What Really Prompts The Dog's 'Guilty Look'
SCIENCEDAILY, June 11
EXCERPT: Whether the dogs' demeanor included elements of the "guilty look" had little to do with whether the dogs had actually eaten the forbidden treat or not. Dogs looked most “guilty” if they were admonished by their owners for eating the treat. In fact, dogs that had been obedient and had not eaten the treat, but were scolded by their (misinformed) owners, looked more “guilty” than those that had, in fact, eaten the treat. Thus the dog’s guilty look is a response to the owner’s behavior, and not necessarily indicative of any appreciation of its own misdeeds.h/t hot air
1 comments:
Heck, this is not necessarily so--when somebody's lunch money, or pencil disappeared at school, I ALWAYS looked and felt guilty even though I hadn't done it! WHen one of my dogs has an "accident" on the carpet, I can always tell who-done-it by the guilty look and the fast get-away. The other one then looks greatly relieved (no pun intended) that I know he didn't do it!
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