't spay/neuter and then give the offspring away "free to a good home".
Heartbreaking! People involved in dog fighting are evil and belong in prison.
This makes me want to cry. Dogs will always love and people are not deserving of it.
Don't tell the cops, but I rescued a bait dog from from a dog fighting ring in the middle of the night once. She, like Haddie here, was the sweetest, most loving dog ever, loved to cuddle on the water bed (hey, it was the 90s!) and she even let toddlers do what toddlers do to dogs without complaint.
I really dont know what to say..I do life in prison for hurting the f****d up people who did this to a sweet animal
Haddie, I hope and pray you live a very happy, treat filled and pain free life. If I knew where you lived I'd send you treats.
Her precious little face. You can see what a sweet baby she is, especially in bottom right pic. ❤️ Just thinking of what they did to her feels like a kick to my soul. I hope she’s spoiled and pampered for the rest of her days.
How the heck does this poor little pooch ever trust a human being?
May God bless this dog with all the love in the world for the rest of his life and may the people responsible find karma...no human could possibly do something so horrifying. Breaks my heart..
Poor little baby ..thank god he's got a loving home and a special family ..Enjoy your life now you deserve it 👏😌
Permanent smile for the happiest of girls 😍. (Not being funny, making a positive of her unfortunate upbringing)
If your small dog goes missing, or you willing give one to people that you barely know (hoping it will have a good life).....The odds are this was its fate. Do proper vigilance when you need to rehome your pet! My sister gave her Portuguese water dog to "friends" of a co-worker because he got too big and his double-coat was too hard to manage. Less than a week later we found out those people ran a dog fighting ring. RIP Toby, no animal deserves to die like you did.
I swear to God, if I ever get diagnosed with a terminal disease I will hunt down these scum of the Earth and end them. I'm done anyway so I don't give a damn about the consequences of my actions since I'd be a dead man walking anyway. I wish more people felt as I do.
Those people will be real surprised when they get to hell and are put in a ring and have to fight like they made these poor dogs do. But they will have to do it for all eternity
Abusers of animals and children have a special place in Hell waiting for them.
Poor thing. At least she's got a good home and she deserves to be spoiled forever
A neighbor down the street has one who looks almost like Haddie. Ugly as hell; sweet as honey. Good advice when you're looking for a long-term partner in life.
They are immune to the suffering. This activity is all about money and profit. The animals are the ways to obtain it. They mean nothing else.
How are they immune??? They might not be humans but there not alian! If someone hurts them they feel it
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I'm so glad this little sweetheart was rescued, but my entire week is ruined. I won't be able to get this out of my mind. I just can't take this kind of thing. I f*****g hate people sometimes.
Nelson launched WeRateDogs back in November 2015, when he was a college freshman at Campbell University in North Carolina. In fact, he released the account's first post from a local Applebee's, featuring the pup of the friend he was having dinner with.
By that night, Nelson received hundreds of messages from dog owners asking for their pups to be featured. At first, he also promoted WeRateDogs from his personal Twitter account, which had about 10,000 followers at the time but by the end of that week, it already passed him in followers.
Nelson became overwhelmed with juggling college, a job at a golf course, and his social media newborn pretty quickly. However, instead of selling his side hustle, he decided to drop out of college before his junior year and moved in with his parents in West Virginia to focus on WeRateDogs full-time.
Fortunately for Nelson, his parents and close friends were very supportive of this bold decision and believed he could continue growing WeRateDogs. His dad, an executive director of a law firm in Charleston, even helped Nelson manage the business' growth once he started raking in significant revenue.
From when did we start bringing pup teddies to life!? This is too adorable💓
But the project is more than just smiles and awws. Nelson is also focused on raising money for dogs in need, posting links to crowdfunding campaigns each Friday. In 2020, for example, WeRateDogs helped raise $1.3 million!
In addition to encouraging his millions of online followers to contribute to these noble causes, Nelson also regularly donates to such campaigns.
how an elderly pup should be pampered. Wish my boy had lived long enough to be pampered like that. Lost him at 15 with leukemia. Vet thought he was 8 or 9. Still miss you Whiskey
"Since we only post one or two per week to the audience but are sent hundreds of others, we typically pick another one, in which either I will personally donate or WeRateDogs will donate as an organization," he explained.
The weekly tradition started in 2016 after Nelson realized a dog he featured needed a wheelchair. The dog's owner asked for about $500, but after sharing the fundraiser, $700 was raised in just 45 minutes.
"It was very clear that my audience was looking for a way to give back," Nelson said. And they still are! Consider this: each campaign that appeared on WeRateDogs has been fully funded within an hour of being posted.
Nelson hopes to continue to share these campaigns with his audience and raise more money, as he found that many pet owners struggle to cover medical expenses, especially when most of them do not have pet insurance.
For a moment, I thought the legs were fingers and she was a teensy tiny dog!
“Part of the reason [WeRateDogs] has been so successful is because our audience trusts us with the curation of these stories, and now, our audience trusts me," Nelson said. "So, that consistency of posting every Friday and getting our audience used to it has really helped it become what it is like now."
Therapy dogs for high stress occupations is SUCH a godsend, speaking from experience.
Rofl what's with his expression, so cute but I'm not convinced he's not photo bombing
He looks like he is able to steal your daughter's heart without much effort.
Note: this post originally had 152 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
I had such a stressful day at work, this brings me so much comfort. Thank you!!
That was a lovely compilation but when did We Rate Dogs sell their soul to advertising? I understand about having bills to pay but just curious when the turn to the dark side happened. Within the past year?
Me: *gets to the end* awwww.... Post: Note: this post originally had 152 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes. Me: 🥰
Why is heck now considered a bad word? When did we all become puritanical pursed-lipped scolds with tight sphincters?
I would have posted a picture of Reggie but he was in the middle of a case of the zoomies at the time. Needless to say..
I LOVE we rate dogs. I got the 2022 day day to day calendar Its great too that Nelson puts so much of the money he makes into helping these adorable doggies.
I had such a stressful day at work, this brings me so much comfort. Thank you!!
That was a lovely compilation but when did We Rate Dogs sell their soul to advertising? I understand about having bills to pay but just curious when the turn to the dark side happened. Within the past year?
Me: *gets to the end* awwww.... Post: Note: this post originally had 152 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes. Me: 🥰
Why is heck now considered a bad word? When did we all become puritanical pursed-lipped scolds with tight sphincters?
I would have posted a picture of Reggie but he was in the middle of a case of the zoomies at the time. Needless to say..
I LOVE we rate dogs. I got the 2022 day day to day calendar Its great too that Nelson puts so much of the money he makes into helping these adorable doggies.
