The Reason We Find Dogs So Cute | The Science of Cute 

Huskies never needed to use puppy eyes to communicate with humans because they always had gigantic lungs to help them scream.

Lol huskies don’t waste their energy moving their eyebrow muscles. They sing the songs of their ancestors any time they are less than thrilled with a given situation.

Dogs used weaponized cuteness to domesticate humans. Jokes aside, I think dogs need to be acknowledged as a unique case. No two species interact, live together, work together and communicate like humans and dogs. They are genuine friends and adopted family. They are partners. And that partnership has been ridiculously successful. Both species are far better off together. This is still true, from the paleolithic to the 21st century.. The human/dog relationship is unique on this planet. Dozens of millennia together in bonds of love and friendship. This I seriously propose a separate legal category for dogs. They are NOT typical domesticated animals... Or even pets really. This is a much older and deeper bond. They are humanity's partner and true friend. All I propose is that we acknowledge that.

Another unique musculature some dogs have (pittie type dogs particularly) is the ability to pull the corners of their mouths back into a smile. Many find this endearing like the raised eyebrows.

But I don’t find human babies cute at all? But I LOVE puppies

Babies are okay... as long as you can give 'em back after you're done!

I'm a dog person but I don't find ALL dogs cute. Some are ugly af (which obviously has nothing to do with their deserving of love, happiness, and a good home.) Adopt, don't shop!

i have a husky and foster huskies and they lose their minds if they are alone…my husky would attach himself to me if he could…if he can’t see me at the dog park, he starts frantically looking everywhere and then if i call him he immediately bolts to me. They have all been super pack oriented, I know dogs are individuals but having had tons of huskies in my house, ALL of them have wanted to be together…they don’t demand constant pets like a golden retriever might, but they want to be with you all the time.

Did anybody else watch this and be like "nah" when they spoke about the cuteness of babies, and then totally gush over the puppies and dogs?

Narrator: “We love babies. Can’t help ourselves.” Me: Fast forwards any time a human baby shows up in the video. 😆🐶

Moral of the story: co-evolution is amazing 🎉😊.

Babies have already been “outcuted” by puppies

“We love babies. Can’t help ourselves.” Speak for yourself, lady. Kitten and puppies on the other hand…

How did dogs first become domesticated , one of our ancestors found a lost wolf puppy or puppies and the bond began .

Husky’s don’t need eyebrows. They say everything they want with side eye and RBF 😂😂😂😂

dogs are the best. i'm glad they domesticated us ❤

It’s definitely the same with cats and kittens too you look into those big eyes of theirs and your heart melts

I really don't think babies are cute.........But I love dogs!!! Dogs are so cute

Someone who finds all babies cute is more the exception than the norm. This makes evolutionary sense in the harsh, resource-limited world of our caveman ancestors, where finding others babies ‘cute’ risks compromising the ability of a parent to care for the survival of their own babies, if they also feel the pull of caring for the cute babies of others. Finding all dogs cute is easier, as they can more quickly contribute to the survival of the human and require less human care in order to survive. The evolution of the strictly companion lap dog of today is a function of the evolution of our modern society, where the living is easier, with more abundant resources to share with them.

i have a husky mix (parents were husky and husky-aussie mix) and while she can do the puppy eyes, she will also always vocalise a bit when she wants something. I think the reason pure huskies vocalise even more than her is because they have to so that humans understand what they want while other dogs can do it with their eyes

Even if I'm not crazy about kids, I still think babies are quite cute. I just don't know if I'd want one myself.

I would die to protect a baby but I don't find them cute. They do get cute as they get older. Dogs are cute at any age.

Well if I have to choose a big responsability I will choose a Dog 🐶, never a child.

There are some things that are cute about dogs that are nothing like babies though. Such as their noses, whiskers, paws, and happy tails. The way their mouths are shaped like Ws. There's got to be more to it than just their resemblance to babies! :P

I worked with dogs at Kennels- We saw lots of Huskys but it NEVER occured to me that they didn't make the 'puppy dog' eyes. And I thought I knew a lot about dogs. Wow, learn something new everyday. I love the 'Silver Fox experiment'! I found that fascinating when i watched the documentary on it. I just adore this video. I didn't think i'd enjoy it so much, but as a dog lover I guess it was really awesome.

