Why do dogs love me so much?

[allcreaturesbigandsmall]

My friend has a very nice dog she loves it to pieces and it loves her but its absolutely besotted with me. It's a joke between us. I've never done anything out of the ordinary, it has never stayed with me, I don't feed it or walk it. This far from the first time this has happened, ones friends dog became so in love with me that one day when it had been sitting with me and he came over it started to growl at him it never did it with anyone else. Another friends dog who is not very friendly goes mad when I come into her house.
To put this in context I was brought up on a farm and have spent my whole life around animals, I'm not very sentimental about them and treat dog like dogs nothing more nothing less, I expect them to behave themselves, they are not allowed on the furniture upstairs etc when I'm busy they are expected to keep quiet, up until recently all our dogs lived outside in the barn at night because that is where I was always told dogs were happiest. Dogs do know where they stand with me. I read on here "dogs are part of my family" "as important as my children" I don't believe this, they are animal's I will be very upset when the current dogs die but its not the end of the world its not like losing a child. I believe all animals should be treated with kindness and looked after properly but they are not people in furry suits.

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

Ok!

Maybe it's your offhand approach.

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

Btw, I think my dogs are part of my family - a huge part of my life -, but not nearly as important as my children. You've chucked those quoted in together, but I don't think they go together. Or not for me anyway.

[Floralnomad]

Perhaps your friends dogs are starved of affection normally and go mad for all visitors in the hope they'll get a cuddle or maybe they are (like my dog) just very people orientated and love anyone new / different . My dog loves people ( doesn't like dogs) ,he adores visitors , wags his tail at people in the street and greets everyone with massive enthusiasm - he is particularly fond of older people and small children , which is what he rarely sees indoors . I doubt you are anything special . As for the rest of your post I think you are just looking to start an argument and I'm not even going there .

[MothershipG]

Must be your smell

[NoahVale]

I agree with Mothership

or perhaps they are trying to please you

[ABetaDad1]

You are obviously a born pack leader. Other dogs immediately want to follow you. Have you seen the Dog Whisperer with his pack of dogs?

By the way I am very much with you on dogs as I grew up on a farm with 40 dogs at one time. Thy were mostly working dogs but also my parents had show dogs but only one was ever allowed to live inside - although she was a Dual Champion in both the show ring and the field so very special. We mother cried every time one died though.

[MightyMug]

I was thinking smell too!

[CMOTDibbler]

I think some people just are very attractive to animals tbh. My dad is - any and all animals love him, even those with big behavioural problems and he can do anything with them.
He's Mr Unsentimental, having learnt to ride by keeping getting on horses at the meat mans yard until he stopped falling off and I learnt from tiny that if we had livestock we'd have deadstock. And you damn well took responsibility through that whole cycle. Dogs were only allowed in the kitchen and were expected to show instant obediance.
I think what animals like about him is that he is very clear as to what he wants them to do and the boundaries.

[allcreaturesbigandsmall]

Slightly aggressive replies by some I think or maybe I'm getting the wrong or impression or maybe your getting the wrong impression of me sorry if that's the case. It's become a standing joke with my friend and it's Sunday morning and I was just idly wondering why, nothing more nothing less so to make it clear:
"I think your just asking to start an argument"
Why would I want to do that?
"I doubt your anything special"
I didn't say I was, I was just interested in the opinions of others, frankly I couldn't care less whether or not other people's dog like me, in fact it's actually bit of a pain because their dogs are always trying to climb into my lap, and like my face which I actually loath, mine are not allowed to do this.
"You chucked those quoted in together"
These are just examples of comments I've seen not aimed at anyone person.
"Dogs owned by others who aren't massively demonstrative
A very interesting point this would definitely apply to one but not the worst offender.
Smell. I wondered this, and it would seem the most obvious explanation. Unfortunately that "smell" also makes me highly desirable to mosquitos!

[allcreaturesbigandsmall]

CMOT your dads ethos is my ethos, and yes other animals are attracted to me horses in particular and dairy cows. I am very clear about what I expect and what is acceptable.
Maybe that's part of it?

[pigsDOfly]

My dog used to be like this about my DD1.

She isn't a dog person at all (has 2 cats). She always says hello to the dog when she sees her and a gives her a stroke but other than that she's pretty take it or leave it.

My dog adored her. I would only have to say DD's name and dog would be rushing around looking for her - she's calmed down about DD a bit now she's older - but we also, as pp said, came to the conclusion that it was DD's slightly offhand manner that made her so attractive to the dog.

Maybe they like a challenge.

[hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman]

My son is like this, animals seem to adore him. He's a falconer by trade and has a way with the birds that he works with that some of his colleagues don't. Our two dogs would die for him and in the past, when he worked at a specialist small animal referral hospital he could often work with the dogs that others found aggressive/difficult. My son also has Asperger's syndrome, he finds people difficult to read but he finds animals very easy. We also had a cat that was semi feral, the cat was very much bonded with him and when he left home to start work in another county the cat left home too never to return.

I don't know why some people are animal magnets but they are.

[ABetaDad1]

hellhas - very interesting about your son and his way with animals and his Aspergers.

You may have heard of a woman who has severe autism called Temple Grandin. She is an amazing woman who is an American academic who has used her autism to understand how animals think and has advised most of the US meat packing and stockyard industry on design of humane conditions for the keeping and slaughter of cattle.

[Gingersstuff]

Probably just one of those things.
By the way, the pack leader/Cesar Milan stuff is about 20 years out of date

[hollinhurst84]

My dad is like the sodding dog whisperer. Give him something aggressive and within minutes it acts like a happy puppy
He just seems to have a quiet way with them. On the other hand I get trailed by cats

[hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman]

ABetaDad1 Indeed, I have indeed heard of Temple Grandin, I used to work in special education and have seen more than once the benefits of deep pressure on some children with autism

[ADishBestEatenCold]

I used to know a guy who was adored by every dog he met ... but in his case they all seemed to want to hump his leg! Poor guy became the butt of many a childish joke (students at the time) and he quite understandably wasn't too keen on dogs!

Not the same as your case, allcreatures, and ... on a less frivolous note ... I have read that this attractiveness to dogs that don't (necessarily) know you is a smell thing.