@BagDogs Is the Instagram Account Aggregating Cute Pics of Dogs in Bags
Welcome to #FollowFriday, a Teen Vogue column where we speak with the creators behind some of Instagram's coolest style accounts. This week, we chat with @bagdogs, an account sharing adorable images of dogs in bags.
If you know me well, then you know I really love dogs. Sadly, I don’t have one of my own yet, but I do have a vintage sweatshirt with a dog on it that I sometimes joke is my actual pet. Speaking to strangers’ pups on the street or going by the dog park are two of my favorite pastimes. Plus, I also really love bags — most recently, super tiny ones that barely fit anything, like the Mini Chiquito bag by Jacquemus that’s been making waves on the internet. So when I saw online that there is an entire Instagram account dedicated to pictures of dogs in bags, I knew I immediately had to reach out and hear all about it.
Started by a data scientist, who prefers to remain anonymous, the @bagdogs account is four years old but only really started blowing up in February. A niche account with over 35,000 followers, the @bagdogs feed is chock-full of all kinds of cute pups hanging out in all kinds of bags, from carriers to totes to baskets. Scrolling through the feed, one cannot help but smile, chuckle, and say, “Aww” out loud. It’s truly like nothing you’ve ever seen before.
Teen Vogue spoke with the founder of @bagdogs about what initially inspired the account, what they like most about running this Instagram, and their related style observations.
Teen Vogue: What inspired you to start this account?
@bagdogs: I had a stockpile of dog and bag photos on my phone, and I was like, this is the perfect niche Instagram for people who like dogs. Or really, for anybody because who the hell doesn't like a dog in a bag? If you don't like a dog in a bag, something's probably amiss. So I started it, and then it was initially just friends following me. Then I started getting submissions from people, and it rolled from there.
TV: What is it about bags and dogs that interests you?
@bagdogs: Honestly, I just smile every time I see a dog in a bag. It's just so good. They always have a goofy face, and sometimes you just see the head poking out, and it's funny. Some people will even cut or tear holes into the bottom of an Ikea bag and put their dog in that. I love how New Yorkers skirt the rules.
TV: So what do you like most about doing this account?
@bagdogs: I wake up every morning to 10 to 20 hilarious photos, and it definitely is a good way to start my morning, to just go through some bag photos on my commute to work. Also, I have met some interesting internet friends now, including other niche dog accounts on Instagram.
TV: Do you still take a lot of the photos yourself?
@bagdogs: It doesn't really happen that much because I personally don't like taking photos of strangers. Online, I get people who will send me the same photo of them every week, standing in the mirror with their dog in a bag, and they’ll be like, "Post it." But most people are chill. They just send me a picture and they're like, "This is great, and keep up the good work" kind of thing. I guess I just consider myself more of an aggregator of bag dog content at this point because everything I post is user-submitted.
TV: How do you feel when you see a dog in a bag in person?
@bagdogs: I definitely gravitate towards it. The other morning on the subway, it was inconvenient for me to go to this specific car, but I saw a dog in a bag, and I'm pretty sure it was a dog that I had posted before. So I went just so I could sit across from it.
TV: Have you ever posted a pic and then someone identified the dog?
@bagdogs: It actually just happened this morning. I'll post something, and then the owner or the owner's friend will be like, "Hey, you're famous, you’re on @bagdogs." So very often the dog that has been posted will get identified in the comments of a post.
TV: From a style perspective, have you had any related observations?
@bagdogs: There's definitely different types of owners out there. There's people who go super utilitarian and use a bag that was built for carrying dogs. It definitely happens more with medium-sized dogs that you can still carry. But then you get into the realm of, like, real tiny dogs, and you can just throw those in anything. I'd say the tiny-dog bags are the most stylish, probably. Then you get into the realm of the big dogs that you can't carry. So they just do the Ikea trick, which is arguably a pretty sick accessory to just have a walking a bag dog.
TV: Oh, my God. I'm looking at your feed right now. The one with the dog and the backpack and the guy's on a motorcycle. How's that dog breathing?
@bagdogs: Some people are kind of wild, and I’ve had to delete a post before because the comments erupted with people being like, "That dog needs water" or "That owner is a piece of shit." And I felt really bad after the fact. So now I'm pretty cautious about what I post to make sure the dog looks comfortable.
TV: What are some of the most stylish ones you’ve come across?
@bagdogs: I don't often post ones that would align more with fashion because it just doesn't really match the style of what I post, if that makes sense. I'm way more into the candid, goofy scrunchy face on the subway thing and not some posed fashion one.
TV: So are you a dog person?
@bagdogs: Very much so. I had dogs all growing up. I would love another dog eventually, but having a dog and being single person is really hard.
TV: Are you into fashion?
@bagdogs: I'm pretty into fashion. I definitely follow it way more than I partake in it.
TV: Where do you think the interest in dogs and bags came from? Was it something from your childhood?
@bagdogs: It's totally something that most people wouldn't be aware of unless maybe you live in New York and ride the subway. There's nothing that harks back to my childhood that spurred me on to do this. I just like dogs a lot, and I think when they're in bags they look really funny.
TV: What do you like most about running this account?
@bagdogs: It's a lot of fun. I like meeting new people, and I just have little internet micro friendships now and stuff like that. I also like to make sure that every single thing I post gets tagged and credited to the submitter. And it makes people feel good to have their work recognized. So I enjoy doing that. When people get their stuff posted, they freak out, and they're like, “Thank you so much. I love your account.” You know, it feels good.
Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
