That 'Guilty' Look That Your Dog - Is fear

Ive been studying animal behavior for a while now, its interesting topic that shows the true nature of things. Instead of me trying to

You knew your dog did something she/he shouldn't have done and, seemingly, she does too. Since you're a human being, you see that look and ascribe a common human emotion to it;" guilt.", well its wrong.

The dog doesnt feel guilt. Instead, they're expressing a much more common, less complex emotion: fear.

- IFLScience

Fear is a feeling induced by perceived danger or threat that occurs in certain types of organisms, which causes a change in metabolic and organ functions and ultimately a change in behavior, such as fleeing, hiding, or freezing from perceived traumatic events.

The look is very distinct. The dog cowers, showing the whites of its eyes while looking up at you. Maybe it pins its ears back to its head, yawns, or licks the air. These are all characteristic signs of fear in a dog — signs that us humans tend to misattribute as guilt.
I believe the first time we see this behavior and our wrong input, is something that comes from the cinematic world of animation, just to bad we learn the wrong one.

But to put in a more scientific way, the study found that dogs demonstrating a "guilty" look were actually demonstrating fear of scolding ("owner cues") rather than guilt ("an appreciation of a misdeed").

a reply to: tikbalang

It is when reading such things about what "scientists" discover about basic animal behaviors I have to remember that much of science doesn't want to credit much to complex animal behaviors, usually. I wonder, have they never seen a happy dog smile or wag its tail when meeting a another dog or human friend? Is fear the only display other than being placid that a dog can show? How about something in between where the animal knows what is expected and does a "no-no" and knows after the fact that they failed to live up to the owner's expectations? So why can't dogs, display the exact same responses in animal form that does a small child, for example? Is that child acting entirely out in fear?

Actually, a display of fear by a dog is to submit itself by laying down and rolling over to expose its belly to the bully. Now that is true fear. Sorrowful eyes from a dog or a child cannot be laid to a simple reflex of fear, but to a certain degree of an entirely rational understanding of the situation.

a reply to: Aliensun

I can make a reference, all animals have two feelings nothing more..

originally posted by: tikbalang
a reply to: Aliensun

I can make a reference, all animals have two feelings nothing more..

2 feelings? I will have to disagree with you on this. I have had dogs my whole life I'm 33 this is just not true. As much time as I have spent with my animals you will be hard pressed to convince me otherwise.

a reply to: tikbalang

Ha ha , the dog doing the simba walk is fear . Not sure if i agree but to be honest i have never thought about it much . But i can tell you this , you sure as hell know when they are happy .

a reply to: tikbalang

Interesting thread.

I tend to agree that the behaviour is more reflective of fear than guilt.

a reply to: Evilbunnie

I'm not really here to convince your beliefs, but you can do it the easy way and study the chemical output in the brain along with different scenarios..

originally posted by: hutch622
a reply to: tikbalang

Ha ha , the dog doing the simba walk is fear . Not sure if i agree but to be honest i have never thought about it much . But i can tell you this , you sure as hell know when they are happy .

I don't think any animal shows more love than a dog.. I'm gonna go cuddle with mine for some brain Chemicals

That 'Guilty' Look That Your Dog - Is fear

Did your dog tell you that?

a reply to: OtherSideOfTheCoin

Im not à Cook

a reply to: tikbalang

I don't think any animal shows more love than a dog.

Do you do what i call the scary monster with your dog , if you do you will know what i mean . Ok since you asked . You get your dogs attention by putting a foot down loudly , spread your arms and make your hands claw like . Move towards the dog slowly making noise every time you put your feet down . My old dog used to love it , god rest his soul . I would get to about a metre and he would jump up into my arms and i would get a face full of dog tongue . He did not wag his stump , he wagged his body . God i miss him . Max the stoner dog , rest in peace , i know your happy as i buried you near the sea .

a reply to: tikbalang

The dog doesnt feel guilt. Instead, they're expressing a much more common, less complex emotion: fear.

