New research seems to support the notion that dogs can read a person's mood via their scent Dogs involved in an experiment appeared to have their own moods changed by the human sweat/breath odors presented to them This "contagious emotion" then appeared to inform choices and actions made by the dog MONDAY, July 22, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Dogs can sniff out whether a human is stressed or relaxed, new research suggests, and that sensory feedback appears to influence canine emotions and choices. The dog doesn't even have to know the human well to interpret odor in this way, the British researchers noted. “Dog owners know how attuned their pets are to their emotions, but here we show that even the odor of a stressed, unfamiliar human affects a dog’s emotional state, perception of rewards and ability to learn," said study author .
She's a senior lecturer in wildlife and conservation at Bristol Veterinary School in Bristol, England. "Working dog handlers often describe stress traveling down the lead, but we’ve also shown it can also travel through the air," she said in a university news release. Her team published its findings July 22 in the journal .
As the Bristol team noted, research has long pointed to scent as an important but perhaps under-appreciated form of emotional communication between people. Rooney's group wondered if dogs, with olfactory senses that are so much more sophisticated than humans, might catch human emotions through smell, as well, and act according.