Investigative Journalism

Do dogs have emotions?

By: Emily Laurenzi

Do dogs have emotions is a commonly asked question for those who are or those who have been dog owners. Most owners will agree that they have witnessed their dogs feeling sad, happy, or even jealous.

In an online report, Robert Defranco, director of the Animal Behavior Center, believes that animals “live very much more in the moment than humans do.” Not only do they have primary emotions, but also secondary emotions such as: “love, jealousy, and greed.”

Smiling dog

In the same online report, a dog whisperer at North Shore Animal League, by the name of Mike Malloy, trains dogs by reading their emotions. When asked if dogs have human-like emotions he answered, “Oh yeah, definitely, "I think they miss the way people miss love ones, they hurt the way people hurt, they grieve."

Dogs are said to have a larger amygdala, which are masses of nuclei in the brain where emotions are controlled. This allows them to have these certain secondary emotions that humans also experience.

In a second online report, "Dr Friederike Range, at the University of Vienna's neurobiology department, has confirmed that dogs experience intense jealousy if they see that they are being unfairly treated compared to another dog."

“Few who have lived with dogs would deny that dogs have feelings,” says Jeffrey Masson. Dogs are not able to express feelings the way we are, however it does not mean that they do not exist.

Scared dog

There are many instances in which it can be proven that dogs have emotions. A dog’s tail position often demonstrates the body language of a dog.  In most cases a “wagging tail indicates excitement or agitation,” and a tail that is tucked between their hind legs indicates fear.

As a dog owner I can certainly agree that dogs do have emotions. When the door that the vacuum is kept in is opened, my dog immediately hides behind the couch, in fear. She refuses to come out until the vacuum is put away and the door is closed again.

Loving dog

“I believe dogs have emotions, however, they are not as complex,” said Martha Smith, “I also think they can be mentally disabled.” Martha’s dog Sydney has a problem with running into cabinets and closed doors and also has random mood swings.

Kelly Carter, a teacher at NSA, also agrees that animals have emotions “on some levels."  “When I leave to go out the door my dog barks like a maniac because she wants to go out,' She said, “After I tell her no she gives me the 'I hate you look” and sits down with sad eyes.” 

A dog is able to recognize when you are having a bad day. They are not able to ask you what happened, however, they know when something is wrong and respond by comforting you.

The reason dogs are able to recognize the feelings of others comes from Mirror neurons, which allow the dog "to understand another individual’s behavior by imagining themselves performing the same behavior."

Recently experts found "scientific evidence that suggests that dogs have evolved and developed "face reading" skills, which means that dogs will look to the human's face for hints about the person's emotions and mood."

Anyone who has owned a dog knows when their dog is excited, scared, or upset about something. If you pay close enough attention to your dog it’s easy to observe their emotions.

“Do dogs have emotions?” remains one of the most common asked questions in the study of animal behavior till this day.