On reddit's frontpage, the word choices people use for posting/commenting about pets is worthy of some sort of proper study.

They've started to co-opt words typically reserved for human children at a rate that is difficult to believe is some sort of bias on my part. It's bizarre. Pets are surrogate children.

I've seen one person do it in my neighborhood (a suburb outside of Chicago) and I believe it's because it was an older dog. I am guessing it either had trouble walking, or because of the heat.

i guess if you have a stroller laying around, and your dog can't walk so well anymore, why not?