# Can someone please explain this commercial to me? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 17, 2012, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467 "2012-07-17T01:30:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/1 "2012-07-17T01:30:24Z")
Not sure if this is a IMHO topic or MPSIMS, but I thought probably the latter, so; I’ve been seeing [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SVnrNaNv7A) commercial for adopting shelter pets a lot lately and I _just_ don’t get it. I don’t get the whole ‘toys in the basket’ shit. Why would this woman be getting upset (which is what I presume the dog meant by “surprised”) by a dog playing with it’s own toys? And why, as soon as she discovers this, would she pointlessly then round them all up and put them back in the toybox? Unless these are supposed to be _baby_ toys; but the commercial doesn’t give ANY other indication that a baby is there. Not even a slight one. No baby in the background, no baby with the mom and the dog doesn’t ‘speak’ of a baby. So what the fuck is going on in this commercial? 😕 I just don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/2 "2012-07-17T01:37:51Z")
I don’t think she is upset. Most people don’t leave 20 toys on the floor 24/7. The woman keeps picking up the mess and putting the toys back when they aren’t being played with and the dog thinks she sucks at playing hide n’ go seek because she puts the toys in the same place every time. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/3 "2012-07-17T01:39:19Z")
She’s just being tidy. She’s picking up after the dog so things aren’t scattered all over the floor and someone coming in the door doesn’t trip on stuff. The dog thinks “LOL you suck at hide and seek!” and gets all his toys out and plays with them. I think it’s just supposed to be cute with a little bit of “look what little an adopted dog has to worry about, compared to a shelter dog” commercial, judging by the tagline about how important a human is to a dog. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/4 "2012-07-17T01:40:57Z")
> [@LurkerInNJ](#): > > I don’t think she is upset. Most people don’t leave 20 toys on the floor 24/7. > > The woman keeps picking up the mess and putting the toys back when they aren’t being played with and the dog thinks she sucks at playing hide n’ go seek because she puts the toys in the same place every time. > [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > She’s just being tidy. She’s picking up after the dog so things aren’t scattered all over the floor and someone coming in the door doesn’t trip on stuff. The dog thinks “LOL you suck at hide and seek!” and gets all his toys out and plays with them. > > I think it’s just supposed to be cute with a little bit of “look what little an adopted dog has to worry about, compared to a shelter dog” commercial, judging by the tagline about how important a human is to a dog. Ok, then what explains the “surprised” angle? Why is she surprised that a dog would play with _dog toys_? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/5 "2012-07-17T01:45:46Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Ok, then what explains the “surprised” angle? Why is she surprised that a dog would play with _dog toys_? I assumed she would just shake her head at finding tons of toys everywhere yet again (and probably nearly immediately after she’d left the room from the previous cleanup) and the dog laughs because duh, he’s going to play with his toys. I mean, I frequently tell my rabbits that I cannot believe how much they shed, how much hay they scatter on the floor, etc. I’m sure if they had the ability to, they’d be laughing at me about how could I not have figured that out yet. ---
**Author:** ![florez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@florez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/florez)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/6 "2012-07-17T01:46:53Z")
The relationship thing is the draw, like how you notice the quirky things your dog does, for example running in a circle before he or she lays down in their bed. Many of us don’t know why they do it, but that is just how they are, and we accept it, and the accepting is part of our relationship with our pet. Same with the pet seeing the two legged do something and not knowing why, but that is just this quirky person I love sort of thing. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/7 "2012-07-17T01:48:22Z")
Oo, good, I like that! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![florez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9e5f3/32.png) [@florez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/florez)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/8 "2012-07-17T01:55:17Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Oo, good, I like that! 😃 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/9 "2012-07-17T02:41:25Z")
The commercials do have a bit of an odd tone. There’s no real punchline in these ads. It’s like Seinfeldian “how crazy is that” observational stand up. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDISaoGsZZA) [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgqaCPX3-MM) The last one with the female cat is kind of funny. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/10 "2012-07-17T02:43:33Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Not sure if this is a IMHO topic or MPSIMS, but I thought probably the latter, so; I’ve been seeing [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SVnrNaNv7A) commercial for adopting shelter pets a lot lately and I _just_ don’t get it. I don’t get the whole ‘toys in the basket’ shit. Why would this woman be getting upset (which is what I presume the dog meant by “surprised”) by a dog playing with it’s own toys? And why, as soon as she discovers this, would she pointlessly then round them all up and put them back in the toybox? > > Unless these are supposed to be _baby_ toys; but the commercial doesn’t give ANY other indication that a baby is there. Not even a slight one. No baby in the background, no baby with the mom and the dog doesn’t ‘speak’ of a baby. So what the fuck is going on in this commercial? 