“Why does my dog follow me and not my husband” is a commonly asked question among dog owners. You might consider your dog’s behavior weird, but this is a common practice for any dog.
Dogs are known as man’s best friend so, it is common for us to expect a dog to be friendly towards everyone. But this might not always be true. You see, a dog can behave differently based on things like how you raised it or how you treat it. Apart from this, there are a lot of other things that can also contribute to this factor.
If you are wondering what they are, do not worry cause we have got your back. In this article, we have gathered all the reasons behind this type of behavior of a dog.
Why Does My Dog Follow Me And Not My Husband? – Details Guide
As we mentioned before, dogs are usually very affectionate towards humans and can get attached to a person very easily. But it is common for dogs to show different levels of affection towards different people. You often face this type of situation when your dog may prefer you over your partner.
This situation can be caused due to the lack of time your partner spends with your dog. It is also possible for your dog to find your partner hostile. While there is no straight forward answer to “Why does my dog follows me and not my husband,” there are a few reasons that might directly or indirectly contribute to this factor.
1. How He Treats Your Dog
The dog is a loving animal, and it expects love and affection from its owners. You know how you have brought up your pet from its young age. The amount of affection you show towards your pet dog might not be the same for your partner.
Dogs are quite intelligent and can notice certain behaviors that you show towards them. If you are someone who yells at them all day, does not allow certain behavior, or even scolds them from time to time, it natural for your dog to not follow someone like this.
This type of behavior will always push your dog away as they feel threatened by such behaviors. All dog breeds have a good hearing ability, and too much yelling is not a pleasant experience for most dogs.
It is not unusual for your dog to choose you over your partner for such hostile behaviors. But it is also possible that your dog is so attached to you because you are the one who feeds it regularly. Every dog is fond of treats, and they tend to prefer someone who feeds them properly.
If your partner often yells at you, your dog is likely to stay away from that person. Remember, dogs are attached to their owner and will not accept any hostility towards their owner.
Your dog might also choose to stay away from your partner if he is a loud person in general. Dogs do not like loud noises and will stay away from someone who is shouting all the time.
2. The Type Of Bonding They Share
It is not unusual for you to know your pet since it was a puppy and bringing it up with all the love in the world. Your dog does not know your partner for a long time, and the type of bond you and your pet share can not be the same for your partner and your pet.
Most dog breeds are quite fond of their owners and almost always prefer their owner over anyone else. Your partner might be very loving and caring towards your pet, but it is not unnatural for your dog to choose your side while walking.
After all, it has known your partner for a short time while it has grown under your safekeeping for its entire life. This type of situation usually heals itself over time as your dog becomes more familiar with your partner. But the same thing can turn out the other way around.
You see, bonding with dogs can be done in various ways. Your dog can choose your partner over you as well. If you are a busy person and cannot spend much time with your pet as before, your dog might choose your partner over you.
Because it is seeing his face more in recent days and yours no so much. But it is also possible for your dog to love you even more as it sees you less.
3. Medical Checkups
You might be surprised to see such a point in this list. No, we have not lost our minds. Pooches usually do not like medical checkups. It might have a bad experience from a checkup and associate the person taking it to the clinic as hostile.
Every time your partner is trying to get close to your pet, it might think he is trying to take it to the clinic again and run away to you. If you face a similar situation, we suggest you take turns when visiting the nearby animal clinic. Doing so will not allow your dog to associate a certain person with the animal clinic.
4. Bitterness Among The Two
As we have mentioned in a previous point, dogs are quite fond of their owner and will do almost anything to attract their attention. So, when a new person walks into your life, your doggo might not like this sudden change in its life. It has known you all its life and is used to getting all of your attention all by itself.
Now that a new person has moved in, it is forced to share you with another person. This might create tension between your puppy and your partner. In this situation, your dog might not even like his presence around you, let alone walk with him.
This type of situation is very common for almost any dog. You might find this to be quite difficult to manage at first. But in time, your dog learns to be with a new person. This change in characteristics can take weeks or months, depending on your dog’s behavior and how much effort your partner is giving.
5. Strong Fragrance
All dogs have a strong sense of smell. If you find that your doggo wants to stay away from your partner, it might be for the strong perfume he likes to apply. When a dog smells something that it does not like, it is common to stay away from that smell.
