Dr. Manny: Brooklyn tattoo artist who inked his dog is a disgrace

Tattoo artists typically use devices similar to this one on clients.

A Brooklyn tattoo artist sparked controversy this week after posting a picture of the new ink he gave his passed out pooch on Instagram – and with good reason.

“Mistah Metro,” as he’s known in the tattoo world, posted the picture with the caption: “My dog is cooler than yours!” The image showed a heart tattoo with an arrow through it, and the names Alex and Mel, on a shaved portion of the dog’s front shoulder.

I have seen dumb and cruel things in my 57 years on this great earth, but sometimes, when I think things can’t get any worse, a man sedates his dog and tattoos the poor thing.

Placing a tattoo on a defenseless animal is not only inhumane, but deeply disturbing. Granted, I may be biased when it comes to animals and tattoos because: 1) I hate tattoos, and 2) I love animals.

For many people, tattoos are a form of artistic expression; I get it. But exercise that artistic expression on your own body. To me, tattooing your pet is perverse and selfish – especially since the poor, defenseless dog didn’t have a choice.

An animal is there to be your companion, not your canvas. He or she is not there to entertain you, but to share their life with you. They look to you for protection, just as you, sometimes, feel protected by their presence.

I don’t know if any laws were broken here. The only thing I know is that I will use the images of this little dog and the sarcastic smile of its owner to show my daughter that animal cruelty is real and present in our society.

Though we don’t live in barbaric times, acts like this make me think we do – and remind me that we need to get back on the right track. We are better than this.