Does Your Personality Affect Your Dog’s Behavior?

Dogs are considered as man’s best friend and no wonder that pet owners share a special connection with their furry companion. Most dog owners say that their dog is their mirror image & they have a lot in common. Well, the similarity between them is because dogs tend to get influenced by their owner’s personality which gets reflected in their behavior.

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania suggests that the personality traits of a dog owner may shape the behavior of their canine companions. We have a close-knit relationship with our pooch, and we love to include our dog in most of the activities we do on a daily basis, which result in shaping our dog’s personality.

Well, now you know that the similarity between you and your furry companion is not mere coincident. The personality of your pooch is strongly linked to your personality, but the question that may have arisen in your mind is. How? You must be wondering despite a strong connection that we share with our furry companion, is it even possible for a dog to adopt the personality of its owner?

Well, the answer is absolutely YES!

Before jumping into how dog mirrors human emotions & personality, let’s discuss the personality similarities between dogs and their people.

Before beginning with the similarities, the fact that may surprise most dog owners is that they tend to choose a pet that has similar physical characteristics to themselves. This includes characteristics like size and weight, length of hair, etc. Well, there is just the physical similarities, but the personality similarities tend to form when you start spending time with your pooch. The more time you spend with your dog, the more will it affect your dog’s personality.

We all know how incredible our furry companion’s sensibility is, which allows them to detect our emotional status. Similarly, our furry companion mirror our personality trait. For example: If you prefer to have a laid back approach to your life, then your dog may be a couch potato too.

In a study published in Applied Animal Behavior Science, the team of researchers asked the pet parents to rank themselves & their dogs based on the 5 major personality traits:

• Openness
• Neuroticism
• Extraversion
• Agreeableness
• Conscientiousness

In the results, they found out that all the pet parents share similar personality traits with their respective pets, which clearly projected that dogs and their humans do share similar personality traits.

How is dog personality linked to human personality?

A dog’s personality is so intertwined with their human mainly because we humans tend to bring home a dog that matches our energy & complement our lives. If a person leads an active lifestyle, then he would prefer a large dog with high energy who can accompany him to a long run or other activities. Whereas if a calm person has to bring home a pooch, then he would choose a calm dog. Researchers believe that people do this on a subconscious level. So, we actually buy pets that will be well-suitable to our personality.

How dog mirrors human emotions?

Dog & humans have a deep connection that dates back to 15 thousand years. After domestication, dogs started living with humans which resulted in developing an ability to read & match human emotions in them. By being around humans, they learnt to sense their mood & emotions.

You must have noticed that pets in a household where the owners have a lot of stress in their lives, tend to exhibit a lot of behavioral issues. Dogs are empathic in nature & can easily sense when their owners are sad or not feeling their best. The dog owner may not notice but their furry companion tries to comport them by lying next to them or by distracting them with a toy.

Does a dog’s personality traits changes over time?

In a recent study published by the Journal of research in personality, researchers suggested that a dog’s personality traits also keep changing over time. Well, much like a human, dogs also have some changes in their personality & behavior due to many factors like age, experiences, and lifestyle. Also, these changes can also influence the behavior of their owner. If the owner behaves in a positive way then the dog’s personality will change in a positive manner, whereas if he is treated badly then, that will also be seen in his behavior.

Just like humans, a dog’s behavior is also changing with the experiences he had in life. To ensure that your furry companion displays a good behavior, you must take good care of his well-being.

Taking responsibility for the influence

Now, that we know how we influence our furry companion’s personality & behavior, it becomes important for every dog owner to take responsibility for the influence. You should always treat your dog well and should avoid taking stress as it can make your dog stressful too.

Final Thoughts

Wrapping it up, we can say that both humans and dogs shared a deep connection emotionally which is why your personality can affect your dog’s behavior. To make any positive changes in your pooch, it is important to have positive interactions with him.

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