Do You Look Like Your Dog?

At a gathering of dog owners, I found myself sitting at a table with a woman who was explaining, “You can always tell which member of a family actually picked the dog. People always pick dogs that look like themselves. If you want a well-known example of this, just take the case of Winston Churchill. Now there was a man who certainly looked like his pet Bulldog!”

Winston Churchill was, of course, the British prime minister who helped to guide England through the dark days of World War II. The fact that Churchill, in his mature years, looked like a Bulldog is indisputable. The round full face, the flattened features, the jowly cheeks, the large wide mouth, the skin folds around the eyes—all look much like those of the English Bulldog. It was interesting to note that the woman who had been speaking about him had long blond hair, which, paired with her tan-coloured pants and vest, certainly had a strong resemblance to her own dog—a Golden Retriever.

Actually, there are scientific explanations for why people might have a preference for dogs that look something like themselves. The data is quite clear that, at least when dealing with people, we certainly prefer those who are similar to us.

Do you ever wonder what the secret is behind the success of computerized dating services? It is nothing more than a matter of matching on the basis of similarity. These services give extensive questionnaires in order to find out some basic information about their clients, including their religion, their family’s social status and income, their political beliefs, their taste in music, entertainment and sports, and so forth. Then they match people on the basis of as many dimensions as possible. The better the match, the more likely that people will develop an attraction for one another.