The X account “Made You Smiles” did just that when it compiled videos of seven owners giving their dog a kiss. Regardless of breed, the dogs react to their owners’ love by leaning in and resting their heads on their owners or giving them a lick in return. This compilation, released on Sept. 25, has over 67,000 views.
Published in the journal Animals, an article titled “The Role of Oxytocin in the Dog-Owner Relationship” discusses how, when petted or given affection, dogs experience an increase in oxytocin, a hormone known to increase positive emotions. The article asserted that it is still unknown whether oxytocin is released in any positive human to dog interaction or if it has more to do with the particular dog and particular human.
In another study, scientists and historians explored how long human-dog companionship has been around, estimating it to have begun 27,000-40,000 years ago, per Cell. For historical calibration, at the further end of this estimate, the neanderthals were going extinct, and at the closer end were the ice age and cave paintings.
So next time you pet your dog or get to pet someone else’s dog, try thinking about how long your dog’s ancestors have loved humans, and think about how long your ancestors have loved theirs. After all, people say that dogs are a man’s best friend for a reason.