The hell. I play fetch with my dog, tossing toys for her to run down and 'kill', then return. Sometimes she gets over excited and accidentally her teeth touch my hand. She immediately stops the play, wags her tail and demonstrates her apology. She always says 'sorry', dog fashion. I respond to it and we go back to play.

Yes sorry for going overboard and breaking the rules of fair play.

.o2

Edit: as opposed to her fear response, during thunder storms she tries to crawl inside me.

a reply to: intrptr

I play fetch with my dog

Is it the dog tapping into some long lost hunting instinct , or are they happy to do just about anything for the good boy at the end . It would be extremely interesting to get into their heads for a while . As stated above , no animal loves their owner more than a dog .

a reply to: intrptr

Edit: as opposed to her fear response, during thunder storms she tries to crawl inside me.

Would this be a good time to mention . Du du dar . vacuum cleaners .

a reply to: hutch622

It would be extremely interesting to get into their heads for a while .

I like to think I can, depends on how observant you are to their 'emotions' , displayed primarily thru body english and facial expression. We display a lot of emotion thru speech, animals 'talk' thru their physical action, some of which is subtle and easy to miss .

a reply to: intrptr

Interesting topic isn't it , i swear max my old dog was sad the day he got the snip but that may have been the anaesthetic . I swore black and blue i would never get another dog after he died as it cut me up so much . Back on track . I swear he knew if we were headed to the beach , if i grabbed a fishing rod he would follow me around and break through the door as i was opening it , but having said that even if no fishing was involved i swear he knew we were headed beach wise . Dogs ey

No, it is not always fear. Dogs and cats and even deer feel bad when they have done something wrong. I had a wild deer that was my friend here, it felt bad when I caught it in the garden one day and yelled at it. It wanted to be my friend but I held out for a couple of days to show it I was mad. That doe chased other deer out of the garden after that.

It was a good friend, one spring it did not come back, it's kids and grandkids came back though. Many animals have personalities and consciousness. Fear is not the deciding factor many times.

a reply to: hutch622
They're pretty observant. Any pattern you display will be easily detected.

As far as compassion, displaying joy and what not, people should see some clips. The first is a reunion, theres a plethora of them on YouTube:
From the odd companions shows:

Yeah, I really don't agree with any science that claims dogs aren't as complex as they are. I've known many dogs who have proven that wrong in my life.

"I can make a reference, all animals have two feelings nothing more.."

My little Sweet Pea disproves this line all of the time. You definitely know when she's happy. She smiles, wags her tail, and if she's really happy she runs around like crazy. If you've been gone all day and she misses you, she nibbles your hand when you pet her. When she's sad, she has different body language than when she did something bad and is worried about getting in trouble. When she's sad, her tail stays up but she gives really cute doe eyes. Her fur actually changes, too. When she's happy, her fur is crazy and poofy. When she's sad, if you brush her fur down, it stays. It's how we know she's being as we call "tender". When she's worried about being in trouble, or as many call the feeling of "guilt", her tail is tucked, back arched, and she plops down near our feet. It's different than when she's sad.

Our dog even knows when we're talking smack about her. If we're joking around, talking smack about her, mocking her, etc......she starts growling and kicking dirt at us. Even though she has a happy energy when she does it, it definitely feels like she's annoyed at us and telling us to stfu. lol It's stuff like that why I can't believe dogs only have two feelings, and nothing more. I've even had arguments with my dog. One time it was raining really bad, but she had to go potty before bed. So while we were outside, she kept sitting by my feet and looking up to tell me she wanted to go in. I kept telling her "No, you have to go potty!", and she would just bark at me. Sure, she was happy, but she had the same energy she does when we talk smack. I've even had her do the doggy equivalent of rolling her eyes at me and walk out the room, all because I put my face close to hers and kept making silly sounds. XD

Anybody who has lived with a dog for a long period of time can tell you dogs experience most of the same emotions that we do.