Why Do Dogs Like to Be Petted?

It’s so easy to lavish affection on our precious pups. We can’t resist kissing their cute faces, giving them belly rubs and scratching behind their ears. And they like it too—if we pause for just a second, they paw our hand in protest. It makes you wonder: Why do dogs like to be petted?

To get to the bottom of it, we chatted with experts in pet behavior. Heads up: The answer is even more fascinating than you might think. And if the info below gets the gears of your brain turning, sate your canine curiosity by learning about other dog behaviors, like why your dog stares at you, licks your feet or tilts its adorable doggy head. Could these be signs your dog needs affection? Read up to better understand your furry best friend.

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Why do dogs like to be petted?

In our hearts, we know the answer to “why do dogs like to be petted?” It feels good! But along comes science to confirm it. Research shows that when we interact positively, such as through cuddling and petting, both dogs and humans get a boost of oxytocin, the warm-and-fuzzy hormone.

But there’s another compelling reason dogs love petting. “Dogs are social animals, and the behavior that we call allogrooming [when animals of the same species groom one another] is quite common in social animals,” says Valarie Tynes, DVM, a veterinary behaviorist at the SPCA of Texas. Just think of the mutually beneficial grooming you see among monkeys at the zoo.

Grooming between humans and dogs, however, tends to be a one-way street. We groom our dogs, of course, but they don’t groom humans much—except when they lick us. When they do that, it’s basically the equivalent of them grooming us, says Dr. Tynes. “It’s very likely that this social grooming behavior evolved along with canine domestication,” she says.