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[EloquentM]

My dog would literally rest his head on my shoulder when I hugged him. Calling bullshit. The nerve of this researcher throwing all dogs into a box

 

[Blastoise]

Dogs hate University of British Columbia researchers.

 

[darscot]

This has always seemed very obvious. Dogs like to be touched but they do not like to be restrained.

 

[Duracelllll]

So his research consisted of looking at a bunch of shit on google image search?

Budget cutbacks now prevent the university from hugging real dogs.

 

[Kinyou]

Maybe it helps to imagine the same picture with humans.

 

[Kyzer]

"stresses dogs out"


I bet food stresses them out too

 

[Angry Grimace]

Tough cookies, Dog-o. You're getting hugs.

 

[Zibrahim]

l learned about that on one of Caesar Milan's shows. But its good to see empirical proof.

 

[Rhaknar]

Bullshit

Hell one of my dogs actively hugs ME, he'll get up and put his paws on my shoulders and his head against my face...thats a fucking hug if I ever seen one

 

[figadapaura]

My dog loves hugs. He hugs me all the time.

 

[Switch Back 9]

This thread:

EDIT: Personal anecdote but, my gf's German Shepherd fucking loves hugs and cuddling and shit, it's the most irritating thing for a non-touchy person like me. Having said that, they've been through some pretty rough shit together so this is definitely not indicative of all dogs.

 

[Stumpokapow]

This is a pretty bad analysis.

First, there's no control, so we have no idea if the level of "dog anxiety" is actually higher among hugged dogs than non-hugged dogs--imagine that non-hugged dogs are always anxious, but hugging them lowers their anxiety level so that some are not. Imagine alternatively that the anxiety is real, but that the thing making them anxious is having their photo taken and we have no control in terms of dogs not having their photo taken. No treatment effect can be identified.

Second, there appears to be significant measurement error. "Dog anxiety" is operationalized as a three point scale: no anxiety, neutral anxiety, or some anxiety -- and we don't know the coding rubric the coder used to decide which category to put it in. It's not even clear if there is a standard, academically accepted dog anxiety rubric. I do not believe it is the case that dogs closing their eyes indicates anxiety. Normally in studies of this type that rely on coder discretion for a noisy response parameter, we have two coders and rely on inter-coder reliability scores to debias estimates. But even if we assumed the measurement was good and there was a control group, the study would have very little power because the score only takes three values so it's unlikely even doing it properly and then trying to grab a difference of means between treatment and control would get you any results.

Third, there's no reason to believe the photos were selected randomly because it's entirely possible that the same characteristics that make the coder see anxiety are also characteristics that search results select on on the basis of image quality (for example, "half moon eyes" might be anxiety to the coder but an easy to identify feature for Google's Image search.

Finally, this is a blog post, not a journal, so it's arguable whether or not this is even research versus just "something to do on your lunch break". It's not peer reviewed, it's probably not edited, no one else is cited, it's not building off any research, it's just a "hmmm... some dogs in photos look anxious..." observation.

 

[btrboyev]

I'm calling bullshit.

 

[Always-honest]

Too bad dog. You are here for giving your owner a false sense of love (or authority). Now hug.

 

[Mr Waluigi]

Wasn't that already widely known?
edit: not that all dogs hate hugs, but that they generally aren't fond of close physical contact that prevents them from moving

 

[ThatGayWolf]

...was this not obvious?

Stump is right though, as far as "studies" go it's not very credible. Anecdotally it seems right though.

 

[CygnusXS]

This just confirms what I've always known: that UBC is a trash school with nothing good to offer (except Wreck Beach).

 

[Violet_0]

My dog hates hugs and definitely hates being picked up.

so do cats
but I feed them and provide them with shelter, I get to hug them

 

[Bare Grills]

Anyone ever ask dogs how they felt?

 

[davepoobond]

we made dogs love us, so we will make dogs love hugs through artificial selection.

 

[RockTurtle]

tough shit dogs, you're going to accept my love whether you like it or not. Either receive pampering hugs, or go eat grass in the rain.

 

[TheOMan]

My dog would literally rest his head on my shoulder when I hugged him. Calling bullshit. The nerve of this researcher throwing all dogs into a box

Well, to be fair, it says 82%.

 

[BeforeU]

They are wrong

 

[smurfx]

How often do dogs hug each other? Exactly.

 

[Messofanego]

Consider it payback for trying to lick my face off after tonguing their own asshole for the last hour.

Funniest post of 2016, so far.

 

[akira28]

maybe dogs don't like hugging in front of photographers.

I'm going to need to see more proof. Maybe dogs show the whites of their eyes and show other visual stress markers because they're in a high emotional state while hugging?

maybe the dogs thought they were going to be eaten?

http://www.humorhound.com/im-going-to-eat-you-pug/

 

[Lmo911]

And what about these things:

Strangely enough this actually works in his theory. The vest is supposed to simulate a hug, which would create a sensation that the dog would feel they can't move.

To you the dog is calm and not running around during a storm. But to the dog, he is trapped in a vest clinching hell unable to move and can only stare in horror at that which he cannot escape!

 

[Freshmaker]

Poor dog. That look of pure terror.

That's the look of a dog that wants to be elsewhere.

