Anonymous wrote:Dogs have preferences

Btw, from the title of your thread, it had me thinking about cats. Cats do choose their owners. As long as they are permitted out the door, they will leave an owner they don't like. Or upgrade. There truly no-such-thing as a "lost cat".

Don't worry though Op, dogs don't leave their owners over -also- liking someone else. We did have a dog once who did not like anyone who had ever called her "fat". She was fat and occasionally someone would comment and use that fat. She never forgot.

This is true about cats. I had a cat I thought was lost until I spotted him 6 months later in the window of a neighbor's house a couple streets over. He actually came back to me 5 months after that. I
He stayed with us for a few months and then took off again.

Anonymous wrote:Dogs have preferences

Btw, from the title of your thread, it had me thinking about cats. Cats do choose their owners. As long as they are permitted out the door, they will leave an owner they don't like. Or upgrade. There truly no-such-thing as a "lost cat".

Don't worry though Op, dogs don't leave their owners over -also- liking someone else. We did have a dog once who did not like anyone who had ever called her "fat". She was fat and occasionally someone would comment and use that fat. She never forgot.

The idea of a cat upgrading their owner has me loling

Anonymous wrote:Some people just have that vibe. I have a friend that has been involved in rescue for decades. She has brought home hundreds of dogs. With very few exceptions, once they meet her husband, they all become 'his' dogs. He even has that effect on wildlife. I can't explain it.

Yes! My dh is like that, too. Our most recent cat was supposed to be "mine", but he loves my dh. He sleeps curled up next to him, purrs when he sees him and the cat even knows when dh is about to walk in the house and is waiting there for him. The cat also chirps and "talks" to dh.

Loved, not over🤣

I stayed at a HipCamp that had the sweetest resident dog, but he actually belonged to the neighbors. He just over hanging out with the campers and going hiking around the property.

The host felt kind of bad about it and tried not to do anything to overtly encourage him but but the dog just liked the vibe.

That’s super sweet.

Dogs have preferences

Btw, from the title of your thread, it had me thinking about cats. Cats do choose their owners. As long as they are permitted out the door, they will leave an owner they don't like. Or upgrade. There truly no-such-thing as a "lost cat".

Don't worry though Op, dogs don't leave their owners over -also- liking someone else. We did have a dog once who did not like anyone who had ever called her "fat". She was fat and occasionally someone would comment and use that fat. She never forgot.

OP here. Interesting! Neighbor definitely doesn’t smell like bacon 😂 Neighbor is polite but very private so at this point it is hard to tell if they have a special ‘vibe’ or if they have some illness (not visible to me) that makes my dog so protective of them

Hmmm, maybe your neighbor has a sickness that the dog is smelling? Your dog feels protective for some reason.

Aw, that sounds really charming.

Some people just have that vibe. I have a friend that has been involved in rescue for decades. She has brought home hundreds of dogs. With very few exceptions, once they meet her husband, they all become 'his' dogs. He even has that effect on wildlife. I can't explain it.

My dog is a sucker for people who speak to him instead of me, especially if they sound excited to see him. If they know his name, even better. If they give him more than a quick, polite stroke on his back (scratching his ears, patting his sides, holding his face in their hands while they talk to him, kissing or hugging him), he’s in love. There’s a couple in our neighborhood who are dog lovers and every time we come across them, they both fuss over him. My dog has gone blind over the last 6 months, but recently, he heard their voices from across the street and starting jumping for joy — something that is unusual for him.

They smell like bacon.

They like their vibe.

We have a very friendly dog, usually gets on well with dogs and people. In the last few months he really got very close to one of our neighbors. He would stop daily at their door barking and waiting for them (no treats only cuddles), super happy to see them, ‘protect’ them if other dogs are present, even come to us barking if he hears their car in the driveway.
It has been very interesting and surprising for me observing this. The neighbor is kind and patient with the dog but so are our other neighbors. I am very intrigued trying to understand why our dog ‘adopted’ this specific person.
Any similar experiences?