Emotions

OH and I were watching the dogs in the garden today - Puppy and Bailey were playing, Poppy was digging and Kiara was sniffing about and we started a discussion about dogs and emotions but we couldn't agree, I said OH was humanising their behaviours, OH disagreed and said that they were obviously happy so what do you think??

Can you give dogs our emotions or are they just living in the now and doing what comes naturally to them??

Do they really feel emotions as we would describe them??

My Ozzie felt loss when Tia passed ..
You mean like that?

Yeah - Kinda

Do they know they are happy/sad/mad etc as we would describe the emotion

There is an interesting article in the latest Pet Plan magazine, which addresses this question quite well. A quote:

"Our brains share the same underlying circuitry, and pysiological evidence and behavioural observations certainly indicate that dogs and cats experience many of the same emotions as us, though perhaps not all the complex variations. Recently, scientists have rigorously investigated animals' emotions, but the conclusions vary widely and scientists are far from agreement over the results. They don't dispute that, when it comes to survival, emotions such as anger, fear and surprise, all mammals share the same brain structure, therefore experience the same emotions..........these emotions provide the ability to react to information which enters the brain via the senses, allowing animals to avoid getting eaten, find things to eat, and look after their young.

We are learning that dogs, horses and many other species are far more emotionally complex than we realised, experiencing forms of many emotions we previously only associated with primates.

We can ask an animal if it wants to do something, but should recognise that it is a request and not a command, and we should read their answer appropriately - there is no harm in letting them have their way occasionally. You have a friend because you enjoy their company, not because they do what you say."


So, basically I suppose they are still in the depth of research about emotions in dogs and other animals but are beginning to find evidence that they do indeed feel many of the same emotions that we do, albeit in a slightly modified form.

i think they do, and i think they have off days for no reason just like we do. Phoebe does anyway

Irregardless of what science can prove, anyone that lives or spends a lot of time with dogs can see that they experience a range of emotions.

Dogs can enjoy themselves and be contented,relaxed and happy. They can pine and feel depressed or sad. They experience frustration, excitement and jealousy (otherwise known as resource-guarding or possessiveness). I do not believe they experience guilt as one needs a sense of morality and conscience which I do not believe they possess.

I think we can mistake the emotions that they experience sometimes through anthropomorphising but without doubt they experience a range of emotions IMO.

I think they are emotional beings just like we are. I fully accept that my dogs are dogs, but I see their emotions.

I firmly believe they do have emotions. I think we have all probably seen our own dogs show their happiness, sadness, etc.

Emotions would be extremely difficult to prove in humans if it weren't for the fact that we all have them so assume others feel those same highs and lows as ourselves.

Totally agree.

I know mine do. Skye showed her emotions when Reah passed, picking up Reah's collar it brought a tear to my eye and a lump to my throat.

Mojo shows alot of emotions so much so that we can see exactly whats she is feeling