Are any of your family members 'dog people?'

[Tortilla]

I was kind of thinking of this today. Both of my parents like dogs but aren't 'dog people,' and I don't know that they would own dogs independently. My grandmother used to breed Norwegian Elkhounds when my father was a kid, but that was obviously ages ago and she wasn't involved in showing them or anything and hasn't really had dogs since.

One of my great aunts does conformation with her miniature Schnauzers, but unfortunately there has been a bit of a divide in the family so I don't really see her anymore. She's the only one I can think of in my family that is involved in anything dog-related.

How about any of you? Do you have any family members that are 'dog people?'

 

[amberdyan]

Lots of my family members have dogs, but I wouldn't consider them "dog people." They don't do much with their dogs in the way of training beyond expecting them to be housebroken (and my dad even sent his dog away to a "board and train" place). Most of them don't really take their dogs anywhere, either. Hugo goes everywhere with us, lol.

 

[Moth]

I am the only dog person in my family... There are several family members that have dogs, but no one else that is a crazy dog person.

My mom and sister each have a dog that they love and dote on, but as far as doing dog related things...not so much.

Now my grandfather when he was young was a dog person... He used to have GSDs and did a lot of training with them. I was really young so I do not know if he did competition, but my mom told me once that he was pretty well know in the dog circles where they lived and she grew up in Germany.

 

[Slick]

Nopenopenope

I was never allowed to have a dog growing up. No way, no how.
My dad is fairly ambivalent about dogs. He'd take care of Leo if he needed to, but doesn't really care either way about him. He miiiight give him an absent minded pat, but wouldn't seek out petting and definitely not playing.

My mom is terrified of dogs after getting attacked by her family dog when she was 3 (the dog actually went after her as opposed to her having done anything). She doesn't want anything to do with any dogs. I consider it a high high compliment that she is comfortable to come into my room or house when Leo is loose. She tells him no if he sniffs too much at her, but otherwise is completely fine around him. I think she probably likes Leo best out of any dogs, because he is small enough to not be too intimidating and well-behaved and calm enough indoors for her to feel comfortable. If Leo ever jumped up on her (which he never has), she would scream.

That being said, I can and have relied on my family to take care of Leo when I am gone. He basically just turns into a backyard dog for the most part, and my little brother will play with him and take him for walks. Its not ideal, but absolutely adequate for a few days.

 

[sassafras]

Hahahahaha oh god no.

 

[crazedACD]

My mother's cousin has several rescue dogs and likes to do things with them but not as far as showing or sporting.

That's about it. No one even has any dogs anymore. My aunt's GSD passed some time ago and they didn't get another. I don't have a huge extended family though.

 

[Beanie]

My sister has dogs (well, just Henri right now) and I think she would probably fit in fairly well around here - she's not a dog geek the way I am about behavior and nutrition and the various science aspects of dog ownership, but she loves Henri and he gets Halloween costumes and Christmas presents and all that stuff.

My dad said no more dogs after Happy Express died so our childhood post-Happy was devoid of dogs. It wasn't until my sister moved back in with Happy Conquistador and Kota, then moved out and took them with her, that he relented. And I got Auggie. Adding a second dog was, um, not easy. Especially because the second dog I was going to add was ultimately Pepper and that was not... pleasant. Payton, erm, my mom basically told me to go get Payton and I didn't really ask. Literally the conversation my dad and I had that morning was:
"Are you going to bring this dog home?"
"I don't know... we're going to look at him, and if I like him and he fits all the criteria, I'm going to buy him. But I don't know until I go see him."
"Oh."
I didn't say anything else and he didn't either.
And then I came home with a Payton.

They of course have Georgie now and I really think they will have a second dog after we all finally get settled in the house... my mom isn't sure my dad can be swayed to get a second dog but she thinks Georgie will really want a doggy playmate. And I think my dad would prefer a nice Payton-type dog (though not quite so much dog.) So we will see. But they are definitely not "dog people." My mom doesn't do much training with Georgie. She is really kind of rotten as a result. But, well, she's cute and they have fun throwing a tennis ball for her, and I think that's really all they need.