*ARIA LOOKS SO HAPPY FOR THE INTERVIEW!*

I would have to agree with that last statement..."maybe dogs and humans domesticated each other" ~~~ I'd say the humans need a Whole lot more work at it. As says Cesar Milan, the Dog Whisperer : " I train Humans..." Whatever craziness the humans are doing, PLEASE spay and neuter your dogs & cats. A world without kill shelters, just imagine! If you have a dog be responsible and do your part.

Cat guy coming here for learning about dog.

I personally think what makes dogs and babies cute are their innocence and purity. This might be true to a lot of animals as well, baby or not.

After been 7 years had cat , and done my responsibility. Now I can't wait to adopt dog in the future soon. Adopt save life.

It's funny-I've always found baby animals, especially puppies, to be irresistibly cute, but not human babies. (In fact, I find the appearance of human babies to be repulsive.) My wife is the same way, so I know there must be other people who agree.

Wolves really look like the adult form of a dog.

Hate babies but love dogs

Human babies give me the ick. But I adore puppies and dogs. I want to be the doggie godmother to all family and family friends' dogs. I love spoiling our dog as it is. Spoil and love the doggies ❤.

Dogs 🐕 have extremely wholesome personalities. Very friendly, easily in a good mood, liking being useful, working on making themselves better, and being extremely curious of the world around them.

"With animals and people there's a sense of trust with eye contact." Actually, It's ONLY people and dogs that feel that. I don't think I can emphasize enough how much the rest of the animal kingdom hates eye contact and prolonged staring of any kind. Even other domesticated animals don't enjoy eye contact, they're simply inured to it.

Retired groomer here.. I learned long ago that to trim a cute face on a fluffy dog the eyes should be just halfway up the face, equal head hair and chin hair. It makes a huge difference in how "cute" the dog becomes. It seems to me that this holds true with people too.. babies and adults.

Going to a shelter is a gut wrenching experience. You want to adopt every dog.

I really like how the video starts off with the beagle! My favorite type of dog 🐶

To me, Huskies are the prettiest breed ever and Pugs the ugliest thing that should’ve never been created in the first place, poor things.

"We LOVE babies" doooo we though?

It’s not just the eyebrow muscles. It’s hard for me to see a relaxed and happy husky or even a wild wolf and not have that “Awww! Look at the cute doggie!” feeling. I mean, look at this wolf, at 5:21 in the video. No raised eyebrows, but still, who could possibly resist the look and body language we all recognize?

A simple look at their face melts me 😍

Whoever published those papers got to stare at puppy eyes xd

Human babies aren’t cute. Animal babies are cute. I find this interesting.

I love Jodie Foster as the narrator 😊

puppies are stinking cute, babies not so much.

That is sooooo cute!!!!! Where are the cat videos??

As far as being hardwired to like babies I don't buy it. I don't like the way they look can't stand the way they smell and I'm thoroughly annoyed by the sounds they make. I find babies repulsive in every way. On the other hand puppies are adorable.

Too much cuteness! I have to leave!!❤

Dogs could hardly look less like us among mammals, but they act much like us and are near equals in the food chain. They grow up faster than children, but develop much like them. They understand us well -- probably better than we understand them.

OMG so cute! Very interesting video.

I've Alaskan malamutes I'm pretty sure it's the same. They do have puppy ears though they can move them way more than normal dogs with floppy ears. Their ears are so expressive

Aria is such a lovely derp!!!

What about bears? Did they evolved to be cute? They’ll kill you.

😊 Not just the visual expressions.

I thought there were studies showing that the dogs developed raising their eyebrows some 100-200 years ago.

Awwww, why does my heart feel so warm? ❤

I've noticed that some individual cats can have expressive faces. My current one will beg and furrow his brow much like a dog does. Even when he senses something isn't right, he's looking to us with that puppy eye stare.