 

[timetokill]

As Stump pointed out, pretty poor looking study. That said, there are definitely some dogs that don't like hugs, and I think owners know it but indulge themselves. My former dog (yellow lab) didn't like them, but my sister's current dog (Bernese mountain) wants to be touched and hugged and cuddled almost nonstop.

On the other hand, my yellow lab loved to have her tummy scratched, whereas the Bernese mountain flips the fuck out if you put him on his back and actually tries to bite you.

So, you know... maybe dogs don't all act the same in this regard?

 

[Log4Girlz]

Bitches love my hugs. Never buying a boy dog again.

 

[Lucky Seven]

But I know when my dog jumps up the couch to cuddle or roll around beside me and when he likes to lick my neck when Im hugging him that he's liking it. My dog and I are close.

 

[2MF]

I think there's a difference between the two and it doesn't seem like all dogs do this (he said 80%)

I think its basically if you make them feel like they can't escape.

My guess is they feel dominated, but maybe you have a point as well.

If a dog turns away, licks his lips, closes his eyes or yawns, those are all signs of stress which many people don't recognize. So I'm not surprised that many dog owners aren't aware of what their dogs dislike.

 

[C4Lukins]

In my experience dogs love being hugged, but they hate being photographed. So doing a study using photographs of dogs being hugged is not very convincing to me.

Again, as far as my experience, dogs do not like to be smothered either. If I hold a dog in such a way that they cannot escape, they tend to get nervous or annoyed. They do not like you physically controlling or hindering their body.

 

[Dennis]

But I know when my dog jumps up the couch to cuddle or roll around beside me and when he likes to lick my neck when Im hugging him that he's liking it. My dog and I are close.

He is trying for the jugular.

 

[2MF]

... did no dog ever (without being trained)

Notice the lip lick on the dog that got hugged, which is usually code for "stop that, I'm stressed".

 

[bebop242]

All i know is my dog likes to hug A LOT more than my cat. Which makes me want to hug my cat.

 

[Deleted member 13876]

... did no dog ever (without being trained)

Notice the lip lick on the dog that got hugged, which is usually code for "stop that, I'm stressed".

As mentioned before, my collie grabs my arm like that all the time. As far as I know, no one taught her this.

 

[The Albatross]

Things that stress out my dog:

• Being in the car
• Not being in the car
• Having a toy
• Not having a toy
• Going for a walk
• Not going for a walk
• Having the window down in the car
• Not having the window down in the car
• Playing with a ball
• Not playing with a ball
• WHen my wife and I hug
• When my wife and I don't hug
• The vacuum cleaner
• The vacuum cleaner in another room
• Me holding up the blanket for him to crawl under
• Me holding up the blanket for him to crawl under when he doesn't want to

RIght now, he's pawing at me to move my leg so that he can slip under an imaginary blanket that is not there. He's pawing at my leg, as if I can change my leg somehow, and hes whining about it like "... doo something!"

I don't usually hug my dog. But I kiss the side of his face all the time and put my face up to his and he's just like "this is okay"

 

[2MF]

As mentioned before, my collie grabs my arm like that all the time. As far as I know, no one taught her this.

That's not really hugging though, right?

 

[Luigiv]

I already know my dogs don't like hugs, they're behaviour makes it super obvious, but it doesn't stop me. They gotta have some hardship in their life.

 

[Kathian]

Kind of obvious? Its not even easy to do and they run off whenever people do it.

 

[Air Zombie Meat]

My dogs don't like it. Seems like they feel trapped.

 

[jellies_two]

I have a Shiba and he loathes hugs, or even being held on the lap. He starts to lick his lips nervously and waits for the first oppotunity to gtfo. The breed is more instinctual and primitive so I think that plays a role too. Some breeds are a lot more into it.

 

[SwolBro]

i always new this, watching young kids hug dogs you can always tell the dog doesn't like it. i never hug my dog. i pet her and scratch her, that's it.

 

[old manatee]

Dogs will hump your grandmother if they find an opening but they can't give up a lousy hug. Maybe they should look inward for once and stop being stupid withholding dogs.

 

[Pops Maellard]

My dog likes to spoon..

My dog likes to spoon too, but only if she's unrestricted. When I go to bed, she gets up in my face and falls asleep against my chest. If I grab her and put my arm around her, she leaves. Every time. Not to imply that I even bother at this point since just letting her come to me results in the outcome we both want, but it definitely makes sense within the context of the study.

It's not saying that your dog doesn't like physical contact, it's saying that your dog only feels safe when it also knows it can bolt the fuck away at any time.

 

[thetrin]

Dogs may not like hugs, but they adore cuddling when lying down. If they didn't they wouldn't put their legs all over me!

 

[HylianTom]

My akita will come up to me and bury his head into my chest. This usually becomes a hug, where he's forcefully leaning into it. He'll do it when he's anxious, or when he's waking up, or when he's just wanting a bit of affection. When he's especially loving it, he'll start to do his puppy hiccups.

 

[I Stalk Alone]

Some dogs have become human so this study is invalid. look at goofy, what the fuck is he? TELL ME!!

 

[Almighty]

Pretty sure hugs annoy my parent's black lab, but I don't care. I do hug him sometimes just to get back at him for all the annoying stuff he does.