Yahoo – AFP,
October 19, 2017
 |
| New research suggests dogs are masters of body language and use their facial expressions to communicate and manipulate their owners |
Your dog
may be a master manipulator, deliberately making puppy eyes to pull at your
heart strings, according to a study Thursday into a ploy many mutt owners have
long suspected.
The
research suggests that dogs may be in control of their facial expressions,
using them to communicate, researchers reported in the journal Scientific
Reports.
Until now,
it was assumed that dog expressions were involuntary.
The new
study suggests, however, that man's best friend may be very well aware of the
reaction a scowl or grin will elicit from its master.
"The
findings appear to support evidence... that expressions are potentially active
attempts to communicate," said study co-author Juliane Kaminski of the
University of Portsmouth.
In a series
of experiments with different types of pet dogs, the team discovered that the
animals "move their faces" more when humans were paying attention to
them.
Raising the
brows, which makes the eyes appear bigger to produce heart-melting "puppy
dog eyes", was the most commonly-used expression, the researchers found.
When humans
had their backs turned, or were distracted, the dogs' faces were much less
active -- regardless of whether the human was offering a food treat or not.
Previous
research has shown that dogs are aware of how attentive humans are.
One study,
for example, showed they stole food more often when a human had their back
turned or eyes closed.
"We
now know dogs make more facial expressions when the human is paying
attention," said Kaminski.
It was too
soon, however, to state categorically that dogs have a perception of what a
human may be thinking or feeling -- a state of awareness considered a sign of
high intelligence displayed by humans, the team added.
Research in
non-human primates has suggested some of our far-flung cousins may also be
aware that others can read their facial expressions -- which changed when they
had an audience.
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