Male vs. Female

[jltracy]

This may sound like a stupid question to some of you, but being a new dog owner, I'm really curious about it. Why is it that our new dog (Rocky, a chihuahua mix of some sort, male, about 3) is already super attached to me and not so to my boyfriend? We've both spent about the same time with him, together and alone. But when I"m in driving and Derek is in the passenger seat holding him, Rocky fights and fights to get on my lap (which I will not allow). Same with when we are walking him together, he has to be next to me, or if Derek walks behind me a bit with Rocky, then the dog races up to me, but if I walk behind Derek, Rocky won't race up to him. Poor Derek feels so bad, and so do I because I don't know if Rocky doesn't like him for sure or if he just likes females better.

 

[adojrts]

It just happens and often for no reason. Our son at first was very sadden that 'his' dog absolutely adored his Dad. Although I was the one feeding her and training her..........
My one dog Bobbi, he loves us no doubt but he is In Love with my friend Laura (Chaz member) and I believe he would go and live with her in a nano second.
Our son Jeff, he now has his heart dog Sprout, no doubt that she lives for him and he for her, she's his little princess.
Petie is my heart dog, he and I have always had a connection and although he cuddles with other family members, he is always near me etc. He is a dog that I could have easily made SA where I was concerned, but I worked very hard for his first couple of years to avoid that for his sake.

Here's a twist for you, I had a dog once, she adored my husband and he didn't like her on any level.......go figure.

 

[jltracy]

So there's nothing we can do to get him to bond more with my boyfriend?

 

[youhavenoidea]

I have often found that male dogs tend to bond more closely with female humans, and female dogs to male humans.

 

[puppydog]

Well, my very new male (got him on Friday) is already super bonded to me. He is a mommies boy second to none. My bitch on the other hand is a daddies girl. She loves her daddy with every ounce of her being.

I would just wait a while and let him get used to his dad.

 

[Gena]

Give it some time. Having your bf to do most, if not all, of the dog chores like feeding, potty trips and such might help. One on one training, especially something like clicker training, will help a lot. Also watch how each of you interact with Rocky. Does bf reach over him to pick him up? Is he louder? A lot taller/bigger? Does he "push" the dog to like him?

For an example of something that might help try this in the car. Have BF have something yummy that Rocky can nibble on or lick. A peanut butter loaded Kong, a hunk of partially frozen chicken or something like that would work well. It would serve the purpose of teaching Rocky that yummies come in the car AND from bf.

 

[TheGoldenRetriever]

Some Chihuahuas tend to be "one-person dogs" ... but that doesn't mean they don't like the rest of the family.

Agree with Gena though .... follow her suggestions and give it time. You only just got this dog and he is a rescue. Pretty common for rescues to bond with one person at the beginning.

 

[DanL]

Most of the time a dog bonds with the person who feeds, trains, walks, and plays with him. Like some posters have already said, let your boyfriend do the majority of those tasks and your pup will bond better with him.

I don't necessarily agree with male dogs bonding better w/ females and vice versa. Both Gunnar and Bruzer are closer to me than my wife. We can both be at home and the boys will follow me everywhere. They lay at my feet when we're all in the same room, they both listen to me over her. Daisy is more equal in her time sharing, she'll follow me around but she'll also follow my wife around, depending on where the action, and preferably, food is. Buzz adores my daughter. He'll go up in her room and sleep on her bed when she's not here and will spend all day with her when she's home.

 

[Lizmo]

I have often found that male dogs tend to bond more closely with female humans, and female dogs to male humans.

I would say this, but then I've seen alot of females that ADORE there female handler. So I disagree.

Blaze (male) is super-glued to my side. Lizzie (female) is not so super-glued like Blaze, but I am definitely her favorite person as I do most everything for her.

 

[ihartgonzo]

I have often found that male dogs tend to bond more closely with female humans, and female dogs to male humans.

I agree. I've noticed the same with horses.
It definitely isn't a rule, but it seems to be a tendency... I have never bonded to a female dog, but all of the boys in my life have been very special to me. (One in particular).