If you’ve followed us here on Today’s Parent for a while now, you probably know that we aren’t huge fans of pranks that intentionally make your kids cry (remember that spider filter on Snapchat") or make people laugh at your kid’s expense (remember “cheesing” your baby").
So when we saw that some parents were sharing videos on Tiktok and Instagram using a filter that stretches out their face into a horse head to intentionally freak out their babies, we knew we had to say something?again. Here’s an example:

 

View this post on Instagram

 
A post shared by Dr. Olga Treko, DPT (@olgiestyle)

Now don’t get us wrong?between the face stretching and the silly yodel, this filter is undeniably hilarious. If your little kid knows the difference between a funny photo filter and reality, they’re sure to have a giggle fit from watching your face (or their own) transform into a silly horse head. Just check out the older sibling in the video above getting a total kick out of it. However, babies who don’t understand that distinction are getting terrified from the filter and that’s what we have a problem with. From the clips we’ve seen, parents are showing this filter to their babies for no other reason than to make them cry and frankly, when cruelty is the point, it’s just not funny. Take a look at this little one who supposedly never cries at anything but ...