A recent article on sciencedaily.com confirms what all of the pet-owning world already knew but was just a little shy about saying it out loud:
“Scientists at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna (Vetmeduni Vienna) have investigated the bond between dogs and their owners and have found striking similarities to the parent-child relationship in humans.”
The study provides evidence for a secure base effect between dogs and their humans, not unlike the secure base effect that is seen between child and caregiver. This striking parallel will be further investigated in direct comparative studies on dogs and children.
As Horn says, “One of the things that really surprised us is, that adult dogs behave towards their caregivers like human children do. It will be really interesting to try to find out how this behaviour evolved in the dogs with direct comparisons.”
Lisa Horn, Science Daily, June 21, 2013
I am eager to hear what more they discover as they look deeper into this empirically.
My hope is they will see what I have seen for so many years that when our dogs trust us and we treat them with respect we can help them become better and happier members of our families (not unlike how we help our children flourish.)
Now if only science could prove that more than just a little dark chocolate a day is good for me…
