What’s in a dog’s mind? That has been the age old question that man has had about the lovable canine species. Dogs and humans have had a long standing history together that dates as far back as 30,000 B.C. While there are many differences between the two species, there are also some surprising similarities that are worth exploring.
It is estimated by historians that in 30,000 B.C., Paleolithic humans hunted alongside wild dogs. Dogs were buried with humans as far back as 12,000 B.C., which depicts the love between man and canine and that dogs were valued just as greatly as people. Different dog breeds were domesticated and easily distinguished by 10,500 B.C., and then, by 1,500 C.E., the oldest modern dog breeds were formed. These include the mastiff, terriers, herding dogs, sight hounds, chows, Asian spaniels, the spitz and Native American dog breeds.
Like humans, dogs have the capacity to feel love. This is due to the hormone oxytocin, which is found in both species. Dogs can also feel an array of additional emotions, such as anger, joy, fear, excitement, distress, contentment and disgust. However, unlike the human race, dogs cannot feel shame, guilt, pride or contempt. Dogs can also experience a disorder known as separation anxiety, which makes them feel overly anxious when they are not with their owner or the one person they love the best. This disorder can be quite serious and the dog can act out in a variety of ways that will cause grief to the owner.
Dogs, like humans, can experience phobias. The most common include thunder, being left alone, vets, strangers, stairs and even riding in cars. A phobia of course is an irrational fear of something. Dogs can experience dreams around 20 minutes after they fall asleep. You can tell when your pet is dreaming as it moves while asleep or makes soft noises.
The one big aspect of dogs that they do not share in common with their human counterparts is that they cannot plan for the future. Dogs lack episodic memory, which means they cannot recall certain incidents that occurred in the past. They have the ability to learn quite a lot, but they will never remember learning things. Dogs have what is referred to as the “copying effect,” a phenomenon they share with other mammals. It is generally a way of imitating their elder peers or parents that enable them to survive.
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Source: Best Psychology Degrees
