Are Dogs a Good Pet for an INFJ?

[Artisan]

As an INFJ I often feel misunderstood by friends, my family members, and even my therapist! I'm wondering if owning a dog would be a healthy way to help with this problem.

Any thoughts? Also, is there any particular type of dog that would be best?. I think a very needy dog would be hard but I'd be interested in anyone's thoughts or experience.

Thanks.

You should keep in mind, dogs become who their owner needs them to be in order to grow as a person. (so they manifest bad behavior in the areas where you need to work at)
In other words if you for example are not assertive enough, the dog will take control no matter how small, cute and cuddly it is. They will manifest your issues and make you face them.
That said, dogs are truly man's best friend. If you can see them as dogs and treat them as such and not as if they are your kid, you should be fine.

Just pick one out that matches your energy levels. So if you mostly rot behind your pc all day, don't go for the dog that is most active in its nest and go for a low energy one instead.
My personal interest goes out to a female white shepherd. (specifically female because they won't try to hump your leg )

Envision your life as it is and will be for the next 15 years because thats how long your dog might be alive. And choose wisely ;p If you wanna travel a lot then you might not be ready for a pet.


---------------------------------------------
I have had both a dog and cats.
The best thing about a dog is that when you feel crap you can always walk up to em, sit down and pet them, they bring some structure to your life as you do need to walk them, feed them and spend time with them.
Unlike cats they look at you, where as cats want you to look at them. Cat's are low maintenance if you allow them to go outside whenever they want, but they are more likely to get hit and run over by a car, and they will come and go when and where they please, thus if you feel crap, your cat is probably outside, till it gets hungry after which it eats, possibly comes to cuddle with you and then goes to sleep.

Cats are like a roomie, where as dogs are like a best friend.

 

[INFJ16]

As an INFJ I often feel misunderstood by friends, my family members, and even my therapist! I'm wondering if owning a dog would be a healthy way to help with this problem.

Any thoughts? Also, is there any particular type of dog that would be best?. I think a very needy dog would be hard but I'd be interested in anyone's thoughts or experience.

Thanks.

http://selectsmart.com/dog/

Website's description:
"What Is The Best Dog Breed For Me? Are you considering bringing a dog into your home? Get some help with this important decision. It's simple: Tell us what you like, and we'll give you a list of dog breeds, in ranked order, that best match your preferences. This selector is an updated version of our original dog breed selector which we created in 1999. We’ve included new questions, and we’ve added more breeds plus popular cross breeds."

 

[fingersplints]

Interesting comments everyone. Thanks.

I once watched my brother's Golden Retriever for a few days and it was a real handful. I walked him when the streets were wet in the winter once and afterwards had to rinse him off. Then I had to grab some large towels and dry him off before he entered the house. All the while getting him to sit still.

I'd say that's too much dog for me. Interesting call Heiots about the cats. I've never thought about this one until now...still a bit too early for either type of pet but fun to think and talk about.

How old was your brother's Golden Retriever? When they are puppies they can be very active.
My sister's have golden doodles (poodle/golden retrievers) and they are crazy. I don't think I would recommend anything mixed with a poodle for you.
I've found huskies to be very needy as well. My nephew's would bite me or cry if I tried to pet the cat even.

I have a 11 year old Staffordshire Bull Terrier. He likes a long walk, but other then that is very independent. He is good with most other dogs and kids. (These type of dogs have a bad rep. He is the sweetest thing. Just yesterday I fell and hit my face and he flew from the other side of the house to make sure I was ok. I've never seen this level of concern from a dog before.)
When he passes, we will probably be getting a lab seeing eye dog as my husband is blind.

I'm looking around at recommendations online and Chihuahua and pugs keep coming up as low maintenance.

I agree with Heiots, a cat is a good alternative.

 

[fingersplints]

I forgot to mention, temperament isn't the only thing you should consider when selecting your pet. Pay attention to their fur as well. If you want a dog that isn't a lot of work you don't want to pick one that is going to require a lot of grooming. And their is always shedding to consider!

 

[Stillwater]

Hi Fingersplints. Thanks.

My brother's Golden was probably about 5 years old but still had plenty of energy. I just think he was overly needy at the time too. If you were sitting in a chair he would come over and just lean against your leg.

Thanks for mentioning the fur issue. I can see how that would add a lot of work to owning a dog. I would be careful to pick one that doesn't shed.

