Do dogs open a door faster when the person behind it is crying rather than humming?

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Researchers tested whether dogs would go beyond paying attention to a distressed person by opening a door separating them. A person behind the door either cried or hummed, while researchers recorded door-opening behavior and changes in the timing between the dogs’ heartbeats to assess stress.

Dogs opened faster in the crying condition, but not more often. In that condition, dogs that opened showed lower stress. The researchers interpreted this as an ability to keep their own distress in check and act more quickly. In the humming condition, opening was not related to stress; curiosity or a desire for social contact were possible explanations.

The dogs then took part in a task they could not solve, with gaze toward their owner used as an indicator of their bond. Results suggested a stronger bond among dogs that opened in the crying condition than among those that did not, while the pattern was reversed in the humming condition. The authors considered the findings suggestive of empathy, not proof of that motive. The abstract does not report sample size or how much faster the dogs opened, limiting assessment of the difference’s size and how broadly it applies.