I had a chance to witness this first-hand on my transfer flight from Phoenix to Hartford. I sat next to a seeing eye dog; a beautiful, obedient 10-month old. The girl in the aisle seat directly across from us said Oh how cute! I want to take him home! The man who owned the dog said, I tell my teenage boy that this is not a dog, it's a chick magnet. Well the hottie across the aisle proceeded to talk to us for the entire 7-hour flight, and walked with me to the bag check when we arrived in Hartford. And get this, she mentioned how she had just got back from San Diego where she stayed with her friend Lauren and her boyfriend Bryan - and I said Wait Bryan from Springfield, and she said YES! In a city of millions of people, this totally random girl stayed with my best friend. Unbelievable. Anyway yeah, a dog is a great conversation starter.

Well, I dunno about a first DATE, but definately an easy way for guys to pick up chicks, I'm sure. I'll admit that I'll almost always stop to pet a cute puppy when someone's walking them and get into a conversation with the dog's owner, and I think a LOT of women are like that.

You can tell a lot in a persons character by the way they interact with animals. The focus turns to the dog and not to the date, thus relieving a lot of those first date pressures. It's a good conversation starter. This might not work if the girl is allergic to dogs, take that into account before you make plans.

I have a friend, who is actually a top 10 poster on RIA, who has this down to a science. His first date is always to invite the unsuspecting young lady to a park too walk his dog. He throws the ball for the dog. They laugh at how goofy the dog is. And next thing you know, all of that annoying first date pressure is off, and they are relaxed. I guess you have to go with what works for you.