If you have a dog, you likely know how good these animals are at reading subtle cues. Jangle a key or dangle a leash and many pooches know it’s time to go outside. But man’s best friend may be even more in touch with our feelings than we realize. Dogs can distinguish between certain emotions just by looking at our faces, a new study suggests.
The results offer a new peek at what’s going on in canine brains. That could offer clues to how dogs’ emotion-sensing skills evolved, says Laura Cuaya. She’s a neuroscientist at the University of Vienna in Austria. The findings also give another reason to smile at any pup that crosses your path, she adds. They just might understand.
Past studies had shown dogs can tell if someone’s face is wearing a positive or negative expression. The two emotions seem to trigger activity in different areas of a dog’s brain. But many questions remained. Could dogs tell the difference between two negative emotions, suc...
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