A dog is not just a domesticated animal for a person. The dog has become someone special — a partner in business, an assistant, a symbiote. And sometimes — a work colleague, a family member, and even an interlocutor.

Literally, it is not necessary to transfer purely human concepts to dogs — a master, a friend, a close being.

But these four-legged pets demonstrate loyalty and unconditional devotion to a person.

What biological mechanisms have made a dog an ideal friend and partner for humans?

What is the secret of dog loyalty?

Mom and the chief

Back in the 1970s, Nobel laureate Konrad Lorenz described in detail the very principle of the formation of devotion in dogs, based on their natural essence.

Historically, man has domesticated two species of animals, the crossing of which led to the appearance of dogs as a phenomenon.

Initially, they were representatives of the jackal family. As people settled to the north, wolves began to be tamed.

Their mixed descendants are the ancestors of modern breeds.

Both species have a strong biological attachment to the mother.

Cubs need a fairly large amount of socialization. At first, the mother for puppies is the whole world. It gives food, protection, shelter. But she also educates, dominates her offspring. The biochemical attachment to the mother persists in puppies for a long time.

Wolves have another mechanism.

The very nature of their life makes each animal dependent on the pack. To survive, a wolf needs a sufficient number of individuals in it and a rigid hierarchy. Without the latter, sufficiently aggressive animals will not be able to act in concert.

And without a pack, they will not survive with a high probability. Therefore, nature has created a biochemical mechanism of unconditional devotion to the leader and the pack.

Having tamed dogs, a person took the place of a mother and a leader in their picture of the world. The owner is bigger, if he shows character, then the dog accepts him as the head of the pack. The rest of the family are like brothers.

The innate mechanisms of devotion switch to people.

But how do they work at the level of biology and psychophysics?

This became clear relatively recently.

Chemistry of love

A child's attachment to his mother is largely determined by oxytocin, known as the hormone of love and happiness.

It forms the pleasure of communication between big and small, as well as partners in common affairs. Moreover, this process is mutual.

In 2015, Japanese scientists set up an experiment. They measured oxytocin levels in a dog and a human after half an hour alone with each other. It was impossible to feed.

If a person looked at a dog, talked to it, played, then the level of oxytocin rose in both. But the dog really jumped. In her nature, there is a quick attachment to a person due to the pronounced release of the hormone of happiness from communication.

This mechanism allows the puppy to experience unconditional affection for his mother, brothers and sisters. The animal transfers it to a person.

In 2016, in Britain, the experiment was repeated in a complicated version. It turned out that, other things being equal, in a pleasant situation of interaction, oxytocin in a cat rises by 12%. And the dog — by 57%.

The smell of friendship

The second mechanism is odor binding.

Dogs are largely guided by aromas.

The smell of the leader or mother triggers the mechanism of absolute attachment, which persists under any circumstances. Even when an individual is brought up or suppressed.

Professor Gregory Burns from Atlanta conducted experiments with the analysis of MRI data of the brain of dogs.

Of all the smells, the owner's fragrance caused an unconditional positive reaction.

Apparently, this mechanism is formed as follows. The owner, taking care of the dog, is fixed for her as a positive object. Catching his scent instantly turns on joyful emotions and expectations in the so-called caudate nucleus of the brain.

A dog is not just a domesticated animal for a person. The dog has become someone special — a partner in business, an assistant, a symbiote. And sometimes — a work colleague, a family member, and even an interlocutor.

Literally, it is not necessary to transfer purely human concepts to dogs — a master, a friend, a close being.

But these four-legged pets demonstrate loyalty and unconditional devotion to a person.

What biological mechanisms have made a dog an ideal friend and partner for humans?

What is the secret of dog loyalty?

Mom and the chief

Back in the 1970s, Nobel laureate Konrad Lorenz described in detail the very principle of the formation of devotion in dogs, based on their natural essence.

Historically, man has domesticated two species of animals, the crossing of which led to the appearance of dogs as a phenomenon.

Initially, they were representatives of the jackal family. As people settled to the north, wolves began to be tamed.

Their mixed descendants are the ancestors of modern breeds.

Both species have a strong biological attachment to the mother.

Cubs need a fairly large amount of socialization. At first, the mother for puppies is the whole world. It gives food, protection, shelter. But she also educates, dominates her offspring. The biochemical attachment to the mother persists in puppies for a long time.

Wolves have another mechanism.

The very nature of their life makes each animal dependent on the pack. To survive, a wolf needs a sufficient number of individuals in it and a rigid hierarchy. Without the latter, sufficiently aggressive animals will not be able to act in concert.

And without a pack, they will not survive with a high probability. Therefore, nature has created a biochemical mechanism of unconditional devotion to the leader and the pack.

Having tamed dogs, a person took the place of a mother and a leader in their picture of the world. The owner is bigger, if he shows character, then the dog accepts him as the head of the pack. The rest of the family are like brothers.

The innate mechanisms of devotion switch to people.

But how do they work at the level of biology and psychophysics?

This became clear relatively recently.

Chemistry of love

A child's attachment to his mother is largely determined by oxytocin, known as the hormone of love and happiness.

It forms the pleasure of communication between big and small, as well as partners in common affairs. Moreover, this process is mutual.

In 2015, Japanese scientists set up an experiment. They measured oxytocin levels in a dog and a human after half an hour alone with each other. It was impossible to feed.

If a person looked at a dog, talked to it, played, then the level of oxytocin rose in both. But the dog really jumped. In her nature, there is a quick attachment to a person due to the pronounced release of the hormone of happiness from communication.

This mechanism allows the puppy to experience unconditional affection for his mother, brothers and sisters. The animal transfers it to a person.

In 2016, in Britain, the experiment was repeated in a complicated version. It turned out that, other things being equal, in a pleasant situation of interaction, oxytocin in a cat rises by 12%. And the dog — by 57%.

The smell of friendship

The second mechanism is odor binding.

Dogs are largely guided by aromas.

The smell of the leader or mother triggers the mechanism of absolute attachment, which persists under any circumstances. Even when an individual is brought up or suppressed.

Professor Gregory Burns from Atlanta conducted experiments with the analysis of MRI data of the brain of dogs.

Of all the smells, the owner's fragrance caused an unconditional positive reaction.

Apparently, this mechanism is formed as follows. The owner, taking care of the dog, is fixed for her as a positive object. Catching his scent instantly turns on joyful emotions and expectations in the so-called caudate nucleus of the brain.