A study of 36 people and four dogs found that pets could detect nervous tension in humans using their sense of smell and could distinguish between the smell of stress and the smell of a calm stranger on the first try, the authors of the paper report in PLoS One.
How dogs recognize human fear
Dogs are able to detect the “smell of fear” – chemical signals of stress that a person releases, and are easily “infected” by his experience.
The ability of dogs to notice and perceive human emotions is beyond doubt.
They are ready to follow our gaze and recognize a lot of nuances in facial expression and voice.
They smell it. When animals are afraid, they release adrenaline.
They start to panic. Canines can smell this hormone very well and they know that this smell is a sign of weakness.
What animals sense human fear
Among all animals, dogs are the absolute champions in understanding not only body language, but also the emotions of people.
Everyone is familiar with the phrase “dogs sense fear”: in fact, their sensitive nose is able to detect the adrenaline that the human body produces.
