See more great photos at Liz Mc’s Flickr account.
Does your dog ever stare at you? If you’re not eating anything, there’s a strong chance that he’s trying to read your facial expression.
For a long time, many of us have had a hunch that dogs look at our faces to determine how we feel, what we’re going to do next, and when the next treat is coming.
Now, for the first time ever, researchers at The Clever Dog Lab at the Vetmeduni Vienna have published a study that serves as strong evidence that dogs understand the meaning of a smile.
Their test subjects were regular pet dogs, just like the ones that chill with us in our homes. Using a touchscreen, the researchers displayed photos of smiling and frowning people at dog eye level. The dogs in the first group were trained to touch smiling faces as they appeared. The second group was trained to touch the frowning faces.
In a recent study, dogs were able to identify smiling and frowning human faces, even when the photos were split in half.
Despite a food reward, the dogs in the “frowny face” group were much slower to associate the photos with a treat. They were reluctant to approach human faces that showed signs of displeasure: a furrowed brow, a taut, downturned mouth.
The “happy face” group, however, was much more quick to touch the smiling faces. Even when researchers split the faces to prevent the dogs from getting fixated on particular facial features, the results were clear: dogs find smiling faces much more approachable.
It remains unclear whether dogs are born with the skill to identify human facial expressions, or if it comes from their experience with happy and angry humans. The researchers believe it’s the latter. They believe that dogs who have not lived with humans would test differently.
One thing’s for sure: your dog has this ability, and it’s a great way to add another dimension to your training.
Make eye contact with your dog, especially as you give him commands. While dogs associate prolonged staring with aggression, they respond well to a loving, friendly gaze in the eyes.
Smile when your dog makes you happy, and try not to let them see you smile when they do something adorable yet undesirable. While we know that they are capable of reading our faces, there’s no way of knowing just what they pick up – if your dog surprises you with his intelligence every day, you know just what I mean.
She also uses her pet copywriting business to make sure the best pet products and services get found online through catchy copy and fun, informative blog posts. She also provides product description writing services for ecommerce companies.
As a dog mom to Matilda and Cow, she spends most of her days taking long walks and practicing new tricks, and most nights trying to make the best of a very modest portion of her bed.
You'll also find her baking bread and making homemade pizza, laughing, painting and shopping.
I am not at all surprised Lindsay! My dog and I have great conversations and I know she understands me if not the words, then the energy I’m imparting. Most of the time when she stares at me she is trying to remind me its time for food or a walk! She is a better ‘clock’ watcher than I am! Can’t get away with being late. Thanks for a super article.
Oh yes, not all conversations have words! I’ve never had a dog who could tell time, that’s interesting!
Very interesting… an it really says how intelligent and perceptive other beings are.
Great post! It’s definitely very interesting. I always knew dogs were smarter than what people thought but I’m so glad more studies are coming out to prove it!
Thanks! All these studies, and my dog takes 20 seconds to find a piece of ham right in front of her, lol.
Great study; it’s always lovely when we finally get some scientific proof to back up what us dog owners have been saying all along.
Great write up – and yup, we dogs like to read faces, so give us a smile! Thanks for talking about this study, it’s a good one!
This is great info to have, and I love the study! Thanks for sharing.
What an interesting study! Our dogs are so smart, it’s really remarkable!
Interesting! I had always heard that bearing teeth (smiling) would be interpreted as a sign of aggression by the dog. Perhaps we’ve evolved!
We agree I love mom’s happy face a lot more, that’s why when she’s sad I give her kisses. Love Dolly
This is really interesting! I have a feeling that they have a predisposition for being able to read faces, but they are taught about our faces by experience with us. That’s how we learn to read other people’s faces too. I think cats have this ability too because they seem to read people rather well when they want to.
I spend hours looking at Kilo staring at me. He definitely reads moods and enjoys eye contact. Love all the new research coming out on the human-animal bond. Thanks for sharing
I love all the discoveries being made about dogs — it’s taken science so l o n g to study our faithful companions! I smiled at your post, and remembered something about dogs having a bias to reading the right side of our face…it’s so exciting to have science back up what dog people know, and then take it another step beyond =)
Thanks!
Great article! I absolutely believe they understand our smiles, and I love it when my Huskies smile back or give me a kiss when I smile at them! Loved this post!
So interesting! I had once read that smiling at a dog might be interpreted as a baring of teeth and scare them. I like to believe that they know what it really means though! Thanks for a great post.
Love this post!
Great read. We even incorporate this into our every day life: if you see someones dog staring at you or giving attention your way, just give a warming smile to them back – you can generally see the dogs warming reaction to you which is adorable!
Hi Lindsay, How are you? This really a unique topic. Dogs may have not voice but they can feed everything and can express their feelings throw their body language. I have seen some dog breeds which are very intelligent, loyal and can play different games to entertain its owner and her family/friends. My dog is very punctual and never forget his walking and feeding time. He always try to remind me by his tail if I forget anyway. I appreciate your idea “Why You Should Smile at Your Dog More Often”. Thanks for your superb article.