Why man’s best friend is still a four-legged substitute parent?

Márcio Paulo Barbosa Pena Mascarenhas

Man’s best friends is actually a substitute parent, fulfilling deep emotional needs that humans fail to meet, according to a leading dog expert. People bond with dogs as much as babies do with mothers, and reap unconditional love, security and protection from the relationship.

Dr. Valerie O’ Farrel - a psychologist - says that dogs can also compensate for an unhappy childhood. People perceive in their pets qualities lacking in their parents. According to him, most dogs perform remarkably well as “emotional sponges”, soaking up owners’ hang-ups. “Dogs obviously cannot understand the nature of their owners’ predicaments in the way that a sympathetic human listener can. Because the dog does not get upset or angry or go away, the owner can imagine he understands”, states the doctor.

As well as protection, concern for our well-being and unconditional love, we often assign to dogs a fourth parental function: providing a safe and welcoming base to come home to. Some canines take this duty very seriously, Dr. O’ Farrel reveals. She describes the experience of a 37-year-old beauty therapist with her faithfull mongrel. “He would follow me to the station each morning to see me off”. I would watch him from the carriage and see him about to turn and go home. Invariably, he would be there to meet me when I got off the train at night. And what’s more surprising - we lived about a mile and a half from the station.

Grade 1, Student’s book, Belo Horizonte,14th edition.