We’re normally not party people. But when a dog facility we teach at had an Open House a couple of weeks ago, we went to meet people, talk training, and help out as we could. As the event proceeded, we realized we’d come up with the world’s best conversation starter: “What kind of dog do you have?”
It’s really an ideal way to start talking to people. You don’t have to worry about sensitive topics, it’s not politics, or religion. It’s also not controversial, but much more interesting than the weather. The only time it doesn’t work is if the person you’re talking to doesn’t have a dog. We didn’t have to worry about that during the Open House, but in other venues it may get you some funny looks.
Facets of our lives
No matter what time of your life you’re in, either just starting out on the adult adventure, or happily retired, you can always talk about your dog. Everybody who has a dog has common interests. The price of dog food has gotten almost ridiculous. What groomer do you use? How do you like your veterinarian? Does your dog ever let you go to the bathroom alone? Do you play training games with your dog? Which treats does your dog like best? Do you let your dog sleep with you?
The possibilities are endless, because dogs are always interesting. Current dogs, past dogs, even what breeds you admire, even though you’d never want one. Our advice for chronically introverted people (like us) is to find the dog people at the party. You’ll soon be at the center of a lively discussion everyone enjoys.
Something in common
The vast majority of the people we spend time with, both personally and professionally, are dog people. Some of them we’ve been friends with for years. The only thing we had in common at the beginning was our love of dogs. In our training club, it’s taken years to find out if people have spouses, children, what they do for a living, where they live.
Which got us thinking, there are all kinds of levels of friendship or intimacy. Our dog club friends aren’t necessarily the ones we’d call if we had an emergency like getting locked out of the house. But they’d be the first ones if we had car trouble at a dog show or trial. It’s like having a network for each aspect of your life. Always give people the benefit of the doubt. Start the conversation with “What kind of dog do you have?”
Enjoyed this post? Click here to sign up for the weekly newsletter and never miss another!