😕 I just don’t get it. Did you notice at all how much your post sounds like the voice of the dog…expressing the same bewilderment at the actions of the human? LOL…you are confused the exact same way he is! He is just voicing the probable thoughts of dogs everywhere who just can’t figure us out…like my cat who didn’t understand why I wasn’t thrilled with headless baby bunnies being left outside the kitchen door for me. Watch the sandbox one…“Just poop already!!!” And if you notice, the woman in the toys one isn’t upset…she smiles at the dog indulgently. The dog just thinks she’s not very good at her end of the game. It’s just sweet and silly imagining what our pets are really thinking. The insider trading one is a weird way to say, “hey, lots of pets at the shelter are there through no fault of their own, but because their owners are no longer around to care for them”. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/11 "2012-07-17T14:46:43Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Ok, then what explains the “surprised” angle? Why is she surprised that a dog would play with _dog toys_? Have you ever played with a dog before? If not, have you ever seen someone else play with a dog before? From the dog’s perspective, the human they’re playing with sounds excited to be doing so. “Oh, you found a ball! Here, let me throw it.” [dog brings ball back] “Oh boy! You brought it back! Here, I’ll throw it again.” Now, if they made a commercial where they show a person and a dog playing fetch, and the voice-over was the dog saying, “I guess I just don’t understand humans - they throw the ball away, and I bring it back, and seem really excited that I did. But if they wanted the ball so much, why do they keep throwing it?” would you understand what’s going on? ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/12 "2012-07-17T15:18:06Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Ok, then what explains the “surprised” angle? Why is she surprised that a dog would play with _dog toys_? > [@Munch](#): > > Have you ever played with a dog before? If not, have you ever seen someone else play with a dog before? From the dog’s perspective, the human they’re playing with sounds excited to be doing so. > > “Oh, you found a ball! Here, let me throw it.” > [dog brings ball back] > “Oh boy! You brought it back! Here, I’ll throw it again.” Yeah, this. When I play with my cats, it’s always, “Hey, where’d you find that mouse? We don’t want mice in this house!” Considering I bought the mice, they’d probably think I was incredibly stupid if they understood what I was saying. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/13 "2012-07-17T20:03:48Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Not sure if this is a IMHO topic or MPSIMS, but I thought probably the latter, so; I’ve been seeing [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SVnrNaNv7A) commercial for adopting shelter pets a lot lately and I _just_ don’t get it. I don’t get the whole ‘toys in the basket’ shit. Why would this woman be getting upset (which is what I presume the dog meant by “surprised”) by a dog playing with it’s own toys? And why, as soon as she discovers this, would she pointlessly then round them all up and put them back in the toybox? > > Unless these are supposed to be _baby_ toys; but the commercial doesn’t give ANY other indication that a baby is there. Not even a slight one. No baby in the background, no baby with the mom and the dog doesn’t ‘speak’ of a baby. So what the fuck is going on in this commercial? 😕 I just don’t get it. You’re overthinking this. It’s not about the toys. The message is “Pets are cute. Go adopt a pet.” ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/14 "2012-07-17T20:10:20Z")
There’s one on the Youtube page about a little boxer whose owner gets taken away for insider trading. These are cute ads! The litterbox one, hahahaha! My favorite. “Just poop already!!” ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2012, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/15 "2012-07-17T21:55:26Z")
Heh, my family trained our dog to put _his own_ toys back in the toy box! ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2012, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/16 "2012-07-18T01:01:50Z")
My dog doesn’t even pay attention to his toys. His “toys” are my socks, my shoes and anything and everything else _but_ his friggin’ toys. And I’ve bought him some nice ones. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Stilettos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/fbc32d/32.png) [@Red\_Stilettos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Stilettos)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2012, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/17 "2012-07-18T01:26:16Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > My dog doesn’t even pay attention to his toys. His “toys” are my socks, my shoes and anything and everything else _but_ his friggin’ toys. And I’ve bought him some nice ones. :mad: My first dog was like that. No toys, intentional or not. He was a very serious dude. Sweet, but not playful at all. My current dog loves her toys. I finally resorted to buying a box to keep them in to prevent me from stepping on them in the middle of the night. Like the lady in the commercial, I usually shake my head at the mess, and grumble sweetly at Stella as I return all of the toys to the box. I often find her rooting around in the box looking for whatever specific toy she’s after. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2012, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/18 "2012-07-18T01:31:11Z")
> [@Red\_Stilettos](#): > > My first dog was like that. No toys, intentional or not. He was a very serious dude. Sweet, but not playful at all. No, no, my dog is about the _most_ playful dog in the world. Definitely **not** a serious dude (just typing that makes me laugh). It’s just that he’s playful with everything _except_ what I bought specifically for, and what is made specifically for, him to be playful with. I think he does it purposely because he’s a devious fuck. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2012, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-please-explain-this-commercial-to-me/628467/19 "2012-07-18T02:03:03Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > My dog doesn’t even pay attention to his toys. His “toys” are my socks, my shoes and anything and everything else _but_ his friggin’ toys. And I’ve bought him some nice ones. :mad: Answer: Buy him shoes and socks.