Julianne Hough is best known as a television personality and co-host of Dancing with The Stars with Alfonso Ribeiro. She’s also an actress and is going to be in The Bride!, Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Bride of Frankenstein-inspired movie, next year. Part of Julianne’s popularity is how open she is about her personal life, which seems standard for her type of fame. That’s not shade! It’s just how many celebrities operate now. Julianne has been dating following her divorce from Brooks Laich in 2022 and she’s also been freezing her eggs to potentially have a baby when she’s ready. She spoke with People Magazine recently and I could relate to a few things she said, particularly about ditching a date who didn’t like dogs. Here’s more:
[Julianne] Hough is reflecting on what she’d tell teenage Julianne, whose beginnings on the show would launch a career beyond her wildest dreams.
After a pause, Hough says, “Honestly, I wouldn’t tell her anything.”
“She got me here today,” she continues. “It’s so funny because I think we always want to give our younger selves advice, but you don’t know what you don’t know until you know it…
“Every moment that I’ve gone through, whether it be painful mistakes, self-sabotaging, or being brave and taking a risk and putting yourself out there are just part of the journey,” she says. “They build character…
“I found out I have endometriosis when I was 19 or 20, and I wish back then I would’ve been told to freeze my eggs, but I wasn’t told until later on.”
Hough’s decision to undergo her most recent egg-freezing process, her third total, had a lot to do with freeing herself from the “psychological fear” of a ticking biological clock.
Along with her endometriosis, “I have some other health implications that might make [conceiving] challenging, and I got a divorce and now I’m in a different stage of life,” she says. “For me, it’s never been about, ‘I’m not ready,’ but I know it is for some people. I think the time will be right when it’s right…
“I always cognitively tried to live my life where I wasn’t concerned about what others thought, but to truly feel it is a different thing,” she says. “Now, I see it as, ‘This is my one life that I get to live, and I get to design it however I want.’ I’m reclaiming my own power. Then, whatever is supposed to come will naturally come…
“I think I have faith in general that I’m the person my person is also waiting for, you know?” she says. “If I’m ready for that next chapter of my life, it’s because I’m in a really good place. So, I’ve just been focusing on what makes me happy and my vision of what I’m looking for, but not holding on too tightly. Me and my [dog] Sunny girl, we are happy, we are thriving, and creating space for whatever comes next.”
So “must love dogs” is a non-negotiable?
“I’m not going to lie, I went on a date once and they said they didn’t like dogs, and I was like, ‘The date is over,'” she says with a laugh. “They even went one step further and were like, ‘I mean, I guess I could like a dog if it was like a cat.’ I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, stop the car!'”
This was an interesting interview and I appreciate how open and self aware Julianne is. It sounds like Julianne and her date knew precious little about each other beforehand. Julianne’s dog is all over her Instagram! She included her dog on her Christmas card, also on Instagram. How do you dislike dogs, see someone with a dog and think “I should go out with them?” Maybe it works if you’re only thinking short term. Also, Julianne came out as “not straight” about five years ago. That’s probably why she’s using gender neutral pronouns for her date. It can’t be easy to come out after being raised Mormon.
Like Julianne, it’s a red flag to me when a potential date doesn’t like dogs. It’s also concerning when they don’t like cats either. I understand having a preference, but if someone says they can’t stand cats or dogs I take it as a sign of deeper issues. I once learned that a man I was dating hated cats. I didn’t have a cat at the time, but I’ve had them in the past and I’m an equal opportunity pet owner. That relationship did not last much longer after that.
Photos credit: Dave Allocca/Starpix/INSTARimages, Jennifer Graylock-Graylock.com/Avalon, Jeffrey Mayer/Avalon
I understand someone not having the desire to live with an animal and be responsible for its care. However, for me, they must believe that all animals deserve a footprint on earth and should be treated humanely without exception.
I’m trying to think if I’ve ever met anyone who didn’t like animals, at the bare minimum, dogs or cats. And I agree with Traveller, they are a responsibility that not everyone wants to undertake & I understand that, but not like them? At all? Yeah, dealbreaker!
As the other comments cover, sure you may not want a pet in your life but to say you don’t like a certain animal? Nope. Sure if you have allergies or fear but as a general marker I’m somewhat suspicious of people who aren’t ok with animals.
That said, my mum is so introverted she’s not a fan of dogs in general as she finds them ‘too needy’. But much like me with kids she will very much warm to individual dogs.
My ex said he didn’t like cats but despite living together I still brought home a cat found in a tree on my bklyn block. Did that man and that cat bond to the point that I felt like the side piece? Yes, yes they did. It was cute. So just saying…some people just need to be exposed to animals, especially if they come from a non pet owning family. Some people think they don’t like dogs or cats until they have one. BUT for some people it’s a non-negotiable and fair enough.
My dog comes first.
And i make no apologies.
Now, the nice man i live with is a wonderful dog dad to our 2 dogs and 2 cats.
But occasionally he says- you love that dog more than me.
And i don’t disagree.
If you don’t like animals fine…but don’t try to start a relationship with someone who adores animals…because you will never change them…and you will always lose out
I find it extremely rude to end a date immediately because someone says they don’t like cats or dogs. A date is a big deal. Someone went out of their way to set time aside, get dressed up, and meet her for a date. If loving animals is a dealbreaker for you why wouldn’t you ask that question before you meet. At the very least, finish the date as a respectful gesture to the person who obviously didn’t know that dogs and cats were a dealbreaker for you. But I’ve never cared for her at all. I’m not surprised to find out she is that disrespectful to another human.
My dog said that he didn’t like my date so I told my date to leave.