Parent bloggers began taking aim at the film, which stars Will Arnett and features the voices of Ludacris and Jordin Sparks, shortly after its May 18 release. One woman wrote in a post on Macaroni Kid that she was horrified when her daughter found the scenes funny and had to explain to her that \"we never let anyone touch our private parts.\" Dawn Hawkins, the executive director of the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, issued a statement as well, claiming that \"Show Dogs\" \"sends a troubling message that grooms children for sexual abuse.\"
“It contains multiple scenes where a dog character must have its private parts inspected, in the course of which the dog is uncomfortable and wants to stop but is told to go to a ‘zen place.’ The dog is rewarded with advancing to the final round of the dog show after passing this barrier. Disturbingly, these are similar tactics child abusers use when grooming children -- telling them to pretend they are somewhere else, and that they will get a reward for withstanding their discomfort,\" the statement continued. \"Children’s movies must be held to a higher standard, and must teach children bodily autonomy, the ability to say ‘no’ and safety, not confusing messages endorsing unwanted genital touching.”
Before agreeing to change the movie, Global Road Entertainment responded to the criticism by defending those scenes.
\"The dog show judging in this film is depicted completely accurately as done at shows around the world; and was performed by professional and highly respected dog show judges,\" a statement from Tuesday read. \"Global Road Entertainment and the filmmakers are saddened and apologize to any parent who feels the scene sends a message other than a comedic moment in the film, with no hidden or ulterior meaning, but respect their right to react to any piece of content.\"
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