Why do people in LW divorce/btb stories almost never have pets?

[James G 5]

I've been bingeing a lot of LW stories focusing on cheating and splitting up, btb, RAAC, other, to help me form some ideas for a story & I just realized something odd while reading one where a wife horned up by a coworker pulls her husband away from fixing dinner for sex without putting the food away... where are the pets?
The stories OFTEN deal with the kids, but in hundreds of stories from many authors there's almost never a mention of a cat or dog. Statistically that's REALLY unlikely, and pets would often play a part, whether it be as something to be fought over (one tale did that & cleverly hid that it was about a dog until the end), something that gives someone a reason to live, or any number of other things.
Doesn't seem to matter which way the story goes, the troubled couples never have pets.
Why?

 

[TheRedChamber]

I mean, there was that one story I read where the Rottweiler savaged the Other Man and the 'Hero' got off assault scott free...

I guess, however much we love animals in the real world, it's just much harder to get emotionally invested in who gets custody of a dog.

 

[Euphony]

Modern life is hard. Both parents working. Housekeeping. Childcare.

Sometimes you do whatever you have to to get dinner on the table.



Sometimes his mistress even helps.

 

[EroticCupcake]

I've not read any LW or BTB stories, but your observation is a good one. Resolving kid dispute stuff (to me) is much too heavy for erotica unless you are intentionally exploring tough stuff. I would convert children to golden retriever and get the same emotional impact with way less baggage. I don't want to read a sex story and wonder about the poor kids. Rusty the golden retriever will be fine either way.

 

[AchtungNight]

Speaking for my cat, I hope he would be smart enough to distance himself from the sort of people who populate that sort of situation and its most prominent audience.

 

[AG31]

I've been bingeing a lot of LW stories focusing on cheating and splitting up, btb, RAAC, other, to help me form some ideas for a story & I just realized something odd while reading one where a wife horned up by a coworker pulls her husband away from fixing dinner for sex without putting the food away... where are the pets?
The stories OFTEN deal with the kids, but in hundreds of stories from many authors there's almost never a mention of a cat or dog. Statistically that's REALLY unlikely, and pets would often play a part, whether it be as something to be fought over (one tale did that & cleverly hid that it was about a dog until the end), something that gives someone a reason to live, or any number of other things.
Doesn't seem to matter which way the story guys, the troubled couples never have pets.
Why?

What are btb and RAAC? They don't seem to match any categories.

 

[SimonDoom]

Probably for the same reason I don't see pets in other categories of stories. They're irrelevant. They serve no dramatic purpose. If the pet isn't necessary to the story, get rid of it.

There's absolutely no need to stuff your characters' story lives full of the little things that actually inhabit the lives of real people we know. A little goes a long way.

 

[Bamagan]

Burn the Bitch (revenge) and Reconciliation At Any Cost. (Or all costs, etc.)

What are btb and RAAC? They don't seem to match any categories.

One of my characters has a pet cat, although more for comedic purpose than dramatic. But overall I agree, most erotica has little need to delve into such things. Or if it does, Lit probably wouldn't publish it.

Probably for the same reason I don't see pets in other categories of stories. They're irrelevant. They serve no dramatic purpose. If the pet isn't necessary to the story, get rid of it.

There's absolutely no need to stuff your characters' story lives full of the little things that actually inhabit the lives of real people we know. A little goes a long way.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I haven't read a lot of LW, but I do recall seeing some mention of dogs there. "She took my dog" is a pretty standard country-western way of putting the boot in when the Evil Ex breaks his heart, and I'm sure I've seen at least one where the dog pissed off the evil ex by showing his loyalty to the guy. Should be some more in this lot: https://search.literotica.com/?query=dog&categories=12&page=1

I feel like a lot of the LW crowd wouldn't be cat people.

What are btb and RAAC? They don't seem to match any categories.

"Burn The Bitch" (stories where the guy gets his revenge on the ex who did him wrong, occasionally Burn The Bastard); Reconciliation At All Costs, where they look to mend things. Two of the major rival genres in LW.

 

[lovecraft68]

There's a dog in every story, its the husband

 

[SimonDoom]

Seriously, unless they serve a valid purpose in the story, off Kitty and Rover go to the Literotica Animal Shelter.

 

[Bramblethorn]

One of my characters has a pet cat, although more for comedic purpose than dramatic. But overall I agree, most erotica has little need to delve into such things. Or if it does, Lit probably wouldn't publish it.

I've put pets in a couple of mine. They can be quite useful in establishing the human side of the story.

