Dogs Know What That Smile on Your Face Means
A new study lends further proof that your pet can read your emotions.
Whether it's with a sympathetic tilt of the head or the excited sweep of a tail, dogs seem to be saying they can sense exactly what we're feeling.
Science is still undecided on the matter, although evidence in favor of the idea is stacking up.
Now, a new study has found that dogs are able to tell the difference between happy and angry human facial expressions. (Related: "Animal Minds" in National Geographic magazine.)
Biologist Corsin Müller of the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria, and colleagues tested 11 dogs—including border collies, a fox terrier, a golden retriever, a German shepherd, and some mutts—using a touchscreen. The scientists trained the dogs to touch either a happy face or an angry