Some dogs may also bark or be suspicious of nervous people.
Photo: Wieger Stienstra on Unsplash – Wieger Stienstra on Unsplash
As explained by National Geographic, a researcher at the Department of Psychology at Rissho University in Tokyo, who specializes in animal cognition, has led studies showing that dogs remember when they have been deceived and by whom.
In one study, one person pointed out a food container to the dogs, while another person pointed out an empty container, which the dogs discovered when they examined it. The study revealed that dogs remembered people who had deceived them and ignored them, showing anger and indifference, while they were affectionate with those who told them the truth.
Fredy Manrique, veterinarian and master in clinical ethology and animal welfare from the Complutense University of Madrid, told La Red Zoocial that dogs have mechanisms to read gestures and facial expressions, interpreting whether people show ambivalent signals, where what they say does not match their bodily expressions.
“Many lying people have ambivalent signals that dogs can interpret, such as an inappropriate tone of voice, smelling, and perceiving these types of signals. “Dogs can detect if a person dilates their pupils or changes their tone of voice,” explains the expert.
Fredy Manrique recommends maintaining a calm and relaxed posture, without using fake voices or talking to the dog like a small child. “You shouldn’t scold a dog you don’t know,” she advises.
However, some dogs may also bark or be suspicious of nervous people. Manrique explained to La Red Zoocial that, more than smelling fear, these animals detect signs of fear in people. “They can capture the adrenaline and smell the sweat when we feel afraid. They perceive very well the tones of voice and how we are gesturing, relating this to an emotion, such as fear. That is, it is a combination of several factors,” he adds.
In fact, some behaviors of people when they feel afraid can be misinterpreted by dogs. “A person who is afraid of dogs may run away. This should not be done, because the animal can interpret it as if the person were prey, and it would become a predator,” says Manrique.
To differentiate liars from fearful people, the expert explains that dogs could recognize that someone is going to make threatening decisions, such as a criminal, because they begin to have tachycardia, increase their blood pressure and sweat, which could represent a possible threat to the dog. “The dog can detect if someone is a threat. A fearful person shows an attitude of flight, while a person who wants to attack or harm generates different situations, such as speaking in a loud tone or having a threatening expression,” says the expert.
For example, if a person walks too fast or stares at the dog’s owner, the animal might interpret this as a threat. “The best way not to be perceived as a threat is to approach the dog calmly,” says Manrique.
Researchers at Kyoto University in Japan studied how dogs perceive strangers, based on how they interact with their owners. In the study, a group of dogs watched their owners have trouble opening a container. Unable to open it, its owners passed it on to an actor who would help them, repeating the experiment with an actor who would refuse to help. According to the research, the dogs showed an almost immediate dislike for actors who refused to help their owners in times of need. Notably, the dogs seemed to measure “good” and “bad” people based on their relationship with their owners, rather than an understanding of values, ethics, or other subjective factors.
Other things that dogs can perceive
When a woman becomes pregnant, her body undergoes both external and internal transformations, starting with the release of hormones. Dogs can perceive these changes in the body, becoming more protective during their caregiver’s pregnancy.
Additionally, dogs have the ability to predict pregnancy through their keen sense of analysis. “You will notice that the dog is more aware of you, he tries to smell your intimate area and does not leave you alone. It will be able to detect the slightest changes in your attitude, even those that you yourself do not perceive,” explains AnimalWised.
Dogs detect when we feel afraid and need their protection. The reason? According to AnimalExpert, “When we are scared we secrete adrenaline and the powerful nose of our canine friends is able to smell it.”
It’s not just about smell, but also about body language. Unconsciously, we change our posture: we contract and prepare to flee or defend ourselves. For this reason, in some cases, when we are with someone who makes us afraid or distrustful, our dog stands next to us as a sign of “I am here to protect my human.”
Are you happy, sad, angry or tired? Your dog can tell by reading his body and facial language. Just as we are experts at reading them, they also read us. Therefore, it is not unusual that when we have had a bad day at work, they come to us and even snuggle until we feel better.
Likewise, they can detect if we are angry with them. Dogs know that we are going to scold them because our body posture, facial language and tone of voice change when we do so. Therefore, they lower their heads and hide their tails between their legs.
