Does anyone else find dogs seem to trust you more than how they trust other people?

Do most dogs like you?

  • Yes

  • No

Results are only viewable after voting.
SouthEastDude

SouthEastDude

Tourist
If I'm out, I'll usually ask to say hello to an owners dog if I see a dog, especially a breed my family have owned (they've currently got a springer spaniel) or a breed I have a lot of affection for. It might just be my own personal bias, but I notice that the occasional owner will be suprised that the dog is so friendly towards me and isn't usually like that with most people.

I don't know if it's just how I come across to the dogs or if they sense something about me, but does anyone else get something similar?

I'm just wondering if it's just random luck or if something bigger is at play.
 
In my experience: dog's, well not just dogs horse's, cows, pig's, alpacas..(when I was young)I even have had a Chinese watter dragon that seamed to have the ability to pick out my friends that were animal lover's.

Bealive it or not, I would walk around my house with my Dragon and he would hang on my shoulder. He could be around my cousins, my mom and grandpa. However he would hide behind my head and grab my neck when my dad or a few other ppl would come around. None of them were animal lover's by any means.

I believe that animals are in tune with more than we understand them to be, and that we have only begun to find out how amazing other life forms really are.
 
I completely get that. My bfs families dog can sense when she knows somebody is trouble (she's a german shephard so her senses are pretty refined). She'll bark at anyone that enters the property mainly as a guard dog/"look somebody is here!!!" thing but it's just to let the family know somebody new has arrived. She stops after a minute, but with some people she barks for way longer and just has a vibe of "I don't trust you" about her. Usually it ends up that she's correct.

It's pretty amazing, but I do 100% believe they know more about us than we think they do.
 
Um me and dogs are like pbandj as the saying goes. Never really met one that did not like me unless there was somthing seriously wrong with them. Normal dogs love me and some will fawn allover me. Some will go out of their way to introduce themselves to me first time seeing them. It is a massive compliment when a strangers dog will come up to you begging for attention, sit in your lap, at your feet, or next to you with their head in your lap. Even more intresting are the ones that will nudge your crotch or back up to you and sit right there. Trust me they are very perceptive and know a dog person when they see them. and someone that is zoo. Case in point my new neighbors big black mix breed female would arf at me when I would go up to get the paper or mail but her tail would be always be wagging and she would get as close as she could until her mamma would call her back to the house. She finally came up to me one day and would not leave me alone begging for attention in her cute, "puppyish" way. She was rubbing all over me, licking my hands, bumping me with her head etc.. crowding into me with her body. I could most likely have done anything I wished and she would not have objected.
 
I said yes only because of one interaction I had with a wolf dog once. This guy was huge and definitely not very trusting but he accepted me pretty much right away. Otherwise I don’t think I’m exceptional at spontaneously gaining the trust of dogs over an even-tempered non-zoo who also knows how to ‘speak their language’ to a sufficient degree.
 
I also voted yes because I seem to have a connection with dogs that even other people have noticed. There have been a few times when after seeing how well their dogs got along with me, their owners offered them to me. However, as fate would have it, I already had dogs who didn't play well with others. The German Shepherd was the most difficult to pass on but I had to be practical.

A neighbor has a dog who doesn't like most people but he took a liking to me for reasons I don't know. Perhaps it was because I used baby talk with him the first time. Whenever he escapes his house he usually comes over to visit, although not for the reason why some of you may think - Ha-ha! He's neutered and comes over just to hang out. I welcome all dogs to hang out here. I would also welcome cats if any decided to drop by.
 
My old job used to put me in contact with a lot of different client's dogs at their homes, and I would always insist they could sit with me while I worked. There were quite a lot of times where even shy and nervous dogs who would normal hide had no issue with me, surprising their owners.

The previous owners of my girl struggled to find a new home as she was too nervous when potential owners came to see her. When I first met her, she jumped straight on my lap and they were shocked saying she was like a different dog. It's probably more how I act around dogs, but I always think it's possible they know more than we think.
 
I think so too....

I had always been afraid of Dogs... well, not exactly afraid, maybe, wary of them... Then one time I had visited an Ex-Master's home who had a Shep. He didn't bark at me and infact gave me his paw for a handshake :)

Of course, he was perhaps trained to do that, but that kinda put me at ease and Master being the ever observant guy, I guess he decided there and then that this boy was going to be my first...

Since then, I have noticed that Dog's in general give me a 'look' whenever I pass by and maybe that also explains why I am able to find strays to feed and... ahem...

DS
 
SouthEastDude said:
If I'm out, I'll usually ask to say hello to an owners dog if I see a dog, especially a breed my family have owned (they've currently got a springer spaniel) or a breed I have a lot of affection for. It might just be my own personal bias, but I notice that the occasional owner will be suprised that the dog is so friendly towards me and isn't usually like that with most people.

I don't know if it's just how I come across to the dogs or if they sense something about me, but does anyone else get something similar?

I'm just wondering if it's just random luck or if something bigger is at play.
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Me, all the time. I've always had a primal understanding with animals. Could always calm even the most aggressive of dogs.
 
Hewflungpew said:
It's pretty amazing, but I do 100% believe they know more about us than we think they do.
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Definitely!
[/QUOTE]
Everyone conducts electricty, and smells. It's why you can tell someone is staring at you, or in the room. And for the smells, they have a stronger nose than us.
 
I worked very closely with animals as a career. Most dogs trusted or respected me easier than many of my coworkers. But interestingly when i walked intact males alone they would get frisky once we had established a relationship and a little trust. It was uncanny like they knew that i would allow and relish some ilicit fun.
 