Nadja from "Loss Function" is a hard-edged kind of person who doesn't see the point in pets, and her long-distance relationship with Trish goes through some tough times (illness, migration, etc.) before they're finally able to make a life together. Trish getting a puppy marks the fact that they're settling down into a more conventional situation for a while, and Nadja's drift from "why would I want a dog?" to "guess what Toby did yesterday?" helps show some of those hard edges softening. Later, when Nadja gets dementia, the point where she can no longer remember who Toby was helped me convey where she was along that road.

Rafi in "Copper Coin" has a cat who gives the two humans an excuse for quality time together - they're both petting the cat, it's just accidental that their hands keep brushing one another! - and provides some interruptions when I need to shift the mood of a scene. The point where Rafi puts the cat outside the bedroom so she and Penny aren't interrupted seemed less heavy-handed than having her say "I am now ready to have sex with you at last".

 

[SimonDoom]

What would be considered a valid purpose?


One of my latest stories includes a dog. emotional support for the MFC after her mom died when she was a kid. Another recent trauma has set her back emotionally quite a bit and the dog plays a role in providing comfort but she kinda starts showing indifference to the dog (though earlier she makes a point of begging her best friend to look after the dog if something happens to her.) at one point, indicating depression is taking over. (Asks her friend to take the dog home with her because she doesn't want to have to do anything resembling caring for another being.)

That sounds like a valid purpose to me. My point is that there should be nothing surprising about pets being scarce in erotic stories because very often they don't have a valid purpose so there's no reason to refer to them.

 

[James G 5]

Probably for the same reason I don't see pets in other categories of stories. They're irrelevant. They serve no dramatic purpose. If the pet isn't necessary to the story, get rid of it.

There's absolutely no need to stuff your characters' story lives full of the little things that actually inhabit the lives of real people we know. A little goes a long way.

I have seen pets in other stories, it's part of establishing realistic characters for people going for more than stroke fodder. More to the point, the category of stories I'm talking about (not LW in general but the cheating/breakup subgenre) often has little to no sex and LOTS about the characters' lives. Which is why the statistical improbabilty of such low amounts of pet ownership stands out.

 

[James G 5]

I feel like a lot of the LW crowd wouldn't be cat people.

Actually that makes me wonder why the poor broken wife living in her dingy apartment doesn't end up with a lot.of cats.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

I don't think I'd add a pet into the mix of an LW story. Though in some other categories, I have written a few stories with dogs and cats that did pretty well. I think for a certain type of story, having a pet that they care about makes the characters seem more human.

 

[Bamagan]

Which is why the statistical improbabilty of such low amounts of pet ownership stands out.

Maybe the reason they wind up cheating and avenging and all that is because they're not pet owners.

 

[SnakeKing100]

There's a dog in every story, its the husband

Hey can you let me message you?

 

[Bramblethorn]

Actually that makes me wonder why the poor broken wife living in her dingy apartment doesn't end up with a lot.of cats.

*eaten by

 

[Smuttyandfun]

Actually that makes me wonder why the poor broken wife living in her dingy apartment doesn't end up with a lot.of cats.

Then the trolls would add 'crazy cat lady' to the other names they call her.

 

[AchtungNight]

Speaking as someone who was once married to a crazy cat lady… I am glad we parted ways amicably and she was willing to take back two of the three cats she left in my house when she moved out. I could only put up with that many animals so long and was about to call the shelter. As for the third cat I still retain, he can stay as long as he doesn’t get too demanding of my attention. One cat is enough for me. If his former owner wants him back, we can discuss it in private. It will be a very interesting conversation.

 

[MrPixel]

A puppy is central to my most recent series, Barstow. He's basically what brought the two loving couples together.

IRL our dog determines whether we can go out for date night. He is a rescue that has extreme separation anxiety. Just tonight... minutes ago... we returned from a pleasant time at our favorite local tavern. As is now our custom, he stayed in the car and was rather upset he wasn't near us, despite his being able to see us from the parking lot. His meds finally kicked in and he was a doll, sitting upright in the driver seat as if he was a chauffeur standing by to take his people home.

 

[AlexBailey]

I’m surprised there aren’t more pets in hook up stories, they’re great ice breakers and lots of chance encounters happen because of pets.

 

[MrPixel]

Meet Sky:

 

[AlexBailey]

A puppy is central to my most recent series, Barstow. He's basically what brought the two loving couples together.

IRL our dog determines whether we can go out for date night. He is a rescue that has extreme separation anxiety. Just tonight... minutes ago... we returned from a pleasant time at our favorite local tavern. As is now our custom, he stayed in the car and was rather upset he wasn't near us, despite his being able to see us from the parking lot. His meds finally kicked in and he was a doll, sitting upright in the driver seat as if he was a chauffeur standing by to take his people home.

I saw a Great Dane sitting in the front seat of a Tesla in a store parking lot on a hot day. There was a sign in the window saying:

“The dog is fine. The AC is on and he’s listening to Steely Dan.”