 

[RRiveter]

Hey Stillwater,

This is so interesting. I feel you. As an INFJ I feel misunderstood most of the time. There was a time when I broke up with a boyfriend of three years , my closest sister was living in China, and I was getting rid of all my shitty high school friends. I decided to get a cat to help me feel less lonely. [MENTION=11651]ArtFirst[/MENTION] was so right about cats vs. dogs. It was a really dumb decision on my part because they needed lots of care and I raised her from a kitten, which made it all the more difficult. She provided a small amount of comfort and it wasn't really worth it in the end.

Cats are like a roomie, where as dogs are like a best friend.

I lived alone and was also out of my house most of the time because I worked and went to school full time. Are you home often? I think that's a big deciding factor. Also, lots of places where I live make you pay extra pet rent and many places wont let you move in if you have a pet. So, if you are not planning on living where you do long term, I would take that into consideration.


Also, I have been living with 4 girls for almost two years. Two of them have small dogs. One of the dogs is an older chihuahua, incredibly well-behaved dog. its adorable and loves to cuddle. Never messes in the house and only barks at male strangers for a few minutes. Her only problem is that when she wants to spend the night at her boyfriend's house, and leaves her dog alone, the dog gets bored and lonely. You can very clearly see when her dog is lonely. Her dog sometimes comes to hang with me when she wants to cuddle and be around someone, its nice.

My other roommate got a puppy, like a shitpoo or something, haha. That dog is a nightmare, constantly peeing in the house, barking at random ass things ALL THE TIME.
The dog is getting older now, but not any more mature.
Someone in this thread mentioned that dogs' behavior will manifest in what you are lacking. This happened to my roommate, she struggles with being assertive and her dog always disobeys and gets away with things.

My advice is to get an older, well-behaved dog if you are home often and would like something to take care of. A few people mentioned golden retrievers. I would go for that breed or a retriever mix.





This brings up an interesting topic of feeling misunderstood as an INFJ.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Many times, I let them misunderstand me and do not correct them when they make a false accusation. I think that... because I'm good at figuring other people out and I genuinely try to get to know other people.. Maybe I expect people to be this way also? I'm not really sure, but these are my thoughts.
I think that most people are just trying to survive and do their daily things so they don't have time to get to know many people or they just use preconceptions to get a feel of others, and me, because I am not very vocal about who I am. Lately, I've been trying to just tell people what I am like very clearly so they do not misunderstand or create an image of me in their head on assumptions. In some ways, I think that I reinforce this feeling of being constantly misunderstood by being so secretive about my inner world and what I am actually like.

Even my ENFP sister, who I am closer with than anyone, ever, has misunderstood me in big ways in the past and it confused me how she could think that. I never told her any different and she doesn't pay attention to my actions, like I do.

 

[Artisan]

Someone in this thread mentioned that dogs' behavior will manifest in what you are lacking.

Guilty as charged.

They will manifest your issues and make you face them.

Like if you live in a nice rural area and if you are mostly ready to settle down and done taking far away vacations then I would really recommend getting both a cat and a dog tbh
Also keep in mind they're not cost free and If you're on a tight budget and make a lot of work hours, don't get a dog, it will not do either your dog or you any good.

 

[PintoBean]

Dogs make great companions to anyone who feels isolated. However, as to needy, I think all dogs are needy. This from someone who has dogs and loves them. They are pack animals by nature and should not be isolated. They need interaction and attention, some breeds more than others. But they all need consistent attention and cannot be left alone for long periods. They need exercise. That means possibly leaving your social comfort zone to make sure your dog has gotten out enough. If you want a more independent, though less huminoid creature, a cat may be for you.

 

[just me]

Couldn't take my dog for his afternoon drive and walk today, so he stood in front of me barking and spinning around and barking and spinning around when it got dark. I took him for his ride and a short walk under lighting somewhere alone. Now he's happy. What would I do without him? Greatly miss him, I'm sure. He's next to me in front of his fan....asleep and happy.

 

[PintoBean]

Couldn't take my dog for his afternoon drive and walk today, so he stood in front of me barking and spinning around and barking and spinning around when it got dark. I took him for his ride and a short walk under lighting somewhere alone. Now he's happy. What would I do without him? Greatly miss him, I'm sure. He's next to me in front of his fan....asleep and happy.

Just did similar. Took the younger of my two dogs for a 10:00 pm walk. If he doesn't get at least 2 miles exercise/day he literally can't sleep all night and starts doing self destructive things like gnawing and licking himself. Not to sound dramatic, but I think not exercising dogs is actually a form of animal cruelty. I routinely see people standing on their front steps or in their doorway with their dogs on extendos, so that the dog can toilet fast but the owner doesn't have to walk or even step out. How lazy and neglectful, makes me so mad! Glad you are taking such good care of your buddy. I think dogs are very special animals.