An unexpected ability of dogs discovered

Scientists confirm: dogs are capable of finely sensing human emotions. When your pet tilts its head hearing your cry, or starts to get nervous when you're anxious - it's not a coincidence, but the result of thousands of years of joint evolution. This is reported by The Conversation.

According to research using neuroimaging, dogs, like humans, have brain regions responsible for perceiving voice and its emotional coloring. Joyful laughter or angry shouting activates the auditory cortex and amygdala - the center for processing emotions. And the sight of a familiar face causes excitement in areas associated with pleasure and attachment.

This emotional responsiveness is also reflected at the physiological level: in some "human-dog" pairs, heart rates synchronize in stressful situations. Scientists call this "emotional contagion" - a simple form of empathy when the pet mirrors the owner's state.

The hormone oxytocin plays a key role. With a gentle eye-to-eye gaze, both human and dog experience increased levels of the "love hormone," enhancing the feeling of closeness. Notably, this effect is not observed in domesticated wolves - it emerged specifically during the domestication process.

Dogs can distinguish facial expressions and even the "smell of emotions." Experiments have shown: when smelling fear, they displayed anxiety, and with a "happy smell" - they relaxed.

Centuries of coexistence have changed the canine brain: it became smaller than wolves', but acquired special social and emotional sensitivity. Therefore, even without literally understanding human thoughts, dogs know how to read human feelings and respond to them.