Have You Smiled at Your Person Today?

Hello!

Recently, scientists were surprised to find that dogs recognize a smiling face versus an angry face. (duh?) They also 'discovered' that canines prefer laughing and smiling human faces as compared to angry faces. >sigh<

If you share your life with a dog, this is not a startling revelation. Dogs are masters of reading the human face, as well as our body language and speech. Add in the unique and special smell sense and I personally would think most dogs would beat the resident social worker in diagnosing and treating an unhappy person. There are few things in this world that can cure depression, loneliness and many of the human psychological conditions (not to mention assisting with the physical ones!) better than a canine!

Most folks that love and live with dogs, already are quite aware of the healing power of canines and their ability to identify and reflect our emotions. Interestingly, they can also differentiate amongst other canines, their intentions, mood and who they are. The medical and society have been slower to come along, but they seem to be working at understanding. There is a learning curve in society however, teaching others in a gentle, loving manner about how to relate with dogs in everyday situations is a dire need in most communities.

If you have a dog, you will note that you too can tell the various emotions that play over your dog's face during the course of a day. Between your knowledge, the emotional connection layered on top of your relationship, and it becomes easier to 'read' one another. This is a basic tenet of any good service dog partnership. The better communication is, the better the team....funny, it's like that with most relationships, eh?

I've notices that much like married couples, dogs will mimic our expressions, particular our smiles. I think it's a great complement. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, as you know!

Later...

LV, FX & JT :)

If you would like to read more about the study here are my citations:

Date:

February 12, 2015

Summary:

Dogs can tell the difference between happy and angry human faces, according to a new study. The discovery represents the first solid evidence that an animal other than humans can discriminate between emotional expressions in another species, the researchers say.

Source:

Cell Press

Journal Reference

1. Coursin A. Mueller, Kira Schmitt, Anjuli L.A. Barber, Ludwig Huber. Dogs Can Discriminate Emotional Expressions on Human Faces. Current Biology, 2015; DOI 10.1016/j.cub.2014.12.055

Cite the page from

MLA, APA Chicago

Cell Press. "Dogs know that smile on your face". Science Daily. ScienceDaily, 12 February 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150212131647.htm>

#canineresearch #dogsrecognizefacialexpressions