Dogs can distinguish between fearful and angry or sad human faces, brain scans suggest
Researchers have found that dogs can distinguish between different human facial expressions, including happy, sad, angry, and fearful faces. The study used brain scans to analyze activity in regions of the brain when dogs were shown images of different facial expressions. The findings suggest that dogs may be able to pick up on subtle cues in human behavior and emotions, and could potentially be used to improve human-dog interactions.
- ▪Dogs can distinguish between happy and unhappy human faces, including fearful, angry, and sad expressions.
- ▪The study used MRI scans to analyze brain activity in dogs when shown different facial expressions.
- ▪The research found that dogs may need additional information, such as body language, to distinguish between certain emotions like anger and sadness.
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| Original publisher | The Guardian — Science |
| Canonical URL | https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/aug/10/dogs-distinguish-fearful-angry-sad-human-faces-brain-scans |
| Publication time | Mon, 10 Aug 2026 15:00:47 GMT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-08-10T15:10:42.159Z |
| Last seen | 2026-08-10T15:10:42.159Z |
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| Summary source text | contentText |
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| Cluster | 8J5J4P2lwDJb · 1 stories |
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| Ranking reason | Story pages are not engagement-ranked. Hub feeds use recency, with optional source-diversified chronological ordering (cap consecutive stories per source). No personalized ranking. |
| Publisher visit | Yes — open original |
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| Retrieval / RAG | May the content be exposed for third-party retrieval-augmented generation? | Not asserted |
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| Commercial reuse | May the content be reused commercially? | Not permitted |
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The researchers worked with pet dogs, mostly border collies, that had been trained to lie still in an MRI scanner. Photograph: Laura V CuayaView image in fullscreenThe researchers worked with pet dogs, mostly border collies, that had been trained to lie still in an MRI scanner. Photograph: Laura V CuayaAnimalsDogs can distinguish between fearful and angry or sad human faces, brain scans suggestResearchers analysed activity in regions of brain when dogs were shown images of different facial expressionsNicola Davis Science correspondentMon 10 Aug 2026 11.00 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleWhile dogs are known to turn the puppy eyes on their owners, it seems our pets are keeping a close eye on us too: research has revealed dog brains can distinguish different types of unhappy human…
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