Why Is Your Pooch Giving You Puppy Dog Eyes?
Russell Hartstein, certified dog/cat behaviorist, trainer and CEO (Canine Executive Officer) of Fun Paw Care in Los Angeles explains that “Dogs are highly attuned animals that share our emotional states. Many times, dogs are simply reflecting back our mood, emotion and state of being, which are oftentimes undetected by people.”
Pet parents often mistake their dog’s expressions to be a reaction to the food or treats in their hand, but scientific findings have shown that dogs are more sensitive to a human’s attention than to the object in their hands. Although puppy dog eyes might seem cute to us, sometimes they’re actually a sign that your dog is stressed.
Cute vs. Sad Puppy Eyes—How to Spot the Difference
No pet parent wants their furry friend to feel sad, which is why it’s important to know the difference between when your pooch gives you cute puppy eyes versus sad puppy eyes. Hartstein explains that pet parents “can detect subtle and overt emotional conditions in their pet’s face, such as a tense vs. relaxed mouth, eye openings, eye positioning and dilation, tongue position, and brow and ear positioning.”
Paying attention to all of these factors will reveal a great deal of information about your pooch’s emotional state. You can also determine if your pup has “soft” or “hard” eyes.
Hartstein points out that if your pooch’s eyes are soft, this is the sign of a social dog, with a friendly demeanor, who is affable and confident. A pooch with soft eyes will typically have relaxed eyes and might blink often. This is what most pet parents refer to as the puppy dog eyes that are so easy to get lost in!
“This type of eye contact is not healthy or positive,” warns Hartstein.
It signifies stress, aggression, fear and unfriendly behavior. If your pooch exhibits this facial expression, it does not always mean he is a bad pooch—more than likely, there are outside factors that are causing him stress and putting him on the defensive. If your pup could use some extra comforting, try the Adaptil Electric Dog Diffuser that naturally bathes your home in the canine-appeasing pheromone to calm both puppies and adult dogs.
Avoiding eye contact is completely normal in well-socialized dogs, notes Hartstein.
“While many pet parents will condition and reward their pooch to lock eyes in a loving way with them, your pooch is likely to avoid direct eye contact with strangers or any unfamiliar being, as this can be perceived as confrontational, a threat, instigation and unfriendly,” he says.
Don’t be surprised if your fur baby shies away from unfamiliar contact! If your pup has a tendency to get stressed in social situations, try the ThunderShirt Anxiety & Calming Solution for Dogs to keep him relaxed in unfamiliar situations.
Dogs really do put on their puppy eyes to pull our emotional heartstrings, a new study found.
Yet it remains unclear whether the dogs are aware of our perspective or if their behaviour is hardwired, or even a learned response to seeing the face or eyes of another individual.
“FACS systems were originally developed for humans, but have since been modified for use with other animals such as primates and dogs.”
Kaminski added: “Domestic dogs have a unique history — they have lived alongside humans for 30,000 years and during that time selection pressures seem to have acted on dogs’ ability to communicate with us.
“The findings appear to support evidence dogs are sensitive to humans’ attention and that expressions are potentially active attempts to communicate, not simple emotional displays.”