[ninetyninenine]

It’s not baffling. Dogs appeal to our paternal and maternal instincts. They have evolved to hijack it.

They reproduce faster then us so puppies are able to get cuter then babies over generations and thus they are out competing us.

[johnea]

I would only agree to this to the extent that humans have engineered this "evolution".

That's why they're called "breeds", because humans bred them.

They're bred for cuteness, violence, but mostly they're bred for profit.

The "pet industry" is a rapid growth segment of the economy. If a pet is "part of the family", then isn't the "pet industry" basically a slave trade?

[ninetyninenine]

Yeah. They hijacked our maternal instincts and our productivity instincts. Dogs have evolved to the point where they now have humans handling artificial selection for them instead of relying on natural selection.

It's a 1000x speed up to have humans picking out the cute ones and deliberately forcing this forward to make money.

You have to realize that it's our own instincts driving this forward and if it detriments humanity then the traits of "seeking profit" or "seeking cuteness" become subject to natural selection. These traits will go away with time.

[triceratops]

Calves aren't cute?

[ninetyninenine]

Not as cute as doggos. You realize most people think puppies are cuter than human babies right?