Conversation - Staying the course or changing the subject

[RobX]

What is the best conversational tactic to handle a situation where someone you are attracted to wants to talk about something which she is passionate about but which does not interest you at all?

 

When in conversation with someone you are interested in, and she wants to talk about about something she is passionate about, but it does not interest you, is it better to try to seem interested, or to change the subject to something that you are both interested in?

 

To clarify this question here is a specific example. I met someone who loves dogs and really enjoys talking about her dog. However, I find this topic boring, and there a lot more interesting things that we could talk about. For example, she is from Morocco. I don't know anything about Morocco but since meeting her I find that I have become genuinely interested in learning about Morocco, precisely because I am interested in her. I could have changed the subject by asking her something like "Did you own a dog when you lived in Morocco?" However, I was worried that she might think that I was changing the subject because I was bored with her conversation.

 

I would therefore be interested in learning the best approach to handle this and similar situations. The example I described above was just an example. I cited this example because she talked about her dog both times that we met, and it was the only topic of our conversation that I did not find interesting. Thus, I would like to know how to handle this and similar situations where she wants to talk about topics that I don't find very interesting.

 

Is it better to engage her in conversation about her dog or other such topics, even though I find it boring, because it is something that she is passionate about, and she will therefore feel positive about our conversation?

 

Or is it better to try to change the subject because otherwise it will be obvious that I am bored, and she might misinterpret this and think it is because I am not interested in her?

 

As a general rule is it always better to talk about topics that both people are interested in, and one should therefore always try to change the subject when this is not the case?

[welikeincrowds]

I really hate it when people go on about their dogs. I highly recommend that you snub the **** out of that topic. You're clearly considerate enough that there is little concern that she will think poorly of you.