fandomsecrets | [ SECRET POST #2548 ]

⌈ Secret Post #2548 ⌋

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Or at least good friends?

I just always see this sentiment that animals make better companions than people from either lonely people or people who only know jerks. If your idea of an ideal companion is one who is unquestionably loyal and also doesn't talk, that's kind of sad.

Not that dogs are awful. I want one. But it's not going to be my best friend. It is going to be my best friend that is a dog.

That's not very nice.

I didn't mean it to be mean. I had zero friends when I was a kid; I was too bookish and couldn't really talk to people. I guess my point is that I worry about people who want to substitute animal for human companionship. It just isn't the same thing.

yeeeah i kinda have to wonder the same thing. friends are equals. pandering hero-worshipping peons that do/think/say whatever you tell them to? not a good friendship. that's a minion. that's a pet. if you have no one it can be appealing to have any kind of relationship, even something with such a skeevy power dynamic, but come on. people should not act like dogs with their friends.

yep

OT quibble, but dogs don't act like that either. And I happily laugh my ass off at anyone who thinks they do, because they clearly have never had a dog.

The only things on earth who act like that are literal minions who are paid/scared enough to fake it.

I see where you're coming from, but some people just can't connect with others for whatever reason. Mental illness or disability, anxiety, or just being really introverted can make it hard for someone to have many human friends, or be as close with them as most people are. For some of those people, an animal can literally be a best friend and the only thing keeping that person from being incredibly lonely. Animals are cathartic. It's pretty unfair to unilaterally conclude that everyone whose best friend is a dog is "sad".

if the friend is LITERALLY a dog, an animal, that is fine. if they have a human friend acting like this i'm sorry but it's massively unhealthy and will eventually probably make their issues worse. i've been lonely as fuck due to anxiety and got the one friend who worshiped the ground i stood on. i would have rather had an actual DOG.

I guess I just don't think a nonsentient being can really be my friend? I love dogs and cats, and I think they make great buddies but they don't talk back.

Depends on your definition of sentient. Or how much importance you place on so-called sentience. For some people (not just lonely pathetic people, but say, traumatized, exhausted people who have had a really long horrible life and just want quiet and no talking now), it's perfectly enough of a friendship for them. Some people, who have gone through certain experiences, just do not WANT human friends. Too much anxiety, too much exhaustion, too much complexity, too much guessing. This is all good for young healthy people, but some people just can't handle this -- at least temporarily.

They're certainly not a "replacement" for human friends, of course, but just because they're not a replacement, doesn't mean they're not as meaningful (to some people) or that the person is always missing out, especially if it's, as I said, situational and/or temporary.

Not trying to jump on here like Chard's support, but I think that would be firmly in the "sad" category.

Might have a little more weight if you didn't always just in to support Chard.

Maybe your dog can help you out?

doodly sounds more like your dog tbh

doodly?

He's a labranoodle and was very expensive

Okay, but the default isn't

traumatized, exhausted people who have had a really long horrible life and just want quiet and no talking now),

If you are so traumatized you do not want human contact, you need to see psychological help. Or I don't know, move to the woods and become Snow White.

Edited 2013-12-25 05:31 (UTC)

An AU where Snow White goes to the woods to write about Transcendentalism.

"This isn't so bad! The woodland creatures have been helping me grow produce, so I have more time to write about transcendentalism and how much I dislike the Irish."

There are human beings who can't communicate like most people do (even to the point of being unable to speak or write), who have learning disabilities, injuries, and mental illnesses that make their brains function much differently from those of most people, and they can make wonderful friends, because they're still capable of love, kindness, loyalty, etc. Which some might consider things more necessary to worthwhile companionship than intelligence.

Late to the party, but a hearty +1 to this comment!

If you're defining a "friend" as "someone I can be myself with," well, I think most people feel that they show more of their true selves to their pets than they do to other humans.

I know some people who grew up with their pets (dogs, cats...). They have plenty of friends and are actually quite popular, but their pets are more like family to them, so they're on a whole different level.

I've heard this kind of thing from people who were jerks themselves. If your ideal friend is something that doesn't talk and is unquestionably loyal to the point that they'll put up with you in any mood, follow commands, take abuse, and still provide you with affection, you're probably not a good friend.

It's also not all that healthy to believe that an ideal friendship involves complete reliance by one person on the other. I know this is overthinking it, and probably not what OP means at all, but I've heard both of these, so seeing people idealize animals as the perfect companions is a bit uncomfortable.

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