ARISTODOGS are incredibly smart. And, in many ways, they have more highly developed senses than we do. The fact that they can “recognize” people and see beyond what is visible at first glance is one of them. That’s why (you’ve surely experienced it more than once), there are times when a dog feels a special affinity for someone it doesn’t even know (of course, if the person is familiar, this “feeling” becomes stronger). At other times, the dog reacts atypically and shows dislike for someone, regardless of whether it knows them or not.
According to a new study conducted by researchers at Kyoto University, this is because both dogs and monkeys track how humans behave toward one another and show more affection for people who help others than for selfish people or those who do not treat their fellow human beings particularly well. You may have sensed it, right? Well, you were right. And at last, we have the academic explanation.
In the experiments, led by comparative psychologist James Anderson, capuchin monkeys were made to observe an actor trying to take a toy out of a container. The animals watched as another actor approached and either helped him remove the toy from the container or refused to help him. Afterwards, both actors offered the monkeys food. When the second actor helped the first, the monkeys showed no preference for either person giving them food. But when the second actor refused to help, the monkeys preferred to go with the first actor and accepted food only from him.
Similarly, the dogs also showed their rejection of people who were not very pleasant. The researchers had a dog’s owner pretend to be struggling to take a ball out of a container while two actors watched. In one scenario, one of the actors helped the dog’s owner, while the other merely watched passively. In another scenario, the actor refused to help while the other watched.
When both actors offered the dogs kibble, the dogs showed no preference. However, when the actor refused to help the owner, the dogs took the kibble from the actor who had merely remained passively watching. Apparently, in the dogs’ eyes, it is unforgivable for someone not to be entirely kind to their ARISTOPARENT. And it is a feeling comparable to what we may feel when someone does not treat our children, parents, or partner well.
Anderson believes that these animals have an emotional response to antisocial behavior, similar to the one people would have. So much so that the reactions of dogs and monkeys toward unhelpful people could even be a way of correcting their behavior.
This shows that dogs are sensitive to human behavior. But not only to behavior involving other members of their own species, but also to how people treat one another. ARISTODOGS see everything, hear everything, feel everything and, although they cannot say it in words, they take the side of everyone who helps make the world a little better.
If you would like to learn about other studies related to animal behavior, you can continue reading these posts: “Your dog understands what you say and how you say it” or “The anthrozoologist who shows that your heart is synchronized with your dog’s”.
