attracted to a fictional animal from a popular children's show

[Lyle Lanley]

recently a popular animated show that my younger brother watches has come out with a new episode. i've watched it with him, along with some other episodes.
the cartoon is about a family of dogs, in an universe where dogs are basically like humans.
unbeknown to my brother (and basically everyone) i've started to think that the father from that family has some good qualities, not just as a father but as a... i'd say man but he's a dog, and that's the problem.
don't get me wrong i am used to having crushes on fictional character, but they always were human or human-like in a way. this character does have human-like intelligence, he talks and of course can consent (i mean, he has two daughters with his wife, that mean anything? ahshahshs...) as shown in the half joking "harkness test" that is somewhat popular in fandom communities.
but this character is drawn as a dog who walks on two legs, yet he's not quite a "furry" character, and oddly enough i'd be more tranquil if i were attracted to him and he was a furry/anthro, or even if he was a human. and there are fanarts of this character in both these ways.

i'm more ashamed and scared of the implications that this fictional crush has. and please, do not judge me, and i understand if you'll tell me to see a therapist lmao

P.S. i didn't want to say the name of the show but i think it's clear what show it is lol

[Sam W]

Hi Lyle Lanley,

You know, I don't think having a crush on a fictional character, even one that's a talking animal, is anything to see a therapist for or feel ashamed of. Not to put too fine a point on it, but if working in sex ed for a decade AND being on the internet for much longer than that has taught me anything, it's that people develop crushes on or fantasies about a truly staggering away of characters.

Attraction and crushes are weird, slippery things sometimes, and that includes moments where we go "okay, I'm the one inhabiting this brain and even I didn't see this coming." That being said, is there a particular reason you're feeling scared of the implications of this crush?

[Lyle Lanley]

hi sam, thank you for your answer.

yes, this was sort of unexpected even to me, although i've experienced attraction to many other fictional characters. in personality, some were even similar to bandit (from the show bluey; that's who the character is by the way)

to answer your question: first of all, even if it's a fictional character, it's a dog. and i'm so scared that this could lead me into having strange and harmful perversions, which i don't want. and this means also that if someone from my life found out, eg. my brother whom i watch the show with, or my classmates, they'd make fun of me.
besides, i've seen many other people be attracted to bandit, at least i know i'm not alone.

[Sam W]

Got it. So, I think a helpful thing to remember is that, from what you're describing, you have a crush on the more human parts of this character, rather than the dog-likes ones. Which suggests the parts of it you're interested in aren't the animal ones. Too, things like our fantasies and crushes don't tell us all that much about what we'll actually do as sexual beings; they don't have to influence our sexual choices at all unless we want them to play a role.