My aunt and uncle have always had dogs but not sure they are "dog people" either really.


ETA: I always tell my parent friends "Yeah, my dad told me no more dogs when I was a kid, NOW LOOK HOW MANY DOGS I HAVE. Get the kid a dog." ahahaha.

 

[JacksonsMom]

Ummm I mean yes and no. Not like dog crazy like I am but most of my family are big dog lovers. They're maybe not as into nutrition, training, and bringing their dogs places, but most of my family dotes on their dogs, they get properly groomed, fed, and vetted, etc.

My mom and step-dad are NOT what I'd consider dog people at all. They're more of like 'likes having a dog around but doesn't want to do much with it" type people. They know next to nothing about dogs which is why I find it humorous they're talking of adding a cockapoo puppy late this month for my 6 year old sister, Emma. They had a cockapoo before who was great but the dog was left loose free roaming outside ALL the time. They would leave and go out for the night and just leave her out if she wouldn't come in the house (she was stubborn and would go hide under the deck). She was never groomed or fed properly. Ugh. This time I already told them things will be a lot different.

My aunt and grandma on my moms side love their dogs a lot.

My dad has always been a dog lover.

But again nobody as 'crazy' as I am. I don't know any 'in real life' (that I haven't met through training classes or the dog park) who do something like agility with their dog or hell, even basic obedience training. My grandma did one class with her Goldendoodle but was horrible with following through so he's still terrible. :rofl1:

But even the dog lovers usually come to me with questions regarding food and training and the like.

 

[JustaLilBitaLuck]

Not really.

A lot of my extended family likes dogs, and has them, but they're not super involved in them.

There are several extended family members that are super into horses, though. They show and compete with them and whatnot. I have a second cousin that has horses that also fosters dogs for a rescue, so she's probably the most dog involved relative I have. She lives out of state, so we keep up mostly through Facebook. She feeds her dogs excellent food, does a lot of holistic veterinary care, and is really into positive training methods and things like that.

 

[Red.Apricot]

Yeah. My dad has Zoey, Elsie's cousin. Zoey's two and has one UD leg. He's more of a dog person than I am by that measure. :rofl1:

 

[pinkspore]

My parents are not at all dog people, though they both grew up with dogs. I wasn't allowed to have a dog until I was 12 and a neighbor who's dog I walked every day showed up on our doorstep asking if we could please, please take her when they moved. I was an extremely angsty child before that, I wanted a dog so bad it hurt, and I cried about it every single day.

Decades ago my grandma raised and showed shelties. I have her Shetland Sheepdog Club of Southern California Best Veteran trophy from 1963. I rarely saw her while I was growing up though, and she had given up the hobby before I was born.

Neither of my siblings have dogs, and I would have said I had no dog people in the extended family either, until five years ago when my long lost aunt contacted us. She was given up for adoption as a baby, and looks just like my father. She breeds and shows border collies, is currently showing a greyhound bitch, and had some of the top Bernese Mountain Dogs in the country in the 1980's before a messy divorce resulted in her signing the kennels over to her ex and signing an agreement that she would not own/show/breed berners while he was still alive (wtf?). He just died and she already has a new berner and is taking me and him to the Bernese Mountain Dog nationals in the spring.

 

[TheDarkestMinds]

You have to participate is dog sports/events to be considered a "dog person"? Huh.....who knew?

I don't/can't participate in dog sports or events but I am 110% devoted to my dogs and what is best for them. I consider that to be a definition of a dog person...So going by my definition...Yes lol there are "dog people" in my family.

My brother is probley the biggest "dog person" other than me. He has been through a lot and always with him has been his Lab/Shiba Inu mix "Grace. Where he goes she goes.

 

[maxfox426]

A few, yes. They are very passionate about their own dogs, and are very responsible when it comes to care and making educated decisions for their own pet(s). They aren't necessarily dog enthusiasts in the broader sense, though.

 

[Fran101]

Not. At. All.
Lots of dog owners in the family, and while they do LOVE the dogs they themselves own...that's as far as it goes.

