Since dogs are highly dependent on their remarkable sense of smell to evaluate the world around them, animal cognition scientists decided to measure the canine brain’s response to the smell of familiar and unfamiliar people and dogs. They taught their subjects to lie still in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, so they could observe the dogs’ reactions to five different scents. When these dogs smelled the odor of their owners, as compared to other odors, the caudate nucleus (known as the reward center of the brain) showed activation. “This provides important clues about the importance of humans in dogs’ lives,” the researchers concluded. But a new book argues that, when it comes to dogs, the word is necessary to understanding what has made the relationship between humans and our best friends one of the most significant interspecies partnerships in history. Did you know that there are over 300 words for love in canine?" – Gabriel Zevin, author of Margarretown While they can’t quite smile in the same way that we humans can, many dogs often get pretty close. "[Pet] dogs can raise their inner eyebrows much more dramatically than wild dogs, and this sympathetic, adorable expression is thought to induce feelings of care and nurturing in their human owners," said Greenstein.

Structural variants in genes associated with human Williams-Beuren syndrome underlie stereotypical hypersociability in domestic dogs What makes these findings important, beyond advancing science, is their implications for dogs' welfare, he argues. It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them." – John Grogan, author of Marley & Me The same points are made over and over, perhaps because there aren't a lot of points to make but the fact is, each one is quite compelling. No need to write a long book with anecdotal and emotional filler, when a short book with clever summaries of compelling science (and humour -- could we please have a bit of humour?) will capture readers' attention and change OUR behaviour.My favorite type of pet has always been a dog. They're loyal, kind, and offer endless affection. My friend Eric says, 'The more people I meet, the more I like my dog.' Funny thought." – Brendon Urie, lead vocalist of Panic! at the Disco When my Lagotto Romagnolo rests her head on my stomach as I do my morning exercises; when she greets me with her silly smile whether I return from the mailbox or a trip; when she stayed quietly by my side while I recovered from chemo treatments – what I feel is her love. It’s In Their Genes Zazie: There’s a really lovely section in the book about the heartbeat of the dog and their owner becoming aligned, which was based on some research by Mia Cobb and a colleague. How does this happen, and what does it tell us about the relationship between a dog and their person? The poor dog, in life the firmest friend. The first to welcome, foremost to defend." – Lord Byron, poet of Epitaph to a Dog

To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs." – Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World Man is the Reasoning Animal. Such is the claim. I think it is open to dispute. Indeed, my experiments have proven to me that he is the Unreasoning Animal... In truth, man is incurably foolish. Simple things which other animals easily learn, he is incapable of learning. Among my experiments was this. In an hour I taught a cat and a dog to be friends. I put them in a cage. In another hour I taught them to be friends with a rabbit. In the course of two days I was able to add a fox, a goose, a squirrel and some doves. Finally a monkey. They lived together in peace; even affectionately. Zazie: This question is from book club member Cathy Shamblin. She has a 13-week-old Kelpie who is learning to herd and has been following her dad Kelpie around the farm. She says, “Does ‘instinct’ inform a dog’s emotional ties to humans? Dogs have an instinctual bond to follow a leader. Do we humans get that instinct mixed up with love?” I know that sometimes Xephos just wants dinner. But I’m pretty convinced that that’s not the whole picture. She really does feel a bond, a connection toward me that’s as real as any other connection that any other individual in my life might feel toward me.If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it; to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and, prospectively, to equally profound sadness." – Marjorie Garber, author of Shakespeare After All This is a cozy science book that is perfect for people who love dogs, but also for people who aren't. I'm Team Cat all the way, and was a bit surprised to be offered a copy of this ARC, but I also really love animals of all kinds and have grown to appreciate dogs over the years as an adult, despite being deathly afraid of them when I was younger. As a Psychology major, I loved seeing some of the studies about behaviorism, conditioning, and attachment that I learned about in university, and as an animal lover and all-around science fan, it was cool to learn about fluffy science with a wagging tail. Jamie Richardson, a veterinarian and medical chief of staff at Small Door Veterinary, says that merely hearing your name will be enough to get some dogs excited. "Over time, dogs learn to recognize human names. If they hear a loved one's name mentioned who isn't present, they'll get excited at the thought that they might appear," said Richardson. 3. They follow you around Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them and filling an emptiness we didn't ever know we had." – Thom Jones, author of The Pugilist at Rest Every dog lover knows the feeling. The nuzzle of a dog’s nose, the warmth of them lying at our feet, even their whining when they want to get up on the bed. It really seems like our dogs love us, too. But for years, scientists have resisted that conclusion, warning against anthropomorphizing our pets. Enter Clive Wynne, a pioneering canine behaviorist whose research is helping to usher in a new one in which love, not intelligence or submissiveness, is at the heart of the human-canine relationship. Drawing on cutting-edge studies from his lab and others around the world, Wynne shows that affection is the very essence of dogs, from their faces and tails to their brains, hormones, even DNA. This scientific revolution is revealing more about dogs’ unique origins, behavior, needs, and hidden depths than we ever imagined possible.

The greatest pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him, and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself, too." – Samuel Butler, author of Erewhon The best way to get a puppy is to beg for a baby brother—and they'll settle for a puppy every time." – Winston Pendleton, author of Pursuit of Happiness It's tough to stay married. My wife kisses the dog on the lips, yet she won't drink from my glass." – Rodney Dangerfield, American stand-up comic, actor, producer, screenwriter, musician, and author The short answer: yes. Dogs do love us, and they show it in a lot of different ways. Signs Your Dog Loves You

Happy greeting

The love of a dog is a pure thing. He gives you a trust which is total. You must not betray it." – Michel Houellebecq, French author No animal I know of can consistently be more of a friend and companion than a dog." – Stanley Leinwall

You can usually tell that a man is good if he has a dog who loves him." – W. Bruce Cameron, author of A Dog's Journey And indeed my own dog wasn’t a puppy when we got her. She was already 14 months old when she became part of our family. And yet if you were to come and visit now, you would never for a moment guess that she hadn’t always been with me. It’s very obvious how much she cares about me and my wife and my son. So dogs can much more easily move into new relationships, which is a great thing because otherwise what would we do with adult dogs who’ve lost their original human family? It would really be a problem. It would be difficult to go to an animal shelter and adopt a dog that’s already an adult, if it were the case that dogs grieve like people do and take years to recover from losing beloved family members. I certainly didn’t mean to suggest that dogs get tired of the people they live with and love, no. All I’m saying is that I think if a dog is forced to move on to a new human being that they can more readily do that than we would expect to see in our own species.

Positive Brainwaves

My idea of absolute happiness is to be in bed on a rainy day with my blankie, my cat, and my dog." – Anne Lamott, American novelist and political activist Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made." – Roger A. Caras, author of A Dog Is Listening: The Way Some of Our Closest Friends View Us Wynne is an advocate for the trash heap theory, which holds that the precursors to ancient dogs congregated around human dumping grounds, slowly ingratiating themselves with people before the enduring partnership we know today was established through joint hunting expeditions. If you eliminate smoking and gambling, you will be amazed to find that almost all an Englishman's pleasures can be, and mostly are, shared by his dog." – George Bernard Shaw, Irish playwright