Adorable eyebrow raising

I too want to be an expert in puppy eyes

Eyebrow muscles. I knew it. Shibas don't have them.

God, I’m two minutes in and my heart is molten❤❤❤

We r so lucky to have dogs!

Reading cat body language and facial expressions has always come naturally to me - I've always been able to understand them and act in ways that encourage even new cats to interact and be comfortable with me. When I fostered an injured puppy a few years back, I had to study dog body language so that I could tell what she needed or wanted. I guess it makes sense if a lot of it is in the eyes for them, since I'm autistic. Even when I look back at photos of my beautiful and dearly loved now-departed cats of ten or twenty years ago, my eyes are drawn more to their surroundings than their faces. (Though I'm sure there are autistic people out there who get dogs the way I get cats, just for me cats come more naturally.)

i don't think that's true that we all love babies...

Never tired of watching dog content 😂😂

That was beautiful.

Love dogs. They are the best!

Forty-plus years ago, it was already an established and recognized fact that all mammals share basic features when they are young to help them survive, even among other mammals. Mostly, during the pre-pubescent stage (child, kitten, puppy, etc.), all mammals have larger eyes and ears compared to their skulls because these are fully developed in utero, plus they have smaller mouths, a different smell (lack of pheromones) and they cry when in distress. This was established long ago. It explains why we are drawn to kittens, puppies and other baby animals. Also, how some babies have managed to survive in the wild. It was nature's way of helping if something happened to their moms. Because, goodness knows, dad wouldn't step in.

"Analyzing whole genomes of living dogs and wolves, last January's study revealed that today's dogs are not the descendants of modern gray wolves. Instead the two species are sister taxa, descended from an unknown ancestor that has since gone extinct."

A puppy is always cuter than a human larvae.

Survival by cuteness ❤

My dog is half pure bred husky and German Shepard, he can do the puppy eyes ahaha. even has distinctive eye brows

Domestic goats also have floppy ears and pie bald coats. I wonder if this is why.

They're the only other mammal that looks you in the eyes.

Cuz they are, look at em!

U know what’s the better way to survive and pass on your genes to humans, just evolve to be cute, the cuter u r the more chances of passing your genes 😅

3:24. It's amazing to see a legitimate academic endeavor at the token mill Howard.

I’m currently staying my aunt’s house and this video is making me miss my dog ;-(

wolves are just as cute!

I'm watching this on Nebula and Magellan TV.

My issue, I like and want to pet almost every life, dogs, cats, cows, horses, sheep, etc…

Corrugator Muscles. " Corrugator supercilii is a paired muscle found deep to the medial end of each eyebrow. Upon contraction, these muscles draw the two eyebrows together medially and inferiorly, thereby producing vertical wrinkles over the glabella and an expression of frowning."

i think domestication is detrimental to some breeds but without it i would not be standing here today.

I love my Roo, my best friend and furry son.

Let me rephrase this into two sentences. Eyes have it. And voice has it.

My huskamute, can do the eyebrow thing

I dont fully agrer with the eyes thing. Yes puppy eyes are a thing but. Its not what makes a dogs face emotive. I believe we draw more expression from the way dogs move their head, jaws and ears as a whole. Yes or no?!

It’s more than just eyes. I find some dogs cute and some not. Wolves and huskies I like.

The silver foxes experiment is NOT a “ lovely “ experiment. Have you seen the conditions under which these animals were kept ?

The cutest little things well my dog is 😂❤

Depends on the dogs, some would make me say "cursed"

I have a husky female and she can do "puppy eyes" without that muscle set mentioned. oh, yeah.

I want to know why babies smell so good.

Never heard of The World Canine Organization.

Wolves look cute too, how do you explain that? Also cats! Why are they cute? Why even panthers and lions are cute?

At 5:57, the Institute in Russia is erroneously written ''Intitute of Cytology and Genetics'' when it's well known that the science in question is called Cutology, and other times ''Oh, so Cutology''.. hahahah

Wittle cutiepies

It also works for hedgehogs.