Welcome to brain Stuff. From How Stuff Works, Hey, brain Stuff, Lauren vogelbam here, Researchers from Johns Hopkins University have confirmed what most dog owners already know. The dogs have strong emotional bonds with their owners and want to help when we're upset. In a paper titled in homage to Lassie Timmy's in the Well, Empathy and pro Social Helping in Dogs, published in eighteen issue of the journal Learning and Behavior, researchers described how dogs pushed through a door when they
heard their owners crying. Lead author Emily Sandford, a graduate student in psychological and brain sciences, set in the paper we found dogs not only sense what their owners are feeling. If a dog knows a way to help them, they'll go through barriers to provide that help to them. Study found dogs may be hardwired to comfort us when we're sad, regardless of whether the dog knows us or not. When a stranger and the dog's owner cried, the dogs approached
whoever was bawling in a submissive way. The dogs, the researchers concluded, responded empathetically to the person's emotions and not their own needs. But Sandford's research is the first to show that our beloved four legged friends are specifically moved to action when they see their owners in emotional distress. The experiment involved thirty four pet dogs of varying breeds. Some were big, some small. Here's how it all played out. Researchers told the dogs owners wanted a time to stand
behind a clear door held shut by magnets. The owners dogs could see and hear what was going on. Researchers then had the humans hum Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star or pretend to cry. While not all the dogs opened the door, those that did opened it three times faster when they heard their owners crying instead of humming. Researchers also measured the dog's stress level. Those that were able to bolt through the door to rescue their owners showed less stress,
even though they were upset by the crying. Even though they were upset, they weren't too frazzled to take action. Researchers concluded the dogs that didn't push the door open were more stressed out. It seems the researchers surmised those dogs were so troubled by their owners crying that they couldn't do anything to help. Sandford said dogs have been by the side of humans for tens of thousands of years, and they've learned to read our social cues. Dog owners
can tell that their dogs sense their feelings. Our findings reinforced that idea and show that, like Lassie, dogs who know their people are in trouble might spring into action. Today's episode was written by John Paritano and produced by
Tyler Clang. If you love our show and want to wear your heart on your sleeve, check out our new shop t public dot com slash brain Stuff for shirts and lots of other merchandise, and, of course, for more on this and other helpful topics, visit our home planet, how Stuff Works dot com