Factors that Affect a Dog’s Mental Well Being
Dr. Daniel Inman, a veterinarian at Burlington Emergency Veterinary Specialists in Williston, Vermont, says that depression in dogs is often caused by changes in their environment.
“Some dogs are much more sensitive to change than others, and certain variables can affect dogs differently, but overall, dramatic changes in a dog’s life can certainly lead to depression,” he says.
Dramatic changes may encompass a move, the loss of a companion (canine or other), a new baby or pet, or change in routine. “We often think about loss as a trigger for depression, but actually any change in environment can set it off,” Inman says.
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As dog lovers, we believe that our canine companions experience emotions. We observe them as they display affection toward us, cower fearfully from vacuum cleaners, alert to the UPS truck, and grin or wag like crazy at a friendly person.
With their expressive faces and demonstrative body language, dogs manage to communicate a wide range of emotions to their humans. But the jury is still out on whether dogs actually understand when they do something wrong and feel guilty.
You’ve probably come across your dog after he’s done something naughty, like peeing in the house or shredding your favorite pair of socks. His body language seems to radiate guilt. Many veterinary experts suggest that this is a classic case of anthropomorphism — when we attribute human characteristics or behavior to an animal.
A 2009 study examined “guilty” canine expressions. Researchers observed dogs and their owners under several sets of circumstances and discovered that dogs tended to display “guilty” body language more frequently when their owners scolded them than when the owners remained neutral – regardless of whether the dogs had actually done anything wrong.
Dog cognition scientist and author Dr. Alexandra Horowitz, who coordinated the research, concluded, “a better description of the so-called guilty look is that it is a response to owner cues, rather than that it shows an appreciation of a misdeed.”
When we say a dog looks guilty, we usually mean he displays some or all of the following behaviors or signs:
These are all expressions of fear and stress in dogs. While these behaviors could also conceivably communicate a feeling such as guilt, it does pose a dilemma for researchers. Do dogs truly understand that they’ve broken our rules and feel bad about it, or are they simply reacting to our voice and body language by trying to appease us with a submissive posture?
Guilt is a complex concept. It requires an understanding of cause and effect in relation to time, which is difficult to prove. Dogs don’t talk about how they feel by using words, so we don’t know what they think about while they wait for us to come home and discover a chewed up shoe.
Dr. Mary R. Burch, certified applied animal behaviorist, suggests that when a dog looks guilty for an action such as house soiling or chewing, he has most likely done this before and may have experienced a strong reaction from his owner – scolding, yelling, or the cold shoulder. Now the dog may anticipate how the owner will react and exhibit body language to try to appease his owner, for instance cowering, as a way of asking for forgiveness.
Poking fun at a “guilty” dog in an amusing photo is one thing, but misunderstanding guilt can lead to problems. Animal behaviorists agree that because our dogs are so sensitive to our reactions, punishment after the fact can backfire.
If you come home to find your dog has done his business on the living room rug, scolding, pointing, or focusing your full attention on your canine companion’s mistake in a stressful manner communicates your displeasure. Next time you go out, he may eliminate in the basement or in some other hidden space because what he’s learned is that it upsets you to see his mess when you come in the door.
It’s far better to figure out how to prevent situations that lead to the behavior in the first place – confine your dog to a crate or pen when you’re out, hire a dog walker, be sure he’s had plenty of exercise before you leave him.
Demonstrating the Difference Between Guilt and Fear
I was once called upon to see if I could demonstrate that this response represented fear, rather than guilt, for a TV show. The dog in question was a handsome, rough Collie named Marla. She had gotten into the habit of knocking over the trash can in the kitchen and rummaging through it to find whatever edibles she could salvage when her family was out of the house. They were rather exasperated by the situation and would scold Marla when they got home and saw the mess that she had caused.
Marlas owners believed that the dog knew that what she was doing was wrong. They explained to me that when they came home and found the evidence of her delinquency, she always looked guilty and ashamed. To prove that they were wrong about which emotion was triggering Marlas behavior, I set up a demonstration. The idea was to show them that guilt and shame were not the motives behind Marlas actions, but it was simple fear of punishment that caused that “guilty look.”
To begin with, I had the family leave the house. Next, I walked Marla into the kitchen, placed her in a sit-stay position. While she watched, I knocked over the trashcan and spread its contents across the floor. Since she had seen me making the mess on the floor she should have nothing to feel guilty or ashamed of.
After I set this scene, we then walked back into the living room where I called the family back into the house. The moment that Marla saw them she glanced over her shoulder toward the kitchen and then immediately began to exhibit the behaviors (tucking in her tail and slinking around and cowering etc.) which her owners had always interpreted as shame and guilt. This happened even though she had done nothing wrong and had nothing to feel guilty about. This seems to demonstrate that it was the anticipation of punishment given the sight of her family combined with the simultaneous sight of the trash-strewn kitchen floor that was the basis of what they were interpreting as her “guilty look.”