Do animals feel emotions ?

When a dog growls at you, is it angry?  When a cat purrs, is it its way of showing you that it loves you? When a squirrel flees up a tree at your approach, is it fearful? Since the dawn of time, humans have wondered if our animal counterparts feel similar sentiments for us as we do for them. Taking into account the fact that humans have created an extensive body of creative works, including plays, stories and movies within the fable genre it is safe to say that humans have held onto the possibility of animals possessing the ability to communicate their emotions. It may seem as though the answer is pretty obvious, but today let’s find out what science has to say about animals and their portrayal of sentiments.

It is nearly impossible to measure feelings that stem from self-reflection, like sadness, joy or guilt. It is tough to assess the emotions that are enclosed inside the minds of speechless animals. Honestly, would you ever go knocking in a tiger’s den to ask him how his day has been, or if he has been feeling under the weather? In the case of the wild, all we can do is observe and draw our own conclusions without receiving much concrete proof. But taking into account the behavioural patterns of animals that are more easily accessible to us like Dogs wagging their tails, Chimpanzees laughing, Dolphins whistling, Elephants mourning their dead or Penguins staying loyal to their partners and chicks, it really seems like we would have to be emotionally stunted to not be able to see animals portray emotions such as joy, bravery, envy, fear, anger, sadness or love.

Even after extensive research and observation, many humans think that empathy is an emotion, exclusively portrayed by humans. There are many documented stories of animals expressing empathy for each other as well as humans. Some of these accounts are:

When the founder of the Thula Thula Reserve in Africa died, elephants performed a remarkable act, they travelled to his home seemingly to pay their respects. 

People have also seen humpback whales help seals being hunted by killer whales, by sweeping them on their backs away from the water.

Service dogs, help veterans, kids with autism, adults suffering from mental health distress etc.

While there is still a lot of research to be done, all the above factors help us understand that animals are complex beings with genuine feelings and emotions that deserve our recognition and empathy.