They say the eyes are the mirror of the soul. And the truth is, this statement holds true for humans and our beloved ARISTOPETS alike. Between people, glances can replace words. Eyes don't lie. In the case of pets, their gaze and facial expressions are their way of communicating with the world and, especially, with their ARISTOPARENTS. Not to mention, of course, the barks and meows of our best friends.
The interesting thing is that this popular saying (the eyes are the mirror of the soul) has taken on a new dimension as a result of a small study published on October 19 in Scientific Reports1.
The study states that dogs have a special sensitivity to human attention. And it assures, after experimenting with 24 dogs of different breeds and at different life stages (from 1-year-old puppies to 12-year-old senior dogs), that dogs communicate with us through their facial expressions.
Did you think that irresistible gaze from your puppy was accidental or innate? Well, science proves it's not. When your dog looks at you with eyes that could melt the polar ice cap... they are telling you much more than you imagine. Either to establish a deeper connection with you, or to subtly ask for something, or to show you their unconditional affection.
The experiment, as we mentioned, involved 24 dogs. Each one was placed in a room, where a person was one meter away, maintaining absolute silence. A video camera recorded the situation. During this encounter, the person interacted with the dog in four different ways. First, they held out food in their hand, staring at the dog. Next, they repeated the operation, looking at the dog, but without food. Thirdly, they offered food without looking at the dog. And finally, they neither looked at the dog nor offered food. In cases where there was no eye contact, the person fixed their gaze on a point on the wall and remained oblivious to the dog's reactions. This procedure was performed twice with each dog, on alternate days.
The facial expressions of all dogs were analyzed using the DogFACS system, developed ad hoc by the Dog Cognition Centre. This system is inspired by the human version: the Facial Action Coding System, which identifies facial changes associated with muscular movements. The system recorded that the number of dog facial expressions doubled when the person looked at them, compared to when they didn't. Whether these people had food or not seemed to have no effect whatsoever on the dogs.
The results could not be more interesting, as they also differ from the conclusions of previous studies, which claimed that dogs showed greater excitement when it came to food than when it came to people who weren't paying attention to them.
Getting to a specific finding, according to the current study, there is no evidence of a correlation between lowering eyebrows and feeling sadness. Dogs do it and we find it irresistible. But it doesn't mean they are sad. They simply do it because they are trying to make their gaze more appealing when we are near, when we are looking at them. Whether there is food or not. They want to maintain eye contact to communicate everything they carry within their hearts.
This study opens the door to successive studies. It raises questions whose answers bring us closer to learning how to identify and interpret the signs that dogs make. We now know that they try to tell us something when we are near. But we still need to know, for example, if dogs modulate these gestures and facial expressions depending on the person they are with. Does their expression truly vary (if this happens) when they see their ARISTOPARENT? And when they are faced with a complete stranger? Or with a child? And beyond that, does the facial expression or attitude of the person looking at them influence them? Will their gestures change when someone smiles at them? Or when a person's presence is threatening? When the person is sad? There are studies that claim that they understand what we say to them and how we say it, so it doesn't seem too far-fetched...
There is still much to learn, but little by little we are closer to better understanding the mysteries surrounding our furry friends. If you want to read about other interesting studies related to ARISTODOGS, click here.