Perro vs Perra

Question

Ok,

so I'm writing this a paper for my Spanish class about my family, pets... blah blah blah. And I'm trying to write about my dog, who is female.

I also know the typical meanings for the word "perra" should I write "perra" (and does it simply mean a female dog, not the offensive term) or should it just be "perro"?

thanks for the help

Answer 1

This is a bit different in Spanish, at least in Spain. If you are simply saying that you have a dog, you could say "tengo un perro", but it is just as fine if you say "tengo una perra", and nobody will think twice about it (a friend of my brother's always refers to his dog as "perra", not in a joking way). I think the b-word is not comparable to our word "perra" in that sense, as long as you stick to four legged animals.

Same deal with caballo/semental/yegua. If you are talking about horses in a generic way then you simply say "caballo/s", but if you were talking to a horse owner about a particular one, it'd be a lot more likely for a female horse to be referred as "yegua" rather than "caballo", even if you are not talking about breeding.

Answer 2

I call mine perrita all the time.

Answer 3

perrita

If you want to say that your dog is female but are a bit wary of using the equivalent to the "b word", you could consider using "perrita" instead. This is more informal (and can sound a little colloquial) but takes away any offensive/rude meaning.

I wouldn't use it in any formal pieces of writing, but I've said "perrita" instead of "perra" to talk about my female dogs on many occasions.

"Tengo dos mascotas; un gato y una perrita."

Answer 4

We have this same issue in English.

You might say, "The **** protected her young."

But, you wouldn't use it to describe the family pet. "Our dog is a cocker spaniel."

You have said exactly what I was intending to say Joyce! :) - galsally, Oct 4, 2010

Also, people like vets or dog breeders would have no qualms about using the correct word for a female dog. - galsally, Oct 4, 2010

Answer 5

Welcome to the forum. I would usually use perro, unless there was some reason to emphasize the fact that she was a female dog. As you've noted, there are other implications to that word. Horse, for example, is always caballo. There are other words for mare vs. stallion, if you need to differentiate.

you are a much faster typist than I am! :) - mountaingirl123, Oct 3, 2010

he always does that:) - Yeser007, Oct 4, 2010

Answer 6

Hi, Seboran, and welcome to the forum!

That is a great question. Usually both male and female dogs are called "perro", but "perra" is not unheard of. However, you are correct to point out the possibility of slipping into oiffensive language without meaning to, and for that reason alone it would be better to stick with "perro".