It is rightly said that dogs are a man’s best friend. They love us unconditionally, greet us with a lot of exuberance every time we walk through the door, entertain us, and offer the best type of companionship.
Most dog parents treat their canines as their own kids and take care of their dog, especially a puppy, just like they would care for their human child. As owners, it is your responsibility to keep the dog healthy, happy, and safe. Some owners even dress up their dogs in fancy clothes, take them out in strollers, and even indulge in baby talk with the puppies. However, does my dog think I’m his mom? Let’s find out more about this.
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Does your dog feel secure with you?
According to the research done on dogs, it is thought that dogs know that humans are a different breed. Even after knowing this, your dog may still accept your parenting. You may have noticed that when you take your dog to an unfamiliar place or take it around new people, the dog may act shy or scared. The minute your dog sees you, it will feel more comfortable and behave more normally. You can see this behavior at the vet’s office or a new park. Various studies have shown that most dogs behave like this. This is known as the Secure Base Effect, and it can also be seen in small kids.
If your dog behaves this way, he sees you as its secure base, and the relationship is quite deep. In some situations, dogs do believe that you are their parents or at least play a parental role.
What does your dog feel about you?
Remember that there is nothing wrong with feeling like a mom or parent with your dog. Taking care of any animal or human can make you feel like a parent. The question is, what does your dog think about you?
Dogs are generally very affectionate, and they will display affection and adoration towards you, but this could be a sign of trust and love too. Do not confuse this with love for a parent. Dogs on their own or in the wild also do not stay with their mother for years. They become independent and move on. They continue to stay with us in our homes and are completely dependent on us for every little thing, including the company.
Just as we need dogs for company, a pet dog also craves company either of other dogs or humans. Dogs have a heightened sense of smell, and they can interpret many of our moods and emotions in their own way.
What a dog thinks about its owner will depend on how the owner treats the dog and how emotional the bond is between the two. However, from the time of their birth, they are aware of the smells of their mother and can probably recognize them even after years.
Does your dog think of itself as a human?
Many owners treat their dogs like babies, and the dogs love it too. Some dogs are unfriendly towards other dogs but love to spend time with other humans. Does this type of behavior mean that the dog thinks of itself as a person? Not really; dogs have the cognitive intelligence to differentiate between humans and themselves and even other animals. This intelligence is deeply ingrained from hundreds of years of evolution. So, if the dog knows it is different from you, there are fewer chances of it considering you as ‘mom.’
Do dogs remember their birth moms?
This is a serious question because if your dog remembers its birth mom and recognizes her when they meet, then there is no way they will think of you as their mom. A dog’s sense of smell is like a superpower, and it has over 200 million olfactory receptors in its nose. When you compare it to us humans, who have just 5 million olfactory receptors, you can see the difference and truly understand the power of their sense of smell.
Can they remember their birth moms? A study was carried out to test this. A group of puppies from different mothers who had been separated from their respective mothers for months were placed together in a room with all the other puppies and mothers. The puppies were able to find their mothers 84% of the time based on their memory of smell.
The same experiment was also carried out for adult dogs of at least 2 years of age. The mothers and babies were separated from each other when the babies were 8 weeks old. The results again showed that more than 75% of the time, the mothers and babies could remember the smells.
Do you think you are a good mom to your dog?
Most humans agonize over being good parents to their kids and want to do their best. It is the same with dogs. You must also be wondering if you are a good dog parent or not. If you worry about this, you are already doing a good job of being a mom.
You obviously care about what your dog thinks and want to look after it in the best way possible. All your dog wants from you is lots of love, tasty meals, and walks on time. If you make a little effort to understand how your dog thinks and feels, it can make the relationship between the two of you even more special.
Conclusion
Asking the question if your dog thinks of you as its mom? is a normal question. It is something that all dog parents want to know. You want to know that your dog loves you and respects you as a parent. If you:
- Cancel plans because you don’t want to leave your dog alone at home
- Read an article that has the word dog in it
- Sacrifice your comfort to make sure your dog is comfortable
Then you know that you are an awesome mom. Your dog probably also knows this.
It is quite possible that your dog sees you as their parent but not in the traditional sense that humans see. Your dog, in time, will develop to use skills and the things they learned from the interactions to understand you and your presence in their life.