Not if you mean because they know I'm a beasty oriented person....and that would be a RESOUNDING "no". As basic "dog people"? Yeah....they all can spot a sucker at a mile away.
 
I"ve noticed this. I've gotten dogs most people can't handle to listen to me, or aggressive dogs to suddenly turn into mushy pups. Interestingly it seems to usually be males, though one female Dutchie was very very into me.
 
If I act friendly towards dogs, they will act accordingly, as with any non zoo dog lover. If sex occur, of course the dog will love you a lot more after that, and in some situations it will prefer to be with you than with other people, perhaps even with its owners.
 
I was raised in a family where large dogs were the norm, from the time I was a toddler, dogs have looked after me.
subsequently I too have learned from them. so winning another dog over comes easily for me.
even Hard core cases like Wolf-Dogs, Akita's, Chows and Doberman.
 
It seems people are surprised by their dogs being so friendly towards me. Only hwd one ever not like me. Bugger attacked my as I walked past the family. Dont know the story their but yea. Normally dogs really like me. Been a long time since I've been around horses though so I can't recall quite well
 
Y'all wouldn't think it MIGHT just be because we pay more attention to them?...happens with horses too....especially a sweet little Buckskin Mustang filly I know of....still running free,and maybe one day... but unlike her compatriots on that range, she lets me approach to about ten yards on foot. She obviously wonders just what I am, but shes smart enough to think she doesnt want to know.
Pigs are probably the same, and they ALL know where the good comes from. Note too....this is what makes the diff between domesticable and wild.
 
Dogs definately have a sense about them about the emotions of humans around them, even if those humans dont even know. My wife had a border collie/GSD mix that was fine around other people.

However, the second someone had even the slightest hint of aggression towards her (my wife), her dog wpuldbplop herself between my wife and the other person and growl. She never attacked anyone, but she made it very clear that there would be problems if te negativity continued.
 
A lot of owners just don't get their dogs. I've spent my entire life trying to figure out what a dog is thinking as opposed to figuring out how to teach a dog to figure out what a human is thinking (most owners). It makes them feel at ease when they know a person understands them (look up bond based training...tangent but def pertinent).

I find that most dogs are comfortable around me. I contribute that too a lot of complicated factors such as body language (acknowledging the dog when they make eye contact and/or breaking eye contact if they're fearful/aggressive), pheromones (I'm ultra relaxed and probably let off oxytocin/dopamine when around a dog which they smell), tone of voice (squeaky/calm), and the list goes on.

I haven't been bit, but I've been growled at and nipped at before. Most of the time I can attribute it to something specific after observing the dog/speaking to the owner. I think the most recent nipping incident was visiting some friends after being around an intact male. Some neutered dogs just don't like that smell since it's a direct threat to their altered selves (so many owners with intact males will tell you stories of normally docile neutered males going for their throats). Other times the dogs just didn't like men, were protecting a female, kennel aggressive, or something related. Some people, when stressed, emit cortisols and other stress hormones which a keen dog can pick up on. Does the person have a crush on the owner? Were they almost in an accident on the way over? The dog may react to these hormones based off of past experiences. If the dog had negative experiences to associate these smells to, he will act accordingly. Alternatively, the dog may have some overly emotional owners and associate these smells with the need to nuzzle and make the person feel better.

There's a "science" behind it that people study for years and get a doctorate in. We do it without even thinking about it. It's what makes us us.

Be proud. ^^
 
There's always been this strange phenomena in my life where animals always seem to prefer me over any other member of my family. Even when I was a loud obnoxious toddler. One of my first memories is of my mom bringing a new puppy home, and he instantly ran over to me and fell asleep in my arms, even though I was still very little and inexperienced with animals. Whenever my sister touched him, he flinched away from her. Still to this day, I've never met a dog that didn't like me. In fact, whenever I'm pet-sitting, most prefer me over their owners. Even the most antisocial of cats warm up to me in a matter of minutes.

I think a big part of it is that I can read animal body language a lot easier than most. When I was little, I was obsessed with animals, so I'd always watch documentaries and read books about animal body language and use that knowledge to communicate with animals a bit easier. My family has always been pretty bad when it comes to understanding animals. They get up in dogs' faces, slap their noses, they're loud, they can't tell when the dog needs to go to the bathroom, etc. Over the years, I think animals have just learned that I understand them, so they always turn to me for their needs.

Another reason could be because I give off a comforting aura. Y'know, pheromones and all that. It could be the way I talk, as dogs respond to higher pitched voices. Maybe it's the way I smell, as I don't wear perfume or any other kinds of chemicals, and I carry a very natural musk. Maybe it's just cause I've got a higher body temperature. It could just be that I spoil them with treats and attention.

Who knows.
 
I have definitely noticed most dogs look at and act differently towards me than they do with most people.
i think dogs can sense when someone is looking at them for who they are and not "just a dog", and they can tell when someone is making a effort to communicate and understand them. I think they can sense or make a quick judgment of character based off body language and facial expressions, even if they are minute differences we don't perceive, they notice everything
 
Yes, actually!
I went to a friends house, a place I almost never go. He had a bitch, not sure of the breed, but after being there and patting her for 5 minutes she got this kind of sad look on her face, climbed up on the sofa, sat in my lap and rested her body against my chest. She hid her eyes under my arm, and lay there in my arms for a while.
They seemed like nice enough people, and their dog didn't seem afraid of them at all. But it was like she knew she was extra safe there with me.
 
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