TIL that dogs do not like to be hugged!
That's right, that 4-legged fury family member that seems to need our love and affection constantly actually does not like to be hugged.
According to research released by Psychology Today, hugging your dogs increases their anxiety levels, and if they are increased enough, they may even bite. The dog's first response to any perceived threat or anxiety is to run away, and when the dog is being hugged, his ability to run away is taken away from him, which significantly increases his anxiety and stress.
The researches from Psychology Today looked at over 250 random "dog photos" from the internet, where people posted pictures of themselves and their pets. In most cases people tend to post pictures that they and their pet look the happiest.
However, when dog behavior experts looked at the photographs and analyzed them, they concluded that roughly 81.6% of the photos contained unhappy dogs. They were exhibiting at least one sign of anxiety or stress. This was in start contrast to only about 7.6% of photographs were showing happy dogs, ones that did not exhibit signs of stress or anxiety. The remaining 10.8% of pictures showed dogs that were showing neutral signs and it could not be determined if the dogs were either happy or unhappy.
Basically, the findings showed that all over the internet are pictures of what appear to be happy people hugging unhappy dogs. Keep in mind that these pictures posted tend to be the ones where pet owners feel their pets look the happiest... So, that actually numbers could be even more one sided.
These results are startling as most people love to hug their pets, especially their dogs. Hugs seem to do wonders for people and therefore we naturally assume all animals must love hugs as much as we do. But, we must remember that dogs are not people and they respond very differently to perceived threats and anxiety.
So, during this Holiday season when we all want to spoil our pets with love and affection, remember that dogs actually feel the most love from being petted, patted, rubbed, and most importantly, being given treats!
To spoil our pets this Holiday season, we need to hold those hugs and unleash the treats!
Sources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/canine-corner/201604/the-data-says-dont-hug-the-dog
Image Sources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/canine-corner/201604/the-data-says-dont-hug-the-dog
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Dogs may not need hugs, but since they double as our therapists, their hugs may be needed by humans.
I was bout to say this lol
Good point!
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Nevertheless all of them love a good scratch on the butt
http://pets.thenest.com/dogs-like-base-tails-scratched-3570.html
#doglife
Haha yes that is true! Also, I have almost never seen a dog turn down a treat ;)
My dog is part of the minority. She hugs me. And she'll lean into me hard while I'm hugging her. If I'm taking a nap, she'll come over and lean against the couch trying to get me to bring her up for a nap. Then she lays there without moving until I wake up.
She's a very self-confident alpha personality dog... not mean, but assertive. Maybe that has something to do with it.
Haha she is actually part of the minority!
I always thought they did indeed love hugs. Guess I was wrong.
But maybe if the dog has a bond with the owner, he won't feel stressed or threatened?
I am sure there are some out there that do, but according to doggy body language experts, a dog feels a lot more love from his owner by being petted, rubbed, and being given treats!
Points noted (for if I ever adopt a pet) :D
My dog loves hugs...she comes up and nuzzles her head on my shoulder and leans in.....she's not anxious at all. I read about this somewhere or other before and maybe some dogs feel threatened by the hug, and cornered maybe....but I don't believe it's true of all dogs.
Interesting subject though.
You are probably right. It seems very likely that there are dogs out there that do indeed love to be hugged. However, according to experts, they would be in the minority.
I've read about this before...I think it's entirely accurate for a lot of dogs that maybe weren't raised being hugged or handled a lot. Some humans don't like to be hugged either, lol. My dogs insist on being hugged. When a 150 lb Great Pyrenees wants a hug...you give it to him, lol!
Haha yes, great point!