The Purest Bond

September 4, 2023
University of Maryland, College Park computer scientist Golbeck, who runs an Instagram account focused on golden retrievers she rescues, teams up with health writer Colino (coauthor of Emotional Inflammation) to deliver a fetching examination of the benefits of owning a dog. Human–dog bonds can produce physical effects, the authors contend, noting scientific studies that found petting dogs provides a surge of the pleasurable hormone oxytocin for the person and the dog, and that canines are so attuned to their owners’ emotions that their stress levels (“as measured by cortisol levels in their hair/fur”) fluctuate “in sync with their owners’ stress levels.” Dogs can also provide support to people with mental illness, as illustrated by a study that found people with depression, bipolar disorder, or schizoaffective disorder reported feeling less anxious after living with an emotional service dog for a year. The research adds scientific support to some common assumptions (one study confirmed that dogs can “process vocal intonations and pick up on the emotional valence of what’s being said”), while pushing back on others, as when the authors warn dog owners against taking on a “dominant ‘alpha’ role” because domesticated dogs have a more fluid social structure than wolves and get stressed when their humans assert dominance. Informative and fun, this is a treat.