When was the last time you petted a dog? Not everyone is a dog person, yet dogs have proven their benefit to humans in numerous ways.
A dog can read humans better than any other animal. They understand words and gestures, moods, and mannerisms. Dogs will respond to human emotions, such as crying, as they will nuzzle into them to provide comfort (Custance and Mayer, 2012). Scientists have used magnetic resonance imaging to prove that dogs respond to human emotions (Berns et al., 2013).
Jalongo (2021) states that dogs have 300 million scent receptors compared to humans' six million scent receptors. This gives canines an advantage in smelling and understanding scent on a much higher level than we can. With the dog's eighteen muscles that control the human ear, they can hear four times better than the human six auditory muscles (Bradshaw, 2011). Dogs have been trained to smell cancer (InSitu Foundation, n.d.), glue on computers Jalongo (2021), and firearms and explosives (Global Dog, n.d.). Jones (n.d.) states that dogs have better night vision than humans and can see at 250 degrees compared to humans at 180 degrees of vision.
Jalongo (2021) demonstrates how dogs have become eyes for the blind and ears for the deaf. They assist the disabled in bringing them items they need and can detect a change in human hormones, which helps dogs aid humans with diabetes and fainting.
Kline et al. (2019) show how dogs can reduce anxiety and stress in people and enhance their social interactions and opportunities with others. Dogs give people confidence that they may not find without their canine companion. Serpell and Duffy (2014) highlight that dogs help in hunting, law enforcement, security, farms, and war. Jalongo (2021). state that dogs improve human mental and physical health. They, indeed, are man's best friend.
References:
· Berns, G.S., Brooks, A., & Spivak, M. (2013). Replicability and heterogeneity of awake unrestrained canine FMRI responses. PloS One, 8(12), e81698–e81698. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0081698
· Custance, D., & Mayer, J. (2012). Empathic-like responding by domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) to distress in humans: an exploratory study. Animal Cognition, 15(5), 851–859. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10071-012-0510-1
· Global Dogs (n.d.) Dogs Detects Bombs K9. Www.global-Dogs.com. Retrieved November 28, 2022, from https://global-dogs.com/en/type-of-dogs/dogs-detects-bombs-k9/
· InSitu Foundation (n.d.). Dogs detect cancer. InSitu. Retrieved November 28, 2022, from https://dogsdetectcancer.org/
· Jalongo, M.R., (2021). The Canine-Campus Connection: Roles for Dogs in the Lives of College Students. Purdue University Press.
· Jones, E (n.d.). Do dogs have night vision? Cavapop. Retrieved November 28, 2022, from https://ourcavapoo.com/do-dogs-have-night-vision/
· Kline, J.A., Fisher, M. A., Pettit, K. L., Linville, C. T., & Beck, A. M. (2019). Controlled clinical trial of canine therapy versus usual care to reduce patient anxiety in the emergency department. PloS One, 14(1), e0209232–e0209232. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0209232
· Serpell, James & Duffy, Deborah. (2014). Dog Breeds and Their Behavior. 10.1007/978-3-642-53994-7_2.
_______________________________________________________________
It's Time for You to Get a Dog
by Stephanie Daich
