LOVE ME, LOVE MY DOG

Many people who have dogs feel like they are in love with their dogs. They may sound crazy, but they are not. Dogs really do have a special power that makes humans fall in love with them. And the secret lies in those puppy dog eyes.

For people who are skeptical about this, there’s even scientific evidence to back it up. According to a 2015 study published in the journal Science, both dogs and their owners show an increase in oxytocin, which is the hormone responsible for feelings of love and connection. This same positive feedback in oxytocin release occurs when a mom gazes at her newborn infant, studies have shown. Because dogs don’t otherwise use eye contact as a way to reinforce bonds with other dogs, the study suggests that man’s best friend may have gotten its prized place in human hearts by tapping into an ancient human bonding pathway. “We humans gaze into each other’s eyes for deep communication, and we are very much sensitive to eye contact,” study co-author Takefumi Kikusui, a professor of veterinary medicine at the Companion Animal Research Lab at Azabu University in Japan, said. For this reason, dogs who can look a human in the eye form deeper bonds with their keepers.

To observe the relationship between people and their dogs, Japanese researchers conducted two experiments. The first one measured the oxytocin levels of dogs and their owners before and after 30 minutes of interaction. In the second study, the researchers gave dogs oxytocin nasal spray and measured their hormone levels again.

It turns out, the longer the owners petted and talked to their dogs—as well as looked into their eyes—the higher the levels of oxytocin rose in both people and dogs. The second study also found that female dogs tended to stare longer at their owners after receiving the oxytocin boost. As a result, both the dogs and the humans showed increased oxytocin levels. Much like we bond with other human beings through eye contact, the friendship between human and dogs grows closer by looking into each others’ eyes, researchers say. “This tells us something about our relationships with dogs,” Evan MacLean, an evolutionary anthropologist at Duke University who was not involved in the new study. “In many ways, they’re similar to our relationships with people.”