Leonberger Facebook Groups Are the Nicest Dog Groups I Have Found

I’ve been, or am, a member of several Facebook dog groups. I’ve found that most of them are awful. Take for example the Pug groups. I’ve joined a few Pug groups so that can post about Daisy. What I’ve found is that almost all of the Pug groups have preapproval turned on for all posts. Most other groups (Leonberger groups, beer groups, discussion group, etc..) do not. It would not be a bad thing if it wasn’t for the fact that the administrators/moderators of several of the Pug groups take weeks before they approve a post, all while shamelessly doing constant self-promotion, promoting products, and spamming the group they are supposed to moderate. I am a moderator or administrator in several groups, and I certainly don’t behave that way.

Another thing that annoys me is that they copy the photos that members post and then repost them in multiple places and multiple groups without attribution. Look at my photo from Daisy’s birthday below. That photo was copied (not shared) without attribution in lots of groups, multiple times, receiving several thousand reactions and thousands of comments, which is something I only found out about by accident. Who knows how far and wide the photo was spread. Unless someone explained it to you, you would think that it was their pug and that it was they who took the photo. I assume they do this because they want to get attention and be social network influencers. I’ve never complained, that probably would get me banned from the groups in question. However, I don’t think that is the way to run a group. I have not yet found a decent Pug group.

Photo of our Pug Daisy being fed a pupcake.
Photo from Daisy’s 15th birthday on October 22. This photo has been spread all over Facebook without attribution.

This brings me to the seven Leonberger groups that I am a member of (there are many more). I’ve listed them below. Only one group does post pre-approval and they typically approve posts within a few hours. None of moderators/administrators of these groups spam their groups, try to push products, or copy members photos/posts without attribution. People have friendly informative discussions, and they get to know each other. The Leonberger community is smaller, and the owners/administrators/moderators of the groups are more mature and responsible. I think it makes a difference that Pug groups tend to be run by attention seeking youngsters. I wish I could find a Pug group that was more like a Leonberger group.

  • Leonberger’s All Colors Worldwide
  • LEONBERGER
  • Leonberger Double Digit Double Club
  • Leonberger Forum
  • Global Leonberger Lovers
  • Leonberger Lovers
  • Frontier Leonberger Club of the Southwest

I think my favorite Leonberger group is the Leonberger Double Digit Club. It is a group for Leonberger owners with Leonbergers who ten years are old or older. Leonbergers tend not to live very long so that is why this is an exclusive club. It was one of the former administrators (and founder) of this group who suggested to me that I write a book about our Leonberger Bronco.

Below I am posting a few screenshots of my posts from the Leonberger Double Digit Club.

Photo of our Leonberger Bronco and our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo in the lower right corner. Both close up to my face.
Our Leonberger Bronco standing in the kitchen. Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is behind him.
This photo is from Bronco’s 12 years and 8 months birthday. He demanded a greenie by slamming his paw in the floor. Daisy our Pug and Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd are looking on from behind.
Bronco our Leonberger just got his grey muzzle award, which is given to all Leonberger (who’s owner apply) older than 12 years old. Being older than 12 years old is rare among Leonbergers. The photos show Bronco with my wife holding his diploma.

Jacqui pointed out to me in a comment below that you can take action when people are using your stuff without attribution. A photo that took me a second to take may not be a big deal, even though it is bit rude to use it as if it is yours. However, when people copy artwork, as had happened to a few commentors below we have a more serious situation. So anyway, here is the link that Jacqui posted in her comment. (You can also visit the comment).

Send them a DMCA take-down order (https://www.dmca.com/FAQ/What-is-a-DMCA-Takedown) or turn them into Facebook for copyright infringement.

Unknown's avatar

Author: thomasstigwikman

My name is Thomas Wikman. I am a software/robotics engineer with a background in physics. I am currently retired. I took early retirement. I am a dog lover, and especially a Leonberger lover, a home brewer, craft beer enthusiast, I’m learning French, and I am an avid reader. I live in Dallas, Texas, but I am originally from Sweden. I am married to Claudia, and we have three children. I have two blogs. The first feature the crazy adventures of our Leonberger Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle as well as information on Leonbergers. The second blog, superfactful, feature information and facts I think are very interesting. With this blog I would like to create a list of facts that are accepted as true among the experts of the field and yet disputed amongst the public or highly surprising. These facts are special and in lieu of a better word I call them super-facts.

