You are sitting watching television, but your dog only has eyes for you. You are cooking dinner and the dog is laser focused on your face. You go to the bathroom and… you get the idea. If there’s one thing almost all dogs do well, it’s stare at their owners. And he looks. And he looks.
But why do they do it? There are four main reasons: attention, confusion, desire, and direction.
Lean on your legs randomly
This will happen in the worst case, as if you were running in the kitchen and preparing dinner. But if he sits right behind your legs and presses on them, that’s a sign that he loves you. Resist the urge to kick him or send him running immediately. After all, he’s just telling you how much he cares about you. Just don’t trip!
It’s 2 am. m. and you’re sound asleep in your bed with your doberman. He’s already piled you to the edge of your species-sized mattress, leaving you barely inches to sleep. But then, when you’re totally asleep and comfortable, he gets up, rolls over a turn or two, and quickly drops all of his weight onto your side. He feels like a fighter has punched your body.
It is normal for dogs to look
In many cases, the look is the normal behavior of the dog, used to express some kind of emotion, desire or need. If there’s one thing almost all dogs do well, it’s stare at their owners.
When a dog searches for direction, it is often because he is in the process of training or doing some other activity and wants to know what to do next. Another important way to understand what the dog’s gaze means is to look at the context of the situation.
When you’re about to swallow a nice-smelling meal, your dog is probably looking at you. Whether there’s a real threat or not, they may stare at you to make sure you’re okay or figure out what the problem is. If your dog is frightened, he may look into his ears, his eyes widen, and he may breathe more frequently than usual.
History of the Doberman Pinscher
Dobermans in pop culture tend to be intimidating: Oliver and Company, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, and Up feature aggressive dogs or villains of the breed. And, yes, early Doberman breeders intended the dogs to be imposing: the Doberman himself wanted a protector for his rounds. But they are intelligent dogs that develop strong bonds with friends and family.
The “pinscher” in the doberman pinscher’s name comes from one of his probable ancestors, the German pinscher. The term may come from «the French word ‘pincher,’ meaning to grasp or bite.» Despite sharing «pinscher» in their names and having some aesthetic qualities in common, the Miniature Pinscher is a separate breed and not a smaller version of the Doberman. The DPCA says it is «generally accepted as fact» that the Doberman pinscher is primarily descended from the German pinscher and the Old German Shepherd, although there are no official records of their original breeding.
Dog owners already know in their bones that they and their pets love each other. Now, a new study has confirmed this, finding that love is chemically apparent after dogs and their owners look into each other’s eyes.
The study, conducted by researchers from several Japanese universities and published in the journal Science, consisted of two parts. In the first, the researchers watched 30 dog owners interact with their dogs for half an hour, and then measured oxytocin levels in both humans and dogs. (Sometimes called the «love hormone» or the «bondage hormone,» oxytocin is critical to human intimacy; it is released during sexual intercourse and creates attachment between partners, and also plays a role in mother bonding. -son).