Doggies getting down with designer fashion

You know fashion is going too far when couture extends to canines. Are designer dogs the latest “it” accessory?
The idea of dog clothing has been in the media in the last decade with Paris Hilton famously dolling up her dog Tinkerbell and Elle Woods making a spectacle out of Bruiser in “Legally Blonde.” However it’s always been something audiences smile at rather than emulate. Recently, however, designers are aiming to take things a step further, designing lines of clothing specifically for our pets.
Sure, dressing up dogs is cute and often times comical, but the majority of us view it as a one-time photo-op rather than an every day routine. The $5 ensembles from Petsmart are one thing, but when designers branch out to dogs, how do you draw the line between cute and creepy?
Juicy Couture is one of the leading designers contributing to the “designer dog wear” trend, creating a line of designer dog apparel including t-shirts, collars and even coats. The tees are cute enough, but the pink leopard fur coats similar to the ones being sold to humans cause major questioning and the $75 price tag doesn’t help matters much either.
They even have a pair of flower hair clips for dogs for $25 per clip (and you’re supposed to buy two, one for each ear). This is much more than the majority of us would even spend on a hair clip for ourselves. The most comical, however, is the doggie “hoodie” - as if a dog really cares if his hair gets wet in the rain. If you want to check out the trend, dog ensembles can be purchased online through Juicy Couture, or at the store in the mall.
Juicy isn’t the only designer jumping on the doggie bandwagon. High fashion designers are contributing as well. Chanel has a dog leash and collar identical to the strap on the famous 2.55 handbag. Hermes also has an orange, leather collar with a padlock on it resembling the famous Birkin bag. Both will cost an eye-popping $500.
Is Fendi for Fido and Ralph Lauren for Rover really worth our extra pocket money? If that much money is to be spent at all, one would think something for ourselves would be far more practical and worthwhile than designer duds for the dog.