56 thoughts on “Leonberger Facebook Groups Are the Nicest Dog Groups I Have Found”

    1. Yes it seems to be young people who want to be influencers. I looked at about 10 Pug groups and they all seem to be that way. I’ve seen one Pug photo (not mine) that seems to pop up in every group and always posted as if it is the poster’s Pug when it isn’t. I never saw any of this in the Leonberger groups.

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  2. It’s such a shame, Thomas, that the Pug group acts in unscrupulous ways.
    I can understand your frustration.

    I loved the articles and all of your photos you posted.
    And wonderful award given as well.

    I know the feeling you speak of as I found an Instagramer had been using some of my artwork. I’m not on Instagram but a friend got in touch to alert me.
    Some people have no scruples.

    Wishing you a lovely weekend xx

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    1. Thank you so much Sue. Yes, the difference between the Pug groups and the Leonberger groups is striking. The difference seems strange at first but then the clientele founding the Pug groups and Leonberger groups seem quite different. It is young people wanting to be influencers versus older professionals who often are Leonberger breeders and have a reputation to protect. Reposting photos without attribution is quite common on Facebook but not right. Doing it to artwork is much worse. Taking a photo takes one second. Creating art is real work and creativity. That is really bad to copy without attribution. I am sorry that happened to you.

      I wish you a lovely weekend as well.

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      1. I give most of my artwork away. So my thoughts were they must gave thought it good enough to pass off as their own.
        Not good if I was a professional artist however who was making a living from it.
        I paint and create just for my own pleasure.
        But I agree with you on all counts.

        Wishing you a peaceful Sunday xx

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    2. Even if you don’t sell it that is a significant violation. It took me one second to take that photo using my old cell phone, so I am not going to complain, but creating art takes hours of creative work. Jacqui posted in a comment below a link showing what to do.

      I wish you a peaceful Sunday as well.

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      1. Thank you, Thomas. I read Jacqui’s comment, and she’s very right. We let many things slide because we don’t make a fuss.
        My incident of my art was a good few years ago now. It was why I put the copyscape on my home page ..

        Thank you again, and enjoy your weekend .

        Like others have said, I would leave the pug group, but not before you’ve made your complaint with them over your photo. It’s definitely not right of them or how they run their group.

        I, too, was a moderator years ago on a site, and there are protocols to follow on both sides..
        Sending kind regards to you. X

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    3. Thank you so much Sue. That is interesting. I have to see what to do with the three pug groups I am part of. I got the impression (as I was seraching for a pug group) that this behavior was pretty typical for all the pug groups I found. In addition, post approval makes it impossible to post a complaint about it. They won’t allow that. I tried already. But we’ll see what I’ll do. You are right, normally moderators and administrators don’t behave that way. I wish you all the very best as well.

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  3. My goodness, I had no idea you belong to so many Facebook dog groups!! That makes me feel better. I was a member of several Chihuahua and Yorkie groups and last month cut back drastically on those groups because I just couldn’t get to all of them all the time. But you’re right. Good Facebook dog groups are awesome. I love the discussions in mine about health problems, food choices and warnings, behavioral problems, etc. Because of my decades of experience with ferals and abused dogs and cats, I’m always helping someone in my Chihuahua groups who has adopted a feral or horribly abused dog from a rescue or shelter, by teaching them how to socialize and gain the dog’s trust. Likewise, I learn so much from other members with experience in other areas. Breed groups can be such an informational and networking blessing!! On the other hand, I can’t believe the unprofessional behavior of the admins in your pug groups. I’ve never heard of behavior like that before or post approval that takes weeks. Wow. Can you just leave those groups and continue with the pug groups that act more responsibly? Or are they all that way?

