"be pet" vs "be petted" unscientific analysis

[firecat]

It's looking to me like a substantial proportion of the people who think "I like to be pet behind the ears" is correct have spent a certain amount of time in Michigan, Windsor, or Minnesota, or know people from there.

Then again, I grew up in Michigan (left in 1981) and I never heard it there, that I recall.

Comments

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

Another native Michigander here who never heard that usage while living there (or anywhere else until your post, for that matter). Perhaps it's a regionalism which has developed in the last couple of decades?