After all that Dog Training

Do Dogs Laugh?

Do dogs Laugh? Some psychologists argue that the pre requisites for laughter are the ability to be aware of one's own situation, or the ability to identify with somebody else's predicament, and because animals are thought not to posses this, animals are not really laughing in the same way that we do.

The normal panting of a dog sound a little like a laugh however when the pant is analysed by scientists using a device called a spectrograph the frequencies that are analysed are similar to that of laughter and this sound is played to other dogs signs such as dogs playing, friendliness and a decrease in the recorded stress levels of the dogs.

A few years ago some scientists observed 120 puppies and dogs – they compare dogs with and without the sounds of the panting. The dogs were observed for a whole range of behaviours that indicated stress or relaxation. What was interesting was that the group that were played the sounds of the panting wagged their tails more and showed more signs of what the scientists called “pro-social behaviour” – lip licking – approaching other dogs. The scientist concluded that exposure to these sounds can calm dogs.