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    1. Thank you so much chihuahuagirl3. I am a member of seven Leonberger groups and three Pug groups. I looked at about ten Pug groups and they were all bad. I don’t understand how that can be. Maybe Facebook is suggesting the bad ones to me. I joined one Pug group but I left after they had not approved my Pug photo after three weeks. Incidentally it was the photo above. Leaving the group meant that I could not post or comment in the group, which isn’t strange, but I discovered a loop hole. After I had left the group they approved the photo and I got a notification despite not being a member. So I responded briefly (with a thank you) to all the nice comments (about a hundred). I could do that despite the fact that I was not a member. However, I noticed that I could only reply to other people’s comments on my thread. I could not add a new comment to my thread. It was just an interesting loop hole that I did not know existed.

      Anyway, I would like to find a responsible Pug group. Maybe I will but not yet. You have to try them first.

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      1. The way I find my Yorkie and Chihuahua groups is by doing a search for the word “Chihuahua” or “Yorkie.” Posts come up and groups come up. I click the “groups” tab and it gives me a list of groups in that breed. Maybe you could do that with the word “pug” and find better pug groups? But you’re right about having to try a group out. I wish you could see posts in groups, even public groups, before you join but usually you can’t. You have to join first and then check out the posts. Because of that, I’ve been known to join a group and leave it 5 minutes later if the posts look like a bunch of fluff. As always I’m looking for good discussion and real people who post about their dogs. Not bots. lol!!! I go for the smaller private or public groups too. Those huge groups that have 100+ posts per day tend to be kinda fluffy with lots of promotional stuff. Smaller groups seem more personal.

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    2. Thank you chihuahuagirl3 for your advice. About the search, that’s kind of what I did. However, I realized after the fact that the bigger groups tend to be worse. The thing with the Leonbergers groups is that they are usually not very big because the Leonberger breed is a rare breed. Maybe that is what makes the difference. I will keep looking. Again thank you for your advice.

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      1. So true. Smaller groups are best. Last week I noticed one of the big Chihuahua groups gets over 100 posts every day. But most are just styling. Probably posted by bots or promoters. Forget that! Give me real people posts any day in the smaller groups. lol!! Good luck, dear friend!!

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    1. Yes I agree, it is rude, and I believe you are right. The founders/administrators of the Pug groups all seem to be young and attention seeking. They seem to think that if you join their group it means they can your photos and pretend it’s theirs. It is so different from the Leonberger and beer groups I am a member of. I asked my daughter about it and she said not to complain. She said young people who want to be media influencers and get lots of likes and reactions and comments, they do this all the time. You post on facebook. Your photo is up for grabs to be used by anyone for whatever purpose. I did not know that, but that is their thinking.

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      1. Some years ago, my husband was in a class action lawsuit against Facebook because they sold some of his pics to Shutterstock without his knowledge or consent. He still doesn’t know which ones. Apparently, years ago, it was written in the terms of service they could do that. My understanding is that it’s not anymore.

        I understand your not wanting to make a fuss, though. It would not be worth the time.

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    2. Wow they sold his pictures! That’s pretty arrogant and potentially a mess. I hope he/they won the lawsuit. It seems like these Pug group administrators are thinking along the same lines. It is my group so I can just take what people post. But I don’t think they are selling anything, well I hope so. If Facebook are selling your pictures to Shutterstock, what would happen if you use your own pictures? I am just wondering about the crazy things that could happen.

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      1. It was a maybe fifteen years ago? It was a class action lawsuit. I’d have to ask him, but I think he received about $20 or maybe $20 each for three pics? Something like that. Obviously, Facebook stopped doing that.

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  5. What a beautiful grey muzzle award! I love seeing your photos and hearing stories about your little rascals. 🙂

    As far as FB goes, I was previously an administrator of a fan group. I’d made all kinds of graphics for it only to find other groups were using my graphics, too. It’s disheartening, that’s for sure. I think it’s one step further to swipe someone’s personal photos of their beloved furry friends without attribute. What bad manners!

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    1. Thank you so much Kymber. It is very kind of you to say. Taking graphics without attribution is worse than a photo because you book work into it. That should be called out. Unfortunately, it seems to be extremely common. My daughter told me that young people who want to be media influencers think that if they’ve seen it on Facebook or Instagram they can just go ahead and use it.