This reason also explains why your dog likes to be with your partner on some days and completely stays away from him on the others. You can easily get rid of this problem by finding out what perfume it finds strong and not applying it. You can also choose not to wear any perfume at all.
Your dog might not like any of the perfumes that your partner owns. So, we think it is better to avoid applying any perfume type when your partner is playing with your canine.
6. The Growing Process
How a puppy is brought up can be a major factor in how it behaves. Every puppy goes through a socialization period, and it develops certain characteristics during that period. Suppose while growing up, the person taking care of it was a lady or a woman. So, it is natural for it to be affectionate towards you more compared to your husband.
Or suppose a man used to behave harshly towards it while growing up and it will naturally try to stay away from your partner, even though he might be friendly towards it. It might also be afraid of some other traits like a deep voice, a certain smell, etc.
Similarly, it can be attracted to certain traits too. If you have acquired your dog from a very early age and have taken care of it since then, it will more likely choose you over anyone else despite how much they take care of your dog.
7. Depending On The Breed
If you did not know before, different types of dog breeds have different characteristics. Your dog will have its unique characteristics depending on its breed as well. Some breeds are welcoming towards anyone and will play along with any friendly person. Other breeds are not so friendly towards strangers and will not like their presence too much.
You can also find breeds that are friendly towards everyone but is heavily attached to their owners. Usually, canines become friendly with anyone if they spend enough time with them but the required time can vary based on their breed.
These are all the reasons we have gathered regarding the question, “why does my dog follows me and not my husband.” In the next segment of this article, we have mentioned how you can get rid of such problems independently. Follow along to know all about it.
Some Of The Reasons Why Your Dog Doesn’t Follow Your Husband
There can be many reasons why your dog doesn’t follow your significant other. The most frequent ones are: believing you to be the mother or leader or having a lot of good connections with you; breed traits; velcro dog syndrome; separation anxiety; or instinct.
Your dog will know you as the leader if you are always there. In this sense, the dog will try to follow you, and your husband will never be able to be the one in front and lead. If your dog has a good bond with you, your dog will follow you without thinking.
Your Dog Perceives You As A Leader
If your dog perceives you as a leader, it will follow you around. One of the things that dogs truly like doing is following the master around. Additionally, it demonstrates your ability to lead a pack.
According to the pack rule, alphas or leaders set the standard, omegas serve as the backup watchdogs, and betas act as mediators and conciliators. If you are a leader, your dog will follow you around, but only after it’s sure that you won’t lose the power of leadership.
How To Strengthen The Bond Between Them
Your pet doggo might be used to having only one person around and hate the presence of another. But despite its disliking’s towards your partner, there are a few things that you can do to increase the familiarity between your pet and your partner.
Including Your Partner In Your Daily Activity
Every day when you are playing with your pet, try to have your partner around during that time. Let your partner play with your pooch. Doing so will make your pooch more comfortable around your partner, and it will help mitigate the tension between them.
You will see their bond grow stronger gradually, and in time your pet will start enjoying the playtime even with your partner.
Teaching The Dog New Things
Dogs are easily trainable and can grow a strong bond with a person during such training periods. Let your partner teach your pet new techniques and practice old ones. Doing so will make them more familiar with each other, and your pet will learn to live with your partner in the process.
Playing Team Sports
Letting your pet and your partner attempt a team sport together is another way of making them bond together. Go to a field or an open space where they play will some kind of team game together. Participating in such sports will ease your dog into thinking of your partner as a friend rather than an enemy.
Feeding Your Pet
Dogs usually tend to like the person that feeds them. So, letting your partner feed your pooch is a great way to increase their familiarity. Your dog might not want to eat something your partner offers at the beginning. If you are facing such an issue, it is better to feed them together at first.
Let your partner give your pet some treats while you are feeding it. Gradually your pooch will calm down and start eating what your partner will give them. Continuing this feeding process will make your dog more comfortable around your partner.
Getting Rid Of Strong Odors
If you are having trouble keeping your pet near your partner, maybe it is the strong perfume that he wears that is causing it. As we have mentioned before, dogs have a strong sense of smell and will not come near any strong smell or any smell that they do not find pleasant.
Try to change the perfume your partner wears, or just do not let him wear any perfume when he is near your pet. You may find your dog staying near your partner more after doing so.
Ways to Strengthen Your Bond With The Dog
Taking the time to get to know your dog can go a long way toward strengthening the bond between you and your dog. There are many ways to strengthen your bond with the dog. These are a few of our favorite ways.
