They say you can’t hurry love, but the explosion of new niche online dating sites is poking romance in the right direction. Whether you’re after a one-legged chick with a passion for golf, or a colostomy-bag wearing deaf dude who’s crazy about horses, there’s a website that’s perfect for you. The days of battling it out with thousands of other singletons on Match.com are over. Now you can hone prospective partners down to specifics, and increase your chances of finding everlasting love.

Find love online at Bizarre's alternative dating site, Savagehearts.com

TEST TUBE DATING
Use DNA to make sure your romance won’t end up DOA

Have you ever stood next to a complete stranger on the bus and fallen head-over-heels for their smell? We’re not talking about the Lynx effect here. In 2005 Swiss biological researcher Claus Wedekind conducted a “sweaty T-shirt study”, in which a group of female college students were asked to whiff T-shirts that’d been worn by male students for two days solid. His findings showed that they were most attracted to the smell of guys that had different immune system genes to their own.

Based on this research, Scientificmatch.com has created a dating service that brings a whole new meaning to ‘following your nose’. “When it comes to immune system genes, opposites attract,” explains site founder Eric Holzle. “These genes help to identify diseases so that the immune systems can eradicate them. Our service matches people based exclusively on several genes that contribute to the immune system.”

New members are sent a cotton swab, which they swish around the inside of their cheek to collect their DNA, and then send back to the lab. After two weeks, their results are uploaded directly to the website and they automatically get a love match.

“So far, we only operate in the United States, although we’re preparing to grow beyond that,” says Eric. “We also cater for same-sex couples. Even though the evidence for gay genetic matchmaking is not as comprehensive as it is for opposite-sex couples, it’s still pretty compelling.”

A good nose match means a more satisfying sex life, more orgasms for women, higher rates of fertility and a reduced risk of cheating. But the service is not available to everyone. People who were separated from their natural parents soon after birth adopt their own smell during the breastfeeding period, so their whiff is misleading. Women taking the contraceptive pill aren’t allowed to sign up because they react to smells differently.

“Men with similar immune systems will smell better when a woman’s on the pill and she won’t be attracted to her genetic opposites,” explains Eric. “Scientists speculate that the pill has greatly contributed to high divorce rates because women marry, come off the pill to start a family, and then suddenly find their husband’s smell unappealing.”

As science evolves, Eric believes his dating service will become even more specific. “There’s evidence suggesting that we’re most compatible with others who look similar to ourselves,” he says. “Advancements could mean that we learn more about the elements of people’s personalities involved in great matches; including temperament, ambition and sense of humour. This would allow us to use more methods for genetic matchmaking.”

Scientificmatch.com

FEMDOM FANCIERS
Your ideal man-ga or girl is waiting to get hen-taid up in a relationship

Manga mania is bigger than ever, but other than conventions, there aren’t many places where enthusiasts can meet one another. Anime boffin Ryan Kopf was inspired to help fellow enthusiasts find love after making friends at his first gaming convention in Iowa, and in July 2009 he created MaiOtaku. Members (or Otaku) can create dating profiles detailing their personalities and knowledge.
“The profile shows everything – even the rating a member gave a particular anime film, TV series, book or comic,” says Ryan. “People often leave geeky profile comments like, “Hey! I loved Howl’s Moving Castle too! Wanna go see Ponyo this weekend?”

As well as providing messaging services, forums, convention listings and a place to upload pics, the site champions the benefits of dating an amine geek: “Our idea of romance might be to build you a website listing the reasons we love you,” says one Otaku. “But it lasts longer than flowers.”

The average members on MaiOtaku are aged 16-24, and Ryan says, “they’re compassionate, open-minded and willing to admit they like dressing up as their favourite animated character.”

After organising a successful speed-dating event last November in Saint Louis, Missouri, Ryan has started planning a MaiOtaku love-fest for Valentine’s Day next year called Anime-SPARK!

MaiOtaku.com


NO SEX PLEASE
When living without sex doesn’t mean living without love

Having mismatched libidos is a pain in the crotch for couples, but what if one half of the relationship doesn’t want sex… ever? Love is tough for asexuals.
Not to be confused with celibacy, asexuality means not being interested in sex, having a low-to-nonexistent sex drive, or not being able to have sex for biological or psychological reasons. Before the internet existed it was hard for asexuals to find each other, but dating sites such as Asexualpals.com have made not fucking someone you love much easier.

 “It’s rare for asexuals to meet other asexuals in everyday activities, so some become lonely and isolated,” says Asexualpals.com founder Regena English. The site was originally a forum for happily unmarried straight and asexual women, but it turned into a dating service 10 years ago when asexual men asked to join. It now has 500 members, many of whom have become couples.

The dating scene can be a hostile wasteland for asexual people and the site is a safe house for members. A few, especially men, have experienced prejudice from people who think they’re not ‘man’ enough, or must have been sexually abused.
“Abuse might explain why some people don’t want to have sex, but not all,” Regena explains. A few have ‘sexual burnout’, which is when people lead sex-free lives in their 20s and 30s because they had a lot of sex when they were younger.

 “The biggest misconception about asexual people is that they’re ‘abnormal’ or antisocial, says Regena. “Asexuals can be just as affectionate, loving and committed as anyone else -– the only difference is they’re looking for people who can reciprocate their affections without the pressure to have physical relations.”
Without a reliable support network, many asexuals either end up going out with a horny person and faking sexual interest, or steering clear of relationships altogether. “Nowadays, people are doing everything within their power to even out the odds of meeting the ideal person for them,” Regena says. “If you join this site, you want a guarantee that sexual activity will not be high up on the list of priorities for other members.”

Asexualpals.com

BIG LOVE
It’s not just the hunchbacked and overly hairy who have a hard time finding love. Tall people do too – particularly tall women. Men of an average height can feel intimidated by a lanky lass, which is a real confidence-zapper, so Tallfriends.com matches up towering folk with their heads in the clouds.
Tallfriends.com


TOKING TOTTY
That’s right! 420dating.com is a dating site for those who smoke weed. Even though the site claims not to “advocate the use of any illegal substances”, the barrage of rolling paper ads, and member pics featuring reefers that are longer than Route 66, suggests otherwise.
420dating.com


FARMER WANTS A WIFE
 “City folks just don’t get it,” is the motto of Farmersonly.com. Site founder Jerry Mills has come to the rescue of farmers in the US after hearing that long working hours screw up their social lives. So if shit shovelling, sheep-shearing and a dash of southern hospitality gets you hot under the collar, head on over!
Farmersonly.com


FECAL ATTRACTION
Well, we did say there was a dating site for pretty much everyone, and poop lovers are no exception. It must be pretty hard to meet someone in your local bar who digs the brown stuff. How do you start that conversation? “So, I was letting a German prostitute crap into my mouth the other day... hey, where are you going?”
Scatdating.net


LOVE AND WARCRAFT
Randy Rogues and Warlocks, look no further! This gamers’ haven is a World Of Warcraft dating site that invites people to get intimate while swapping battle strategies and short-cut secrets. The forums are pretty lively and members discuss everything from WoW addiction to… er, cooking.
Datecraft.com