Dogs have another and striking way of exhibiting their affection,
namely, by licking the hands or faces of their masters. They sometimes
lick other dogs, and then it is always their chops. I have also seen
dogs licking cats with whom they were friends. This habit probably
originated in the females carefully licking their puppies—the dearest
object of their love—for the sake of cleansing them. They also often
give their puppies, after a short absence, a few cursory licks,
apparently from affection. Thus the habit will have become associated
with the emotion of love, however it may afterwards be aroused. It is
now so firmly inherited or innate, that it is transmitted equally to
both sexes. A female terrier of mine lately had her puppies destroyed,
and though at all times a very affectionate creature, I was much struck
with the manner in which she then tried to satisfy her instinctive
maternal love by expending it on me; and her desire to lick my hands
rose to an insatiable passion.
The same principle probably explains why dogs, when feeling
affectionate, like rubbing against their masters and being rubbed or
patted by them, for from the nursing of their puppies, contact with a
beloved object has become firmly associated in their minds with the
emotion of love.
The feeling of affection of a dog towards his master is combined with a
strong sense of submission, which is akin to fear. Hence dogs not only
lower their bodies and crouch a little as they approach their masters,
but sometimes throw themselves on the ground with their bellies
upwards. This is a movement as completely opposite as is possible to
any show of resistance. I formerly possessed a large dog who was not at
all afraid to fight with other dogs; but a wolf-like shepherd-dog in
the neighbourhood, though not ferocious and not so powerful as my dog,
had a strange influence over him. When they met on the road, my dog
used to run to meet him, with his tail partly tucked in between his
legs and hair not erected; and then he would throw himself on the
ground, belly upwards. By this action he seemed to say more plainly
than by words, “Behold, I am your slave.”
A pleasurable and excited state of mind, associated with affection, is
exhibited by some dogs in a very peculiar manner, namely, by grinning.
This was noticed long ago by Somerville, who says,
“And with a courtly grin, the fawning hound
Salutes thee cow’ring, his wide op’ning nose
Upward he curls, and his large sloe-back eyes
Melt in soft blandishments, and humble joy.”
_The Chase_, book i.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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