XCR1250 Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 Dogs’ faces evolved to improve connections with people, study suggests The face muscles of dogs have evolved to be very different than those of wolves, hinting at changes that may have made them more charming to humans. Kenji, a 13-week-old German Shepard puppy, looks to his Puppy Raiser Cindy Tait during a Guiding Eyes for the Blind foundation class at Talbot Community Center, in Easton, Md. on Feb. 15.Carolyn Kaster / AP file Link copied SAVECreate your free profile or log in to save this article April 5, 2022, 12:47 PM CDT By Tom Metcalfe The faces of dogs have evolved over tens of thousands of years to make them more appealing to humans, unlike the wild wolves they descended from, a new study suggests. The research shows that the facial muscles of dogs have a much higher proportion of “fast-twitch” muscle fibers than wolves, and scientists think this lets dogs more effectively communicate their feelings to their owners. The same researchers were involved a few years ago in the discovery that dogs have developed a muscle above their eyes that they use to make their eyes look larger and create that endearing “puppy dog eyes” expression. That study found that the muscle was undeveloped in wolves, which suggests that “puppy dog eyes” is something dogs have evolved specifically to manipulate people. Taken together, the muscle changes suggest dogs’ faces have evolved anatomically to improve their connections with people, said biological anthropologist Anne Burrows, a professor of physical therapy at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and the leader of the project. “It’s quite a remarkable difference between dogs and wolves,” she said. “They just don’t move their faces in the same way.” Burrows and animal physiologist Kailey Omstead, a colleague at Duquesne, presented preliminary findings of their research Tuesday at the Experimental Biology 2022 meeting in Philadelphia. They found that the muscles in dogs’ faces are 66 percent to 95 percent fast-twitch fibers, while wolves average about 25 percent. The muscles of all mammals, humans and dogs included, are made of millions of fibers of a protein called myosin. Each muscle has a mix of fast-twitch fibers that contract quickly but are fast to fatigue, and slow-twitch fibers that are slower to contract but don’t tire as fast. The muscles in human faces are dominated by fast-twitch fibers, so we can express thoughts on our faces in an instant, but not for long. The muscles in our backs, however, are dominated by slow-twitch fibers that tolerate loads for longer. “If you pick up a 10-pound weight, you can hold it for a full minute,” Burrows said. “But if you try to hold a smile in the mirror for a full minute, you can’t do it. Your face muscles get tired, because your face is dominated by fast-twitch fibers.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold Member Kivalo Posted April 5, 2022 Gold Member Share Posted April 5, 2022 I read an article somewhere that dogs natural affinity for humans is a survival trait as opposed to a show of our mastery over dogs. The article said dogs evolved to look and act cute/friendly so that we humans would give them food/shelter. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01mxz800 Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 21 minutes ago, Kivalo said: I read an article somewhere that dogs natural affinity for humans is a survival trait as opposed to a show of our mastery over dogs. The article said dogs evolved to look and act cute/friendly so that we humans would give them food/shelter. well damn it worked, I got 3 that run the show 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member ViperGTS/Z1 Posted April 5, 2022 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted April 5, 2022 Kind of a strange title..lol Love my dogs.... and if there are any orphaned one's from Ukraine I will gladly accept one..... I almost worry more for the fate of them than I do people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01mxz800 Posted April 5, 2022 Share Posted April 5, 2022 5 minutes ago, ViperGTS/Z1 said: Kind of a strange title..lol Love my dogs.... and if there are any orphaned one's from Ukraine I will gladly accept one..... I almost worry more for the fate of them than I do people. anybody does anything to my dogs and they will end up being under a paving project on I81 5 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCR1250 Posted April 6, 2022 Author Share Posted April 6, 2022 (edited) 13 hours ago, ViperGTS/Z1 said: Kind of a strange title..lol Love my dogs.... and if there are any orphaned one's from Ukraine I will gladly accept one..... I almost worry more for the fate of them than I do people. “If you pick up a 10-pound weight,(ding-dong) you can hold it for a full minute,” Burrows said. “But if you try to hold a smile in the mirror for a full minute, you can’t do it. Your face muscles get tired, because your face is dominated by fast-twitch fibers.” Edited April 6, 2022 by XCR1250 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum Contributing Member ViperGTS/Z1 Posted April 6, 2022 Platinum Contributing Member Share Posted April 6, 2022 I still think holding ding dong through a lot of people off 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skidude600 Posted April 6, 2022 Share Posted April 6, 2022 1 minute ago, ViperGTS/Z1 said: I still think holding ding dong through a lot of people off Yeah I thought it had something to do with Hostess. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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