Many people claim to have the “golden retriever personality”—and as it turns out, they're not wrong.
New research published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesshowed that golden retrievers and humans may share the same genetic pathways. These genes can influence everything from anxiety and intelligence to how long we think about embarrassing moments.
This research provides a rare glimpse into the minds of humans and dogs and helps explain why we feel so emotionally close to our furry friends.
“The results are truly striking—they provide compelling evidence that humans and golden retrievers share common genetic roots in their behavior,” study leader Eleanor Raffan said in the journal. press release. “The genes we identified often influence emotional states and behavior in both species.”
Read more: Why do dogs let out such a long, frustrated sigh?
What do dogs and people have in common?
In this study, the team found that many behavioral traits In Golden Retrievers, qualities such as learning ability, fear response and even aggression towards other dogs are associated with certain genes. Some of these genes also shape human behavior and emotional responses.
Golden retriever puppy.
(Image credit: Morris Animal Foundation)
One example is PTPN1, a gene associated with aggression in dogs but associated with intelligence and depression in humans. Another genetic variant that appears in fearful golden retrievers also influences whether a person will hyperfixate to embarrassing events. Finally, the ROMO1 gene is associated with learning ability in dogs and emotional sensitivity in humans.
These genetic matches suggest that some people and golden retrievers are programmed to perceive the world in a certain way.
As first author Enoch Alex explained, “These results show that genetics drive behavior, making some dogs predisposed to perceive the world around them as stressful. If their life experiences exacerbate this, they may behave in ways that we interpret as bad behavior when in fact they are upset.”
How did researchers map Golden Retriever behavior?
To find out the connection between behavior and geneticsThe researchers used one of the most comprehensive databases on dogs: the Golden Retriever Life Span Study. In this study, they assessed more than 1,300 dogs aged three to seven years, whose owners completed detailed questionnaires covering more than 70 behaviors, including dogs' fear of strangers and vacuum-related panic attacks.
These behaviors were then categorized into 14 different categories. The team then matched each dog's behavioral scores to its full genetic program, scanning the entire genome for variants that appeared more often in dogs exhibiting behaviors in these 14 categories.
This genome-wide comparison allowed the researchers to pinpoint genes that influence emotional states and control how dogs regulate stress and sensitivity to stimuli.
What this study means for dogs and people
These results suggest that genes shape broader emotional and regulatory patterns in golden retrievers, just as they do in humans. And better understanding this connection has practical implications for both species.
For veterinarians, finding a link between fearfulness in golden retrievers and human genes associated with anxiety could help develop targeted treatments and medications. Dog owners need to recognize that there is an emotional component to your life. dog behavior can radically change your approach to training.
“Dogs in our homes share not only our physical environment, but may also share some of the psychological challenges associated with modern life. Our pets may be excellent models of some human mental illnesses associated with emotional disturbances,” Daniel Mills, an expert on problem animal behavior at the University of Lincoln, concluded in a press release.
Read more: Do dogs upset other dogs?
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