"Can ah pet that dawg? Can ah pet that DAWG?? Can ah pet that DAAWWG????! CAN AH PET THAT DAAaAWwWG?!!??!!?"
I agree but in some specific contexts I feel better writing "dawg" than "dog" because of the small chance someone thinks I'm calling them a dog.
Extra important because if I start a sentence with dawg, I'm already annoyed at someone and trying to get through to them.