Dear dog lover, I don’t like your dog
How to tackle people who don’t like pets
I hear neighborhood kids squealing and running on the deck and near the front yard. I see them chatting on their way to school. I notice them zigzagging all around public parks. And there’s nothing I want to do more than to get as far away from them as possible. Yes, I realize I sound evil for saying that, but I’m just not into kids. They annoy me. I never wanted to be a mother. Nothing about raising another human being excites me.
Every time someone just assumes I have a child (or more), I always hear the same questions: 1) Don’t you get lonely? 2) Don’t you want someone to take care of you when you get older? 3) Don’t you want someone to carry your legacy?
My answers: 1) Never have been. 2) Life is not promised to anyone whether you’re young or old. Have you heard of children’s hospitals? 3) I’m not that vain.
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And they just cannot wrap their minds around it. To be quite honest, I don’t blame them. If you’re passionate about something, it’s hard to comprehend why someone else isn’t impressed. I’m relentless about voting, so I don’t understand non-voters. I have volunteered many hours and speaking events to sex education, so I don’t understand politicians and educators who ban it in schools. I have mixed opinions about senior living spaces, so I cannot imagine opting out of being a caregiver. I have been a two-time dog owner and two-year dog walker and boarder, so I could not imagine buying a home with a no-pet policy. (I kept nagging the board until they did away with this rule.)
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Everyone has a right to live how they want to live and like what they want to like, but what happens when their dislikes clashes with your passions? For pet owners, one example of that may come up when it comes to dogs. What do you do when your family members and friends don’t like animals?
Here are five ways to navigate this obstacle to avoid instant tension between yourself (the dog owner) and the non-pet lovers.