Scientists have discovered why dogs remain man’s best friend all over the world

An international team led by researchers from the University of Jena and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology studied 164 ‘dog–owner’ pairs in five rural communities: in Vanuatu, Mongolia, Madagascar, Peru and Germany.

The study has been published in the journal *Scientific Reports*.

The conclusion is simple: dogs in different parts of the world are able to read people, seek cues from them and cooperate with them. Moreover, this applies not only to Western pets, but also to working hunting dogs that live in very different cultural and natural environments.

Details

Most research into dog behaviour has so far been conducted in so-called WEIRD societies — Western, educated, industrialised, rich and democratic countries. However, around three-quarters of the world’s dogs live very differently from urban pets: many roam freely, hunt, guard homes and interact with people in different social contexts.

To test how universal the human–dog bond is, the researchers developed a set of six behavioural tests and a questionnaire for owners. They checked whether the dog would come when called, whether it understood a pointing gesture, whether it could show its owner where food was hidden, whether they avoid forbidden food whilst being watched, whether they look at their owner in a difficult situation, and whether they take their owner’s reaction as a cue when encountering an unfamiliar object.

Hunting dogs took part in the study: 34 pairs in rural Germany, 30 in Vanuatu, 35 in Mongolia, 33 in Madagascar and 32 in Peru. The authors chose hunting specifically because it is one of the oldest and most widespread forms of cooperation between humans and dogs.

What the tests revealed

Dogs in different countries often behaved in very similar ways. They were able to follow a human pointing gesture to find hidden food, and in a number of tasks successfully communicated with their owners when only the dog knew where the treat was.

Another important finding was that dogs often looked to humans in ambiguous situations. This suggests that they do not simply live alongside humans, but closely monitor their behaviour and use it as a source of information.

Put simply, a dog on the Mongolian steppe, in the forests of Vanuatu or in rural Germany may differ in its habits, training and role within the household. But the basic pattern of interaction with humans remains similar: observing, understanding signals, cooperating and seeking support.

Dogs turned out to be more than just ‘useful’

Owner questionnaires revealed that dogs are not merely seen as working animals. In all five countries, owners said they enjoyed spending at least some of their time with their dogs, and almost all noted that life is sometimes better thanks to their dog.

Over 90 per cent of owners in each country reported that they can rely on their dog at least sometimes. A further 90 per cent believed that their dog would protect them in a dangerous situation.

This is an important point: even where dogs are not necessarily seen as ‘family members’ in the Western urban sense, they remain socially significant partners for humans.

But there were differences too

The study does not suggest that all dogs and owners behave in the same way. There were differences — and these can be readily explained by local lifestyles.

For example, owners in Vanuatu were particularly good at reading their dogs’ signals in the hidden-food task. Researchers attribute this to hunting wild pigs in dense forest: there, the success of a hunt depends heavily on how closely a person observes the dog’s behaviour.

German dogs also stood out. They approached their owners more quickly in the obedience test, spent longer trying to solve an impossible task, and focused more on their owner than on an unfamiliar experimenter. The authors believe this may be linked to the formal training of hunting dogs and the strong emphasis on the ‘owner–dog’ relationship in a Western context.

Why have dogs become so close to humans?

Dogs live alongside humans almost everywhere, but not in the same way everywhere. In some societies they are pets; in others, they are hunters, guard dogs, helpers or animals that roam freely. However, new research shows that there is a common basis underlying these differences.

This is most likely linked to a long history of coexistence. Dogs became human partners before many other domesticated animals, and their collaboration with humans may have developed through hunting, protection, the exchange of resources and constant communication. The authors emphasise that the bond between humans and dogs has proved to be both stable and flexible: it persists across different cultures, yet adapts to local conditions.

This is precisely why the expression ‘man’s best friend’ is not merely a beautiful metaphor in this context. From a scientific point of view, it refers to dogs’ ability to understand human signals and engage in joint activities.

Why this is important

This research broadens our understanding of dogs beyond the Western model of the ‘family pet’. It shows that the human–dog bond cannot be understood solely through the lens of urban pet culture.

Even when a dog works, hunts, guards or lives more freely than a typical domestic pet, it can still remain a partner, a source of support and a social connection for humans.

This is also important for science because most previous research into dog behaviour has been overly Western-centric. This new work shows that to truly understand dogs, we need to study them not only in laboratories and urban households, but also in societies where their role is closer to historical forms of cooperation with humans.

Background

Dogs are one of humanity’s most successful partner species. They live alongside people on almost every continent, but their day-to-day roles vary greatly: from companions to hunters and guard dogs.

New research shows that this bond is not limited to training or Western pet culture. In different contexts, dogs continue to interpret human signals, seek help from people and engage in collaborative actions. It is precisely this that makes their bond with humans so enduring.

Source

Study: Juliane Bräuer et al., “Striking global similarities in dog–human interactions”, Scientific Reports, 2026.