Nobody that would go out of their way to pet a dog or do too much research into owning/training their dog....just decent average dog owners.
I have a HANDFUL of family members that have done some research nutrition wise and gotten their dog on pre-made or grain free diets but that's it.

I'm the "dog person" around.

 

[Locke]

My parents, grandma, and sister have a dog each, and they love and dote on their dogs (my Dad even takes his dog for laser therapy), and are happy to dogsit, and my parents have come with me to get my foster dogs and such, but I don't think they would call themselves "dog people".
I know that after my parents' dog dies, they don't plan on getting another.

Not to toot my own horn, but if I hadn't been dog crazy growing up, I doubt they would have dogs now.

 

[Elrohwen]

Sort of. My parents and my inlaws all love dogs, and either own them or previous owned them. My parents don't currently have a dog, but they had dogs for 30 years. They adore Watson, and my parents are thrilled to have him around so much.

But none of them are into training or dog sports or anything like that. I think they find it interesting or cool that I do so much with Watson, but it's not something they would be interested in doing with their own dogs.

 

[joce]

Yes. Many of them.

My parents bred labs when I was young. I remember my dad telling me why we fed and watered them and spent time with them. I remember him crying when he had to put his guy down. I don't think I'd be nearly as compassionate for animals if it wasn't for having them when I was young.

Grandparents on my moms side rescued sharpeis for years. They are down to their last one and are just to old to handle anymore but not for my grandpas lack of trying. My grandma does have a west highland white terrier. Grandparents on my dad's side have been gone since my early teens but they had poodles.

Many of my aunts and uncles are good dog owners who feed good food, go to good breeders or rescue. My uncle who hosts Christmas invites the family dogs as well. The dogs are part of the family.

One cousin has several dogs and is involved in rescue and is a vet tech.

Another cousin has border collies and does herding trials.

Another cousin also does rescue and when we used to have time we spent so much time together with our dogs.



Now look at my husbands family where they never had a dog growing up and the ones that do have outside hunting dogs or dogs that have accidental litters etc. I used to just assume people where allergic if they didn't have a dog. In the case of my in laws they are just weird.

 

[Laurelin]

My mom was definitely but since she passed away not really? My mom showed and took training classes with the papillons. My middle sister certainly loves dogs (she has Nard and he's so spoiled). My youngest sister says she doesn't think she wants any when she grows up- totally foreign to me. She does seem more like a cat person.

I've got a couple uncles that use working dogs- one bred working BCs, another had a lot of pointing dogs. My dad used to hunt with pointers and labs too. My aunt used to be involved in the JRTCA stuff and also agility in the 90s so we talk dog training some. She's moved on to quarter horse competitions though. My stepmom and sisters are both horse people as well. Lots of horse people in the family.

My aunt on my mom's side is a big dog person as far as she loves dogs and loves her dogs. She takes great care of them and they are a big part of her life.

No one else shows though. It is nice that they all have horse showing though because they do 'get' the dog showing and training more, I think. I think they've started to realize that I enjoy dogs as more than just a pet just the way they enjoy horses more than just a back yard animal to ride. So we have common ground there.

 

[Ozfozz]

Both my parents "like" dogs and we've always had at least one in the house growing up.
But my mother grew up with hunting dogs that would mysteriously "disappear" if they were aggressive or just didn't live up to standards. So when she pulls the "I've owned dogs my entire life, I know what I'm doing" when it comes to Rigby and her issues....it kinda makes me mad.

My dad likes dogs, but much more in the sense that they will keep him company and provide entertainment - not so much in the commitment area. He's always been the one to say "no more dogs" when we had 2, then 3, now 4. He grew up with a miniature dachshund that was quite possibly the most placid dog in the world.
However, my dad was the one that talked my mom into ok-ing a Border Collie, and was the sole person to drive me to agility classes and trials.

And really, that's about it. My grandfather on my mom's side has retired to labs. His old one just passed within the last few months, and now he's got another old rescue lab from a member of extended family that could no longer keep him around.
My aunt & uncle on dad's side have some sort of ancient "chi poo" or something small and fluffy but not sheddy.

 

[MilliesMom]

I think both my husband and I took the rest of the family's share of the "Crazy Dog People" gene.