Does Your Dog Love You?

You might love your good, sweet pupper, but can you ever truly be sure if they love you back?

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[poorplayer]

My dogs and I have a relationship based upon caring and mutual agreement. I feed them, spend time with them, and care for their health needs. And they stay up all night long, barking at every noise so I don't have to.

[Goldenheart_]

Short answer: Yes
Long answer: Yes, very much so

[xBADFECE]

So the takeaway is actually "Does anyone *actually* love you?"

[MarkThePage]

I can definitely vouch for the "base of support" test! My dog will explore and socialize out of the house, but if I'm not by her side she'll immediately become anxious and panic until she finds me. My anxiety dog needs an anxiety dog.

[MusiCaninesTheMusicalDogs]

Love is for the weak. Me and my dogs are together to conquer the world.

[pedro]

So the answer:" We don't even know if what we feel for our children and partners is love, how do you want us to say if dogs feel it?"

[Carlos-lnfd]

It is with incredible fear and trepidation that I click on this video

[TommoCarroll]

That was such an interesting little tid bit of information - they use similar studies used to study babies due to their lack of ability to verbally communicate! Loved it! Great video as always!

[NewMessage]

Mine just purses his lips, shakes his head slowly, and puts a paw on the keyboard with that 'Stop.. this has to stop...' Look.

But then I say 'bath' and he's under the bed for a good hour.

[Reltihliehlla]

Omg, I just came back from the vet, with the saddest news...
My beloved Rocko will have to be put to sleep tomorrow morning, and I just can't help but feel this is fate (yes, yes, I'm aware of what I'm saying in a science channel, but still), you know, the fact that you put this video up today...
Thanks +SciShow Psych, you always find a way to convey my emotions with my thoughts, and make sense of it all (as far as we humans can make sense of it all, of course), or at least that's how I feel...
I'll always feel as the leader of his pack...
He'll always be my beloved friend and companion...
And whatever "Love" is...
Rocko will always be in my heart (eternity included).

[Master_Therion]

Yes! When their human isn't around... Collies become melancholy, Pointers think life is pointless, Great Danes don't feel so great, Rottweilers feel rotten, Terriers feel terrible, and Bulldogs say "this is bulls*!t"

[Andresfin]

I know my dogs love me! They are always there when I need them and when I have been gone for a long time (they live with my parents) they are always so freaking excited to see me! It's wonderful.

[stupidfatginger]

My dog loves me god damn it! He tells me every day with his eyes when he looks at me as I'm leaving, like I'm going to leave him home forever and ever. And then when I come back it's like I've been gone for 10 years. Whether its "love" in a human sense or not, their loyalty knows no bounds. Man, shitty people don't deserve such awesome companions.

[kathi]

I don't know if my dog loves me, but his excitement when I get home is good enough for me

[brenantube]

We have had a couple litters of golden retriever puppies and when I see them even after a year since they were adopted they get so excited to see me... they whine and cry and climb on my lap wanting me to hold them every time.

[TheFvpss]

Imo if it looks like love, feels like love and has all physiological components of love for both parts, it is love. At the end of the day, we are the ones to decide what love is :)

[y_fam_goeglyd]

One of my dogs (all retired greyhounds) knew I was pregnant before I did - my first time round - she stopped urging me to play until he was born. Then she gave me her lead to swing her around when I gave her my first walk with her after he was born. She also looked out for my eldest (I think that one was enough for her!), she actually spanked him for landing on her injured leg, and would nuzzle me if I was down. We had a really close bond - I still miss her nearly 24 years later :(

[hollymarie]

Mutual attachment, loyalty, and concern for wellbeing is absolutely good enough for me. Who would want love to be more quantifiable than that? And isn't part of real unconditional love that we choose it regardless of the other's feelings toward us?

My life is better with my dog in it, and I'm pretty confident that if she could talk she would say the same about her humans (my kids and me). What more could any of us ask for, really?

[akeepers]

When you love someone you greet them with passion, when you love someone you can sense what they are feeling but aren't sure why, when you love it's unconditional. Take all things and stuff away from any species. That's when we will learn that love really is just an unspoken bond to understand and help one another in any way possible. Even if it is just sitting at your feet to keep you company so you don't have to feel alone. That is what love is. And if you ask me any living thing can feel it.

[angelic]

Instead of trying to see this from a human perspective I think it would be more productive to look at it from where they come from. Evolution, their ancestors and so on.
Looking at it like that, I think its safe to say they feel affection for us, and we probably substitute the usual pack their instincts still tell them should be the center of their life. That is, we provide the food and security they need, and therefore we are the alpha. They look up to us, and help out as they would in a pack, with protection, caring, etc.