For 30,000 years, dogs have lived with humans (Fisher). At one time or another, many dog owners have probably wondered what their dog thought of them. After wondering this myself, I decided to research the topic. Through MRI brain scans, scientists have discovered exactly what dogs think of their owners. Dogs treat their owners like their parents. They rely more on their owners than on their own kind. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay With nearly 50% of Americans owning dogs, dogs have become part of our family (Fisher). Even scientists have said that dogs believe their owners are their parents. The relationship between dogs and their owners turns out to be similar to the relationship between children and their parents. Just as it's difficult to study humans, it's difficult to get an accurate background on what dogs think. Every dog is different, has different personalities, attitudes and has grown up in different environments. A dog raised in a context of violence and anger will most likely be aggressive. A dog raised in a loving home with a caring family will most likely be obedient and affectionate. Researching dogs is a luxury we have, which is why our information about dogs' mental processes is very limited. I will mainly focus on what the most ordinary dog may think of their owner. Scientists wanted to know if it is possible to see a dog's emotions through a brain scanner. Seeing a dog's emotions would help us determine what's going on in his mind. Scientists use a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine to read emotions that a dog can process. It is the most efficient and harmless way to examine a dog's brain. An MRI uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce images of the inside of the body (Lam). An fMRI (Fisher) was used to measure the dog's responses. FMRI is a technique used to map brain activity (Devlin). The images of the dog's brain would light up. The dogs were trained to lie still in an MRI machine, the same machines used for humans. It took about 2-3 months to train the first dog until he felt comfortable enough to complete the procedure (Worrall). It is a very intimidating process due to the loud noise, the small coffin-like shape, and the dogs having to stay still for so long. These brain scans were performed by a neuroscientist at Emory University. They scanned 62 dogs of 33 different breeds (Avril). Understanding a dog's emotional capacity will help us understand how a dog thinks about humans. At first it was difficult for scientists to accept that dogs have feelings. Dogs and humans share the same brain structures that produce our emotions. We have the same hormones and undergo the same chemical changes (Fisher). Since dogs' brains are at most the size of a lemon, they don't contain as much information as ours (Worrall). When it comes to their emotional capacity, dogs relate most to young children. An adult dog has a mind equal to that of a 2-2 and a half year old child (Fisher). Dogs also interact with their owners in the same way that children interact with their parents. They both turn to their caregivers for help or run to them when they are afraid. Through MRI scans, it was found that at the age of 4-6 months, dogs develop basic emotions such as happiness, fear,.
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