This writer once observed an interesting exchange between a bright-eyed little girl and an elderly Parsi lady walking a Pomeranian and a Poodle. “Do your dogs bite?” asked the girl, stooping to stroke the cuddly creatures without waiting for an answer. “They haven’t bitten anyone yet,” offered the lady, after struggling to find an honest response, “But I can’t promise you they won’t, dear — they are animals, you know.” Regardless, the girl continued to shower her affection on the canines, unconcerned about the implications of the response. Man’s best friends, after all, are known to be affectionate. Besides, they were wagging their tails and everyone knows that indicates happiness.

Pup psychology
Though the dogs did not bite and the girl skipped away merrily on that sunshiny day, canine behaviour specialist and editor of digital dog magazine, Woof!, Shirin Merchant would caution against callousness. “I’ve seen dog trainers hug dogs who are wagging their tails and I’ve asked them: ‘What are you doing? He’s going to bite you’,” adding, “It’s important to read the body language of the dog too. A dog may also wag his tail if he’s in a state of conflict. He could be nervously or excitedly aroused, and that’s when you have to be very careful because he can swing quickly in any direction.”

Shirin is therefore less than thrilled about the new findings published in the American journal, Behavioural Processes, which was designed to gauge the magnitude of human instinct and which asserts that humans can spot emotions such as happiness, sorrow, anger, anxiety and even surprise and disgust on a dog’s face. Dr Tina Bloom, lead researcher of this study conducted at Walden University (Minneapolis) told reporters, “Although humans often think of themselves as disconnected or even isolated from nature, our study suggests that there are patterns that connect, and one of these is in the form of emotional communication.” In addition to stressing the pertinence of reading canine body language in conjunction with such facial expressions, Merchant emphasises, “Not everyone can read dog expressions, accurately — some dog owners may be particularly good at it, others are not — and besides, facial expressions of some dog breeds may be easier to read than others. German Shepherds with clearer faces may be easier to read than pugs that have crinkled faces.”

Wag the dog
But surely there’s something to those expressions. While dining at a friend’s home recently, we watched with, “Awww,” as his beagle made these sad eyes and then placed his paw on the man’s leg, begging for a treat. When he didn’t get it, the dog whined and tried again — it was just heartbreaking, this gentle imploring, and those oh-so-sad eyes. “Begging for food is their way of manipulating you,” Merchant says, “It’s a skill dogs have fine-tuned as it ensures their survival. The dog has learnt that making these childlike eyes can get them food which is tastier than what the dog gets to eat.” She also points out, “It’s important to also understand that we’ve bred certain dog species like Cocker Spaniels and Labradors to be more human-like, by selectively choosing which dogs to breed.”