Jealousy is widely recognized in humans as a complex social emotion that arises when an important relationship is threatened by a rival. Its adaptive value lies in protecting social bonds and access to affective and material resources. Researchers have long debated whether non-human animals, such as dogs, can experience such emotions.
Previde and Valsecchi (2018) argue that dogs are strong candidates for comparative jealousy research because of their socio-cognitive abilities, which in some ways parallel those of young children, and their long co-evolutionary history with humans. They reviewed emerging work, including Cook et al. (2018), which used neuroimaging to explore amygdala activity during jealousy-like contexts. While promising, methodological flaws—such as reliance on fake dogs and food-based contexts—limit the conclusions that can be drawn.
Previous behavioral studies also provide mixed results. Harris and Prouvost (2014) observed that dogs displayed behaviors suggestive of jealousy, such as pushing or aggressive gestures, when owners interacted with a fake dog. Conversely, Prato-Previde and colleagues found no clear evidence that dogs treated a faux dog as a true rival, suggesting their responses might not map neatly onto human jealousy.
The authors emphasize that jealousy in dogs, if present, may be expressed not only through aggression but also through attention seeking, proximity, and sustained visual focus. They conclude that jealousy may be the most “basic” of complex emotions, offering a window into both canine welfare and the evolutionary roots of human emotional life. More rigorous studies are needed to disentangle jealousy from other affective states.
Source: Previde, E. P., & Valsecchi, P. (2018). What is it like to be a jealous dog.
