How important is it that your boyfriend or girlfriend like your pets?
You start dating someone new and introduce them to your cat, dog, snake….. whatever. How do you expect them to react? Does it get under your skin if they completely dislike your pet? Does it bother you if they’re just indifferent to them? How much does it really matter whether they put the effort in to care about and eventually love your pet? Would you break up with someone who hated your fur-baby, scale-baby, etc?
How Crucial Is It That Your boyfriend or girlfriend Like Your Pets?
I know my opinion is not going to be popular, but it is my opinion. First, this is somewhat of a complicated topic. I don't allow dogs in my home. Even if my apartment allowed pets I still would not allow one in my home. If you ever enter a home where there is a dog you will know why. I remember a situation where a man and his girl were going to live together in his apartment. She had a large mixed-breed dog that shed hair all over the place. It broke the man's heart, but he told the girl if she moved in the dog had to go live with her parents. She decided to not move in and later they broke up. Relationships are 50-50. If a partner does not like pets they actually have that right. It does not mean they are evil or bad people. One of my sisters was bitten by a dog back in the 1960s not her fault, the dog attacked her in our front yard. To this day they make her uncomfortable. Not wanting to be around pets is not the same as hurting them. Let's make sure this difference is fully understood!
I agree it’s a compatibility issue. I make sure to always ask if a person like pets before we begin to date. If they don’t then we’d be better off not to begin a relationship.
A pet is an excellent determiner of someone's personality. If your pet doesn't like the person you're dating, there's a good chance that a long-term relationship won't work. Listen to your pet.
I like to look at dogs but owning one is different because I’m very sensitive to unpleasant smells and cleaning dog vomit is traumatizing for me, before my mother had brain issues, she cleaned up after him and I had no pet care duties. My dad is the one who took care of his poop.
@AshLee83 very important because your pet is like children a family member a packaged deal in other words. plus sometimes dogs can see things we can't in people
It is necessary part of growing positively together. If they did not like the dog they would in effect be saying, “your choices suck…what kind of judgment do you have?”. There is no way around this sort of interpretation and same with kids…. How horrible is it to not like her 6 year old boy. HUGE factor….
Yes, it is bad if they are in a relationship. I know a guy that walked his stepdaughter down the aisle with the biggest crap-eating grin you could ever imagine. Her biological father died in a car crash when she was about 6 months old. Some men have no issues with single moms. Some do. Please don't stand in judgment of a man that tells her clearly up front he can't do it. This man I mentioned is a very good friend of mine who married a fantastic lady who later gave him 2 more kids. He is now a grandfather 3 times over and is very happy today. I will finish my comment this way. If you have never walked in the shoes of such a person please don't question their life choices.
Thanks! Yeah. I don’t want a shit ton of pets. They become too hard to take care of and love on properly. But she will definitely have to like my pet (s) long as their friendly.
I don’t think I could be with someone who hates animals though
If you're going to be living together then it's important, if you have dog and your partner hates dogs can make the living situation be difficult. That's why it's important to know if the person you're dating is animal lover or not.
it is key... I know that it is quite rare, when people just down right hate pets but I know that I could never be with anyone like that
but, for anyone to dislike my cats in particular? there are no valid reasons to dislike my cats other than being a hater, lmao...
they are the most behaved, incredibly clean, they're not aggressive at all, they even tolerate other pets that show up from time to time as long as they keep a personal distance, lol, my cats are not clingy nor needy... even when they're the most active and playful they are not all over you
they are just the best, lol... and if someone has a problem with that then there's something wrong with the people, not with my pets
besides, there's plenty of space around my place, so that won't be a bother either lmao
I agree! Though there are some people that pose as animal lovers or act like they don’t mind animals but over time they start to complain more and more. I’ve been unlucky enough to witness that first hand. My pets weren’t the one to go!
It depends, there are a number of factors to consider. At the end of the day, it is a case-by-case situation.
The most important thing is how you feel about your pet. My mom looks at her dog as another kid and anyone that would accept her dog would be a deal breaker. Unless they have a reason I couldn't see anyone not liking my mom's dog. She is a very sweet dog.
Another thing would be the pet's disposition. As I said above my mom's dog is sweet, some pets are mean to anyone outside their owner or immediate family. You can't really hold it against someone that doesn't like a pet that seems to never want to give them a chance.
The last one I am going to go into is allergies. It is not really fair to the pet or the person in question if they are allergic to the pet. It would be difficult to like being around a pet if doing so causes you to go into a sneezing fit or worse. In that case, the pet would not even understand what it did wrong.
All valid points!! I do know quite a few people severely allergic to cats or dogs and allergy medicine helps them stay in the house with the pet, they just can’t touch it much.
Yes they are, I'm so glad that my mom's dog doesn't speak our language. I've talked to her so many times in the last two years about issues I just had to get out and she always listened.
It’s more important that my pets like them. If i have a pet that recoils or becomes aggressive with someone, that someone has to go. No joke. On the other hand, if my pets are kool with them but they’re not kool with my pets, they need to learn acceptance. Cuz i’m not getting rid of my four-legged family for anyone OR putting up with complaints or passive aggressive BS over them. Every person who ever issued to me an ultimatum was immediately and permanently excommunicated from my life. I’ve never missed a one. Ell oh ell!
It is very important because there are actually cases where couples broke up because of it. Sounds petty but little thing like this can cause misunderstanding in the household. My partner and I both like dogs but we don’t own any because each of us like different breed.
I think it would depend on how much of a problem it created. If they were a-holes about it it would be a deal breaker. I'm not sure how things would go if I owned a snake and the girl was terrified of it.
Definitely deal breaker if they were jerks to my zoo! Two kids, two dogs, and two kittens…it’s a bit of mayhem wrapped in love…. tied with a sparkling bow of chaos!!!
It's imperative that they get along with my 5 cats and my dog. All my animals like being by me. If the woman can't handle it ill show her the door. I will choose my animals over anyone else, it doesn't matter how attached I am to them.
It’s actually really important. And all the other small things in your life. 50% divorce date is because of small things. Toothpaste in the sink, to dishes…in the sink. Lots of sinks.
My furbabies will have to be accepted. That being said, I cannot stand snakes and will not date someone who has one as a pet. To me, people should be upfront about what pets they have so they do not waste the other person's time.
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