Does your dog really want to hang out with you instead of anyone else? We like to think so, but research shows that it's a little more complicated.

Scientists already knew that dogs interact with objects and explore a room more in the presence of their owner than with a stranger. And while you might not have felt you needed academic research to validate this, pets greet their owners longer and more enthusiastically than non-owners after a period of separation.

A new study has shown, though, that how dogs behave with their owners vs. strangers may depend on the context and the task. (Read more about why dogs are so friendly.)

Researchers in Florida gave pet dogs recruited from homes a