What Does This Mean?
"Abusing the dog"; a joking complaint that a couple's public display of affection hurts single people ("single dogs"). It has nothing to do with real animal cruelty, for which the same characters are also used.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE
"Every feed was full of couple photos on Valentine's Day; for the singles it felt like 虐狗."
LORE & ORIGIN
Chinese internet slang built on 单身狗 ("single dog"): showing off a relationship is jokingly described as "abusing" the single onlooker. Chinese Wikipedia's article on 单身狗 describes 虐待单身狗 or 虐狗 as the emotional sting singles feel from romantic plots, couples' public displays or wedding news, and says this is why Valentine's Day is sometimes jokingly called 虐狗节. The related phrase 撒狗粮 ("scattering dog food") names the act of showing affection, while 虐狗 stresses the effect on singles. One academic analysis links the verb to an earlier wave of viral animal-abuse videos, but this is the author's interpretation. The first use is not documented.
MENTIONS OVER TIME
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