- Pat your dog when he greets you at the door.
- Play with your dog whenever and wherever possible.
- Allow your dog to sleep in bed with you or on the couch, and provide a space for your pup to get away from it all in his own space.
- Bring treats and toys around, so they’re always within reach.
- Train with it, and for it, your dog will be more than willing to learn new things and stay engaged with you.
- Be sure to give your dog affection.
Why Does the Dog Consider You His Mother?
Dogs are very clever animals, and as a result, their relationships with their humans are sometimes complicated. One such relationship is between a dog, and its owner is the dog may consider you his mother.
To begin with, it is important to remember that when dogs think of their owners as their mothers, they’re not sentimental. When they are young babies, you are involved in everything: Feeding, bathing, soothing, calming the dog down when it gets upset. These are the reason why the dog thinks of you as his mother.
Dogs Seem Unfamiliar to Everyone Except You
There may be a variety of explanations for why a dog looks unfamiliar to everyone but you. The dog might not have been properly socialized with people. Here are the reasons why dogs seem unfamiliar to everyone except you- lack of socialization
Your dog might not have been properly socialized. This can be because your pet has not had much interaction with others. Dogs who are not well socialized might behave differently in the presence of unfamiliar people. If this is the case for your dog, you should socialize him with people and other dogs.
The dog might not like the people with whom it interacts. If your dog is not comfortable being around unknown people, then he will appear unfamiliar to everyone. There are possibilities that your pet does not like strangers, and this is why he behaves in a different way when in their presence.
Which Breed Of Dog Is More Likely To Stick To Your Side?
Dogs are very loyal creatures. Some of their breeds are very cringy and more likely to stick to your side. Here are the breeds of dogs that will try to stick to your side always.
Labrador Retriever
One of the smartest and most trainable breeds in the world is the labrador retriever. Many of them make great companion dogs. They are very gentle, sociable, and loyal to their owners. They are very protective of their family, especially children and, most importantly, the elderly people in their family.
Vassal
The Vassal is a dog breed originating in Hungary. They are also very protective of their family, and they often grow to be very loyal to its owner.
Border Collie
They are very intelligent dogs. They make great pets for the young and old alike. They have a strong sense of familial loyalty and will never leave your side.
Maltese
Maltese are very friendly and loyal dogs. They are also very playful.
Siberian Husky
North-eastern Siberia is where the Siberian husky, a working dog breed, first appeared. They are very sociable and friendly, thus making great pets for everyone.
Golden Retriever
They are very gentle and friendly. They are very playful and love to be with kids.
Conclusion
In this article, we have tried to answer the commonly asked question, “why does my dog follow me and not my husband.” A dog is a loving animal and expects love from humans too. The best way to earn a dog’s trust is to treat it with proper love and affection.
But doing so does not always solve this issue because of some keen reasons like how they were brought up and many more. But despite everything, you can train your dog to be familiar with your partner, and eventually, it will start following your partner as well.
FAQ:
1.Why Is My Dog Suddenly Following Me Everywhere?
Ans: Your dog may suddenly start following you around if you’re feeling insecure. The dog makes an effort to follow you in an effort to win back your love and attention. This is one way the dog shows you that it cares about you. When a new animal moves into the household, the existing animal may exhibit similar behavior as a result.
2. What To Do If Your Dog Has Separation Anxiety?
Ans: If your dog experiences separation anxiety, you may teach them to be alone. It’s not always easy, but it can be done. You just have to do a lot of hard work and be patient. Feed them their favorite food or toys when leaving. Compliment them when they’re alone and tell them how much you miss them while gone.
3. How Has This Affected Our Wife And Husband Relationship?
Ans: If you’ve ever had a dog follow you all the time instead of your husband, you probably thought it to be really sweet or got bored of almost running over him.
4. What Are The Indications Of Separation Anxiety In Dogs?
Ans: A dog who has separation anxiety could yell or weep when left alone or separated from his owner. Being left alone is the only thing that seems to set off this constant barking or wailing.
5. Why Do Older Dogs Follow You Everywhere?
Ans: Just out of familiarity and habit, older dogs can follow their owners. On the other hand, if this is a new habit, it can also be a sign that your dog’s circumstances are changing and causing them to lose confidence. Maybe the hearing or eyesight of your dog is beginning to fail.
