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These happy dogs in costumes have a word of advice for their humans this Halloween.

Halloween is awesome, and we would know. We're dogs in costumes.

Pocky, a pug, is dressed in a military costume. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

Adults, kids, and even pets like us get to dress up and make believe however we want on Halloween.

(There's even candy involved, which is a nice bonus.)


Superdog catches a frisbee. Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images.

But sometimes people want to divide our imaginations by gender, and we're not into it.

Take a walk through any costume party or Halloween aisle and you'll see what we mean.

Boys and men get to be traditional police officers. Girls and women? Not so much.

Golden retrievers Champ (L) and Jordan (R), dressed as SWAT team members. Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images.

Girls and women get to be butterfly princesses. Boys and men? Well, you get the idea.

Daisy, a bulldog, is dressed as a princess. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

The whole thing is pretty gross. (And we know gross. We eat cat poop.)

A dog dressed as a spider takes part in Halloween dog parade. Photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images.

Why? Because men don't own masculinity, just like women don't own femininity.

Hanging a gender on a costume doesn't make much sense at all, especially for kids who are still sorting out their identities.

Dachshund-terrier mix Robin, dressed as a mail carrier. Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images.

As young people sort out their identities, who are we to keep them from expressing themselves?

Bon the dog poses as an iPhone. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

This Halloween, take a cue from us, the pets in your life (and our pet-parents), and dress how you want.

Bambi, a Dachshund mix, is dressed as Superman. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

We're dogs in costumes, and unless you look really closely (why would you, though?), you can't even tell whether we're male or female.

We're just playing dress up.

Rudy (L) poses as Michael Jackson and Parker poses as his girlfriend in the "Thriller" video. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

We're walking, barking furry reminders that setting aside gendered costumes and outdated expectations matters.

Why? Because being who you want to be in this world matters.

A dog dresses as the wolf masquerading as Grandma from "Little Red Riding Hood." Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

This year on Halloween, do us pets a solid: Encourage the kids in your life to choose whatever costume they want.

After all, when children dress up, it's more than play — they're learning too.

Bella Luna, a Pomeranian, is dressed as a chef. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

If that means shopping in a different section or skipping the party store entirely this year, so be it.

Terrier-pitbull mix Parker dressed as a unicorn. Photo by Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images.

Short of appropriating someone's culture or heritage, everyone deserves to play as they please.

A Chihuahua is dressed as an aviator at a Halloween dog costume parade. Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images.

That's what Halloween is all about.

Just when you've seen everything, a dog cowgirl. Photo by Timothy Clary/AFP/Getty Images.

So have fun. Be safe. And, most importantly, be yourself.

(Or, better yet,  the costumed version of yourself you want to share with the world.)

Tommy attends the 3rd Annual Bow-Wow-Ween. Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images.


Time travel back to 1905.

Back in 1905, a book called "The Apples of New York" was published by the New York State Department of Agriculture. It featured hundreds of apple varieties of all shapes, colors, and sizes, including Thomas Jefferson's personal favorite, the Esopus Spitzenburg.






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Gen Xer explains sense of 'impending doom' that seems to define the Millennial generation

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At the end of his YouTube video “Does Anyone Else Feel Like Everything Has Changed?” self-development influencer Stephen Antonioni makes a rather haunting observation: "In many ways, the world is a better place than it was yesterday, just judging by objective measures. But I can't help share the feeling that something is off and perhaps terribly so. And therefore, I have to ask the question: Does anyone else feel like everything has changed?"

The most popular comment on the video, which was liked over 28,000 times was written by a YouTuber named Tracy Smith. Even though, at 57, she’s a Gen Xer, her thoughts have resonated with thousands of Millenials.

“I am 57. Not only does it feel like ‘something wicked this way comes’ but there is also this feeling that the whole world is holding its breath. Almost as though we are all waiting for some catalyst or sign or event that puts an end to this feeling of being put on hold,” Smith wrote. “This vague, unexplained unease we feel. Something terrible lurking just out of our field of vision but we all feel it closing in. I cannot count the number of people who have told me they wish that whatever is going to happen would just get on with it. That this waiting for the thing in the darkness is unbearable.”

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Melissa Pateras explains how dry cleaning works.


Have you ever wondered what happens at the dry cleaners? Or are you like me, who just assumed the people at the dry cleaners were wizards and never questioned their magic? Turns out, dry cleaners aren't magic and there's actually a pretty interesting explanation of how they came to be and what they do.

Melissa Pateras is known on Tiktok for her laundry knowledge. Seriously, her ability to fold laundry is hypnotizing. This time, she created a video explaining what actually takes place at the dry cleaner and the internet is aghast.

Before Pateras explained what happens in the mysterious world behind the counter of a dry cleaner, she asked a few of her friends what they thought dry cleaning was. Their answers were...interesting to say the least.

One friend surmised, "You put it in a box, right...and then you let some wind, really fast wind, blow around on your clothes and it wipes off all the dirt." The friend, whose username is @unlearn16, continued with her working hypothesis, saying that the clothes are then blasted with infrared heat to sterilize the garments. While that is certainly an interesting theory, that's not what happens.

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Doberman's blissful reaction while getting pampered at bathtime goes viral

This "scary" dog's next-level beauty routine proves there's nothing scary about him at all.

Representative Image from Canva

May this adorable video show that Doberman's don't deserve their bad reputation.

Let’s face it, Hollywood has given Doberman’s a bad reputation. So often they are depicted as the canine henchman to the evil villain, that many people assume that’s their temperament in real life.

But the truth is: like just about every dog on the planet, Dobermans are sweet, loyal and affectionate canine companions. And, much like Pit Bulls, they are not nearly as inherently aggressive as pop culture makes them out to be—especially when properly trained.

I mean, just take a look at Atlas. This goodest of good bois recently went viral on TikTok while getting a nice, relaxing bathtime session. He proved that not only are Doberman’s capable of extreme levels of chill, they can have a deep felt appreciation for some good old fashioned pampering.

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The sense of your body not belonging to only you can start during pregnancy. Everything you do directly affects your developing fetus, and once the baby is born, it needs a lot of physical contact for proper brain, social, and emotional development. So babies are held a lot outside of feedings. Those babies turn into toddlers who then turn into early school agers, all of whom rely very heavily on co-regulation of their emotions and being physically near their parent to feel safe.

It's pretty much a constant state of being touched throughout much of the day. When psychologist, Dr. Raquel Martin reveals she too feels touched out in a video on Instagram, parents across the internet felt validated.

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For those in the military, sleep can mean the difference between life and death. But shut-eye can be very hard to come by, especially during active conflict.

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