Dogs are people too?

[PopeyesPappy]

That's what neuroscientist Gregory Berns of Emory University says 2 years of MRIs on dogs shows. He says his research indicates our furry companions "have the same capacity to experience emotions, such as love and attachment, as humans." Something many of us could have told him without wasting time doing MRIs.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/06/opini ... =all&_r=1&

[stromboli]

True story. Anyone who has been around dogs know their capacity for love.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

In a ground breaking study it was revealed lead is heavier than helium. :shock:

[Solitary]

My eight dogs support that story.  :P   :roll:  Solitary

[Mermaid]

When I was a kid, my mother told me that animals were incapable of emotion. She was definitely a dog person so this is kind of surprising, but I guess that was the convention at the time. I never believed it for a second about dogs or any other animals.
I know they are far more capable of reasoning than we have ever given them credit for. There is nothing mystical or cosmic about the fact that my cats know words that I am speaking to them.

This makes me struggle with the fact that we as a species treat pets and other animals the way we do. It's too much for me to handle so I try to do the ostrich thing.

[Jason78]

Damn right dogs have emotions.  They might not smile, but you can tell when they are happy and when they are sad.

[Mermaid]

Damn right dogs have emotions.  They might not smile, but you can tell when they are happy and when they are sad.

I think, apropos to this forum, that a lot of people find this to be the distinction between man and animals. (which, of course is ridiculous because we ARE animals). GOD put animals on this earth to serve man.

[stromboli]

Animals have the capacity to feel and love. Goodall noted this in her work with chimps. I have seen animals mourn lost ones. There is a video on the internet right now of a mother cow mourning a lost calf, and their being reunited. My own dog's devotion to my wife in her pain is certainly evident, and his caring for her.

[_Xenu_]

While this is not surprising a bit, I cannot help but think of zoophiles who exploits the nature of these animals -also this information- and claim that they are having 'romantic relationships' with their pets.

It makes me angry that people who are not able to have relationships with species which have mental fortitude to make a choice and use an animal sexually, claiming it's 'love', because of their great capacity for giving affection.

You just had to bring that sick shit up. Now watch this thread go for pages and pages.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

What? You never had a sexy possum?

[FrankDK]

Not only do dogs (and cats) have and show emotion, they are sensitive to the emotions of others in their environment.

Frank

[PopeyesPappy]

I find this promoting one animal above very nonsense. Other domestic animals we share our lives are capable great capacity of giving love too. The fact that one's display of affection is more recognisable to human and easy to rule over and tame, doesn't render other animals, i.e. cats not capable of emotional attachment or little capacity of love.

Let's be honest here and think about human nature, 'the master' animal who is responsible of the whole construct these animals live in. That master is not really a developed animal either in this sense and his perception of love and affection is limited with crude sense of loyalty and self centered at almost all times. This is how we came to domesticate dogs, because they were necessary, could be 'employed' once trained, and loyal.

Cats however are more like us humans and if you're at the top of the food chain and rule over animal kingdom, it is not in your nature to compromise with independent characters like yourself. There will be 'conflict'. That little, furry four legged thing won't give a fuck what you really desire her to do or think, doesn't matter how smarter or bigger you are than her. She is a serial killer and a god, pretty much capable of great affection, very capable to understand your distress, happiness, joy, sadness or illness, loves her privacy and insist on taking or doing what she wants, not really afraid of many things and will always play to her benefit when necessary. She is narcissistic, lazy, promiscuous, glutton and a fierce mother. She is sinister, vicious and ungrateful. She has good taste in food. Also prepared to eat you to survive when you drop dead in your apartment to be found days later. Now, kneel before her. She IS you. She just looks much better.

Having said all that. I LOOOVE dogs like crazy. Aaw.  :-D

Proving animal sentience is a key point in the concept of animal rights. One of the ways humans justify treating other animals like shit is the thought that they are different than we are. Many believe they are not capable of emotions such as love and fear. Some don't even believe they are capable of experiencing pain. This is exactly the type of research that may be able to provide verifiable empirical evidence to show these people that other animals besides humans are capable of both feelings and reason.  

As far as promoting one species above another I have little doubt that some species experience these types of emotions more than others. In one recent study Dr Jenia Meng ranked sentience in animals as: human infant>other apes>other mammals>birds>cold blood animals. The study in the OP suggests dogs are on par with a human 2 year old. If that is true, and I suspect it is, then an adult chimp probably quite a bit further up the cognitive ladder than that.

It wouldn't surprise me if dogs experienced these things more than cats either. There are reasons why dogs were domesticated before any other species. One of them is they like humans are pack animals. Yes I know domestic cats live in groups too, but those groups are female family groups. All males leave at maturity. Dogs on the other hand live in a mixed group. A group that is much more likely to accept an outsider than a group of cats. It also wouldn't surprise me if dogs are more emotional than cats because that trait has been artificially selected in them by us for such a long time.

[Mermaid]

Cats are pretty smart. To the point where it's almost scary. I watched Norman make a decision yesterday, I could actually watch the wheels turning: I got home from work and let the cats outside to play before dinner. The first two shot out the door and Norman started to, but stopped. He thought for a moment. I could tell he really wanted to go out, but he also really wanted treats. He backed up and jumped up on the counter. I gave him treats, which he ate, and THEN begged to go outside, which he did. No moss growing on him.

[dgirl1986]

Their loyalty says it all.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

Shoezie..stop translating books and write pet books. You'll get rich!

Seriously! :shock: