As many of you already know Barbie has had many dogs, cats and horses in her life. Sadly the lifespan of our dear friends is too short and the animal lovers can foresee that in our lifes we'll have more than one fur friend and Barbie being 61 has had several of them.
The first years of Barbie in this world were marked by a dogmania. In those years was very usual to see in the streets many little dogs such as poodles, datschunds, bedlingtons... This was very influenced by the fact that the first Westminster Dog Show was televised in 1948 and the winner was covered in furry curls, Rock Ridge Night Rocket, a Bedlington Terrier of surname Rockefeller. The dog mania was unleashed, and, sadly, that dogs were used as symbol of status through all the 50s and 60s.
But who was Barbie's first dog? A poddle of course!
Poddles and similars always have been a popular breed but at that time were truly a fever, politicians and artists like María Callas had their poddles Toy, Pixie and Djeddas, Eva Perón had Tinolita and Jackie Kennedy had a bigger poddle version Gaullie. As Barbie couldn't be less in 1964 she had her first dog, a grey poddle in her set Dog 'n Duds with all the accessories he or she could need, because as far as I can tell the name nor the gender of the poddle trascended, could be that he or she was named Duds after all?
It seems that they ended up in competitions, because for the Poodle Parade set of 1965 Barbie and her poodle had won a prize and as for the occassion she couldn't go dressed plainly so she chose a green jumper combined with a white and green checkerboard coat and a very curious pink garment, the "dickey", which apparently looked like a piece of sweater but had its story. Its origins were in the dress shirts because being only the front piece it made it easier to clean and starch but in the 40s they became fashionable among women since, given the economic troubles of the war, these sleeveless garments that included only bossom and neck and fitted at the waist with an elastic could make each dress look different.
The icing on the cake were the olive green shoes, a pink scarf so that the “page” style of Barbie's hair would not be dishevealed by the wind and a “Tote bag” like those worn by English postmen of the early 20th century but in a glamorous manner and with representation of the winner embroidered on it. What child would not have been delighted to have the Poodle Parade in their lives?
by The Barbiest