Dogs catch human yawns

This study is the first to demonstrate that human yawns are possibly contagious to domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). Twenty-nine dogs observed a human yawning or making control mouth movements. Twenty-one dogs yawned when they observed a human yawning, but control mouth movements did not elicit yawn...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inBiology letters (2005) Vol. 4; no. 5; pp. 446 - 448
Main Authors Joly-Mascheroni, Ramiro M, Senju, Atsushi, Shepherd, Alex J
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London The Royal Society 23.10.2008
Subjects
Animal Behaviour
Animals
Canis familiaris
Contagious Yawning
Dog
Dogs
Empathy
Female
Humans
Imitative Behavior
Male
Primates
Social Cognition
Yawning
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Summary:This study is the first to demonstrate that human yawns are possibly contagious to domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). Twenty-nine dogs observed a human yawning or making control mouth movements. Twenty-one dogs yawned when they observed a human yawning, but control mouth movements did not elicit yawning from any of them. The presence of contagious yawning in dogs suggests that this phenomenon is not specific to primate species and may indicate that dogs possess the capacity for a rudimentary form of empathy. Since yawning is known to modulate the levels of arousal, yawn contagion may help coordinate dog-human interaction and communication. Understanding the mechanism as well as the function of contagious yawning between humans and dogs requires more detailed investigation.
Bibliography:ark:/67375/V84-9SC216NP-T
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ISSN:1744-9561
1744-957X
DOI:10.1098/rsbl.2008.0333