Mother dogs tend to be protective and nurturing. But male dogs—at least, the domesticated male dogs that we have as pets today—don't have quite the same fatherly instincts. In fact, father dogs most often display a general disinterest in their puppies.
It's not exactly a father-and-son relationship, but the father will most likely interact and play with the young pups as he would other dogs or humans. Once the pups are completely weaned, the father may even show them the ropes, including play and mealtime etiquette, as well as social ranking in the pack.
“If a dog is taken care of by a female, they're more likely to prefer females, [whereas] if they're primarily taken care of by a male, they may prefer males.” And in some cases, these associations can be negative.
Male dogs are usually more affectionate than females, and some positively crave human attention. You'll find it's always you who brings the cuddling and fussing to an end – he could happily go on like this all day!
Although dominance-related aggression is seen in both male and female dogs, male dogs are more likely to exhibit dominance-related aggression. Neutering has some effect on decreasing dominance-related aggression.
Love and affection
Many dog people say male dogs are more affectionate, while female dogs tend not to want the constant attention and validation that the boys often seem to crave. They say female dogs can be "moody" and "independent," while male dogs can be "clingy" and "silly."
Whether or not dogs are more attracted to one gender can't be objectively answered because all dogs and people are different. But, dogs generally tend to be more attracted to a specific set of behaviors that are exhibited mostly by adult women. It's not that dogs are exclusively attracted to female adults.
Male dogs are most often more affectionate and seem to thrive on constant human attention. They are usually less likely to separate themselves from the attention and will take any bit of love you can give them. The majority of male dogs tend to remain rather child like, and they seem to take a little longer to mature.
Are Male or Female Dogs More Protective? There is no significant difference between male or female dogs in terms of protective behaviors. Territorial or protective behaviors are more pronounced in unaltered dogs than in neutered dogs, and breed plays a role as well.
The short answer is: yes. The personality differences can most clearly be seen between females and intact (non-neutered) males. Males can be more dominant, territorial, and easily distracted than female dogs.
Before settling on a breed, think about the gender of the dog. For the happiest dogs and the safest household, opposite sex dogs almost always do best together. Many same-sex combinations of dogs will fight, sometimes to the death. Those who work out a dominance order may not fare much better.
Despite the obvious physical differences, male dogs tend to be slightly taller and larger than females and exhibit male stereotypic behaviors such as mounting and scent marking. They might show more male to male directed aggressive behavior, especially when challenged.
For male dogs, they are more likely to associate a puppy with the mother's scent so a puppy that has been apart from both mum and dad for a period is less likely to be recognised by the sire, or vice versa. The natural bond with the dam will be stronger due to the time spent together after birth as well as the scent.
The research shows dogs can probably at least tell who their mother is if they see - or rather, sniff her. As for their father and siblings, our guess is, they probably can tell with their strong sense of smell, but we're unsure from a research point of view.
Some dams remember their puppies even years after separation and some may not recognize their puppies at all. Dogs will remember their puppies depending on the amount of time the puppies have spent with their day. The longer the time they spent, the easier for the dam to recognize their offspring.
This isn't a general rule, but some pets are more likely to exhibit protective behavior with female keepers. This is because women generally have a softer voice and are gentler whenever they care for the dog. On the other hand, a dog can easily sense changes in human behavior and hormones.
Female dogs are often said to be easier to house train than male dogs. "Many pet owners report that female dogs are easier to house train and are more attentive to their owners than male dogs, with male dogs being more aloof," Johanna Reel, registered vet technician for NHV Natural Pet, told INSIDER.
ARE MALE DOGS MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN FEMALE DOGS? Both male and female dogs have the ability to show aggression but the statistics show that “entire” (not neutered) male dogs are more likely to show aggression than female dogs or neutered males.
Dogs Do Get Lonely
You might have your doubts if someone told you to take your dog out because it feels alone. Pets emote, sometimes in a big way. Dogs are social creatures, and like humans, they need a community. They thrive on companionship and love the company of people and other pets.
Do not move your hands towards the dog's face or over the top of the head. This may make the dog fearful or defensive. Begin to gently pet the dog in areas like the front of the chest, the upper and middle back, sides of the chest, and behind the ears. Stop petting the dog if you notice resistance.
In the same way, human boys have been reported to be more social, playing in larger groups than girls [142,143]. In contrast, in a study on intraspecific sociability, male dogs appeared to be less sociable than females, with a pronounced effect in dogs belonging to the 4–8 years age group [131].
Licking is a natural and instinctive behaviour to dogs. For them it's a way of grooming, bonding, and expressing themselves. Your dog may lick you to say they love you, to get your attention, to help soothe themselves if they're stressed, to show empathy or because you taste good to them!
Following you very closely can be a sign that they're bored, they want something, they're feeling scared or are just being nosy. It is also part of their natural social behaviour, to watch and follow what you are doing to help maintain a good relationship with you.
Dogs are good at reading us, and they usually know when we are being affectionate, such as when we kiss them. Because they love affection from us, most dogs do like being kissed. However, they don't like the act of being kissed but rather that we give them attention and show affection.