Dogs have an incredible sense of smell, but can they discern honesty? It appears dogs might be more intuitive than we often realize.
Studies suggest that dogs have a keen sense for human behaviors. Akiko Takaoka and her team from Kyoto University in Japan carried out an intriguing study.
The results? Dogs can gauge whether a person can be trusted or not.
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For the study, the researchers tapped into a simple dog behavior: if you point to something, a dog will typically follow.
First, they pointed to a container with hidden food, prompting the dog to approach it. Next, they pointed to an empty container. Naturally, the dog was led astray.
However, when they pointed to a container with food again, the dogs hesitated. Having been deceived previously, the dogs showed reluctance to follow the cue.
The test was repeated with 34 dogs, and all showed similar hesitation the third time. The conclusion is that dogs can either detect deception or they just have a hard time forgetting a breach of trust.
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In essence, deceiving your dog might lead it to distrust you. “Dogs exhibit a remarkable social intelligence that has evolved over time due to their relationship with humans,” commented Takaoka.
She was taken aback by how swiftly dogs doubted the credibility of a person.
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John Bradshaw from the University of Bristol, though not a part of this study, believes the results show dogs appreciate consistency.
When they experience inconsistency, it can cause them stress.
The researchers aim to replicate the study using wolves, the close relatives of dogs.
The objective isn’t the thrill of interacting with wolves, but to understand the profound influence domestication has had on dogs.
