Poll: Do Dogs feel love?
- Thread starter Rossco64
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I say "No". Because if I say yes then it'll only take a few steps before I marry a Llama and not eat meat.
Yes, they do, because my experience with dogs is that they're quite perceptive and some are better at reading people than a lot of other people.
Sure, why not? Not that I know anything about the biology of a dog, but it seems perfectly plausible that the same chemicals, hormones and whatever within our own brains that trigger what we describe as love could be present within an animal.
Arguing sentience would be something else (as we all know that's only true of cats), but a simple chemical reaction isn't all that exclusive to us.
Arguing sentience would be something else (as we all know that's only true of cats), but a simple chemical reaction isn't all that exclusive to us.
Remember that story of that one dog in japan that followed walked home with his owner from the train station every day when he came home from work, and kept coming to the train station after his owner died even escaping from the family that adopted him? I'd say yes.
Well first you'd need to define love, wouldn't you?
OT: It's possible, but even if they don't (different chemicals, different reactions, different neural structures, etc), who is to say that what they are capable of isn't more powerful (and more bonding) than love? Why must love be the most important feeling? Just because we, as humans, can't experience an emotion, doesn't mean that the emotion isn't better than what we do experience.
OT: It's possible, but even if they don't (different chemicals, different reactions, different neural structures, etc), who is to say that what they are capable of isn't more powerful (and more bonding) than love? Why must love be the most important feeling? Just because we, as humans, can't experience an emotion, doesn't mean that the emotion isn't better than what we do experience.
The answer is a murky yes.
Like most lesser animals, dogs have mush simpler brains, leading to having much simpler minds. So, while you can observe them showing affection, its doubtable that what they feel could be equally compared to what we consider 'love.'
Of course, we can't be entirely certain. Emotional definition and depth are, at this time, impossible to observe accurately without truthful input from the subject in question. And by the time a dog gains the ability to actively discuss the issue with you, the whole 'simpler minds' problem has already been resolved.
Like most lesser animals, dogs have mush simpler brains, leading to having much simpler minds. So, while you can observe them showing affection, its doubtable that what they feel could be equally compared to what we consider 'love.'
Of course, we can't be entirely certain. Emotional definition and depth are, at this time, impossible to observe accurately without truthful input from the subject in question. And by the time a dog gains the ability to actively discuss the issue with you, the whole 'simpler minds' problem has already been resolved.
I'd say that dogs experience the equivalent of what we call love, like another has suggested this may be a stronger emotion than love. This is based off two pieces of evidence.
- I live away from home for extended periods of time, my parents look after my dog my than myself. However when I go home I get crash tackled by my dog then muredered with licks and my ears are bombarded by the noises she makes. Similarly, when I love my mum has told me that she waits at the front door all day except for food for about a week after ive left again. The first few times were especially bad, she destroyed my couch, the garden, my bed, the doors in my house and the carpet on he stairs in what my parents describe as a month long fit of insanity, they said they had no idea what they were going to do with her.
- the second piece is a story of one of the blokes from an EOD unit based in Darwin. During a patrol in Afghan this EOD unit was hit with an IED, in this unit was a bomb detection dog and it's handler. The initial blast injured the handler but didn't injure the dog, later, despite medical care the handler passed away from his injuries. Two days later the dog died too, with no injuries or internal tissue damage found.
In short, yes, I believe dogs feel incredible bonds with their owners, whether it's technically love I can't really say for certain.
- I live away from home for extended periods of time, my parents look after my dog my than myself. However when I go home I get crash tackled by my dog then muredered with licks and my ears are bombarded by the noises she makes. Similarly, when I love my mum has told me that she waits at the front door all day except for food for about a week after ive left again. The first few times were especially bad, she destroyed my couch, the garden, my bed, the doors in my house and the carpet on he stairs in what my parents describe as a month long fit of insanity, they said they had no idea what they were going to do with her.
- the second piece is a story of one of the blokes from an EOD unit based in Darwin. During a patrol in Afghan this EOD unit was hit with an IED, in this unit was a bomb detection dog and it's handler. The initial blast injured the handler but didn't injure the dog, later, despite medical care the handler passed away from his injuries. Two days later the dog died too, with no injuries or internal tissue damage found.
In short, yes, I believe dogs feel incredible bonds with their owners, whether it's technically love I can't really say for certain.
As a pet owner, I can say emphatically "yes!" My dog nearly wets herself when I return home every week. She goes through similar motions with other family members, but for me, she's always the happiest. She will even excitedly greet me when I wake up in the morning, which isn't something she does for anyone else.
Not just dogs, but my ferret too. I could wake her up from a nap and she would lick my face for 5-10 minutes straight with the most blissful expression. When she was dying of cancer, she would seek me out to wherever I was in the house so that I could hold her and comfort her. Some one I knew once said that ferrets couldn't love someone because of their bad eyesight (they can't recognize people), but I'm strongly convinced that's not true.
Not just dogs, but my ferret too. I could wake her up from a nap and she would lick my face for 5-10 minutes straight with the most blissful expression. When she was dying of cancer, she would seek me out to wherever I was in the house so that I could hold her and comfort her. Some one I knew once said that ferrets couldn't love someone because of their bad eyesight (they can't recognize people), but I'm strongly convinced that's not true.
My dog is the only one I know that actively jumps on people and attempts to hug them i.e. sits in your lap, stretches her legs as far around as possible and rubs her head into you.
And I still say that dogs don't experience love.
Devotion and happiness and all that, yes, but dogs will lavish that sort of attention on anyone. Not just one person.
(by the way, polyamory can go fuck itself)
And I still say that dogs don't experience love.
Devotion and happiness and all that, yes, but dogs will lavish that sort of attention on anyone. Not just one person.
(by the way, polyamory can go fuck itself)
I've never owned a Dog but I've been around enough dogs and their owners to be sure that they do, in fact, feel love.
The difference between a humans love and a dogs love is probably bound to the fact that we, as humans, think about why we are in love and can even delude ourselves into feeling love at a moment's notice. A dog doesn't really have all of the higher brain functions to do this, which in this case is probably a blessing.
A dog doesn't need to think about why it loves its master or whomever. It forms one reason to love and then loves perpetually after that. That's probably the purest form of emotion I've ever heard of.
The difference between a humans love and a dogs love is probably bound to the fact that we, as humans, think about why we are in love and can even delude ourselves into feeling love at a moment's notice. A dog doesn't really have all of the higher brain functions to do this, which in this case is probably a blessing.
A dog doesn't need to think about why it loves its master or whomever. It forms one reason to love and then loves perpetually after that. That's probably the purest form of emotion I've ever heard of.
They can feel effection since they're very social animals.
They don't wag their tails for shits and giggles, you know!
They don't wag their tails for shits and giggles, you know!
I like to say yes, and here's why:
Last year, my family adopted a pit bull/poodle mix from a local rescue shelter. She was scared at first, but soon grew to know and love us, especially my father. And she's quite partial to me as well...
Last year, my family adopted a pit bull/poodle mix from a local rescue shelter. She was scared at first, but soon grew to know and love us, especially my father. And she's quite partial to me as well...
