Wikipedia:Time to take the dog for a walk

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This page in a nutshell: If you find yourself in a heated debate, it may be time to give yourself a break and take the dog for a walk.

There are times when you become too emotionally invested in a situation on-wiki to be able to engage constructively with the community, and discussions degenerate into hurtful recriminations and blaming. When this happens, it's time to pick up the dog's leash and take him for a walk. Hopefully, you can clear your head and restore your sense of balance.

While the dog is likely to bring its sunny POV to lighten your mood, be sure to avoid cats, as their input will likely aggravate your suspiciousness.^[1]

If you do not have a dog, attempt to borrow a neighbor's dog, and walk theirs instead.

If your neighbor does not own a dog, take a short trip to the local pet store or animal shelter. This may still clear your head, while having the added advantage of not having to clean up after the dog. If the nearest store doesn't have dogs or kittens to visit, they will probably have some very soothing fish tanks to watch. As a last resort, rather than steal a pet, look for snails or anything cute to adopt and walk around. Those walks could take a while, but then that's exactly what we want.

See also