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    1. Thank you so much Jacqui. That is very useful information. My daughter told me not to say anything or complain because young people who want to be influencers do it all the time. They need attention and if you post something on Facebook or Instagram it is considered by them to be free to use anyway they want. On the contrary it is considered rude to complain about it. I don’t mind a share (so you can see where it came from), or a copy/paste with some sort of attribution. They don’t need to ask me. It is not art work. But they pretend as if it is their photo. I am not going to complain about this. I am just noting that it is bad behavior in every Pug group I looked at, which is a sharp contrast to the very rsponsible Leonberger groups. However, if I had created art or taken an artful special photo I would use your link.

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      1. I understand, Thomas–absolutely. I come at it from a different perspective–not right or wrong, better or worse. I think we won’t stop this sort of theft without saying something. ‘See something say something’. Absolutely do what works best for you.

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      2. I think you are right, but copying artwork is much worse, as have happened to some of the commenters above (Kymber, Sue…). I mentioned your comment with the link in another comment above and I just got the idea to updated my post with the link. Some of our blogger friends have been violated a lot worse.

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      3. Hi Thomas, young people need to learn that they cannot just take other peoples pictures and artworks and use them as their own. That is a very important lesson. My experiences of youngsters in the writing world is that they don’t want any feedback unless it is telling them that their work is fabulous. They don’t want constructive critisism that helps them improve and grow. I don’t know why the younger generation think you don’t have to do any ‘apprenticeship’ to learn and gain competence in a craft. I see the same thing in the work place. This is not a rant, it is a concerned observation about how the world has become. You should object to misuse of your photographs.

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      1. Smart to sign your artwork (which you should–they are gorgeous). Now, if anyone steals it, they have to brush out your name making their intent obvious. There’s also an invisible watermark which I don’t know how to make.

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      2. Yes Roberta, I believe you are right, regarding comment ….”Hi Thomas, young people need to learn….” The comment structure is confusing me a bit. I think the worst part (in the pug groups) is that the way they post it makes people believe it is their pug. If you follow them carefully, it soon seems like they have a 100 pugs. It’s an entire culture. Unfortunately, you cannot say anything because the same people who does it (administrators/…) guard everyone’s comments with preapproval. That’s what you have to put up if you join these groups.

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  7. That’s not right they use your photos without your permission or credit you. Sorry you had this experience. Glad you have found some groups that don’t do this.

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    1. I guess a few people taking my photo and passing it around without attribution is not a big deal. However, the admins do this all the time to any member in the group who posts a good photo, while guarding/approving what members say and do. They seem to think that if you join their group they can do whatever they like with your posts and comments, stealing or stopping. In addition they spam the group with self promotion and products they are selling, which is what an admin should stop, not do themselves. Luckily the Leonberger groups are responsible and great.

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  9. Some Facebook groups definitely aren’t worth your time and people blatantly steal others’ images all the time! I’m sorry this has happened to you as well. 😦 Your images are delightful, but nobody has the right to use them without your permission. Thanks to Jacquie for advising what to do about it.

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    1. Thank you Debbie. Yes a lot of groups are just terrible. I wish there was a way of finding out without joining them. It makes me grateful for the Leonberger groups. You are right Jacqui is really well informed about a lot of useful stuff including this.

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  10. I’m glad the Leonberger groups have turned out to be respectful, friendly, and informative, Thomas. I’m not on facebook often, but I can see how it has pros and cons. It’s very easy to grab images without considering that they may belong to someone. Great photos of Bronco! What a sweetheart. 🙂

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    1. Yes, you are so right. Unfortunately, the Pug administrators seem to pretend it’s their dog. At least what it looks like and what people believe. I am so glad the Leonberger groups are great. Thank you, Diane, and thank you so much for your very kind review of my book on Amazon. I just saw it yesterday. I really appreciate it.

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  13. Hi Thomas, I only really use three FB groups for writers and creators and those are all run by authors I know and like. I am sorry you’ve had issues with the pug groups. I generally do my socialising on my blog as most people who comment are virtual friends who I share common interests with.

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    1. Thank you. Yes, you are right. Our Bronco impressed a lot of people with his size, but he was like a big teddy bear. Once when I was walking Bronco a neighbor was letting his black labs run loose. He shouted to his wife, honey get the dogs inside, someone is walking a bear out here.

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