Animal Emotion

My boss brings her dog (R) to work every day. R is friendly once he gets to know you (which entails throwing him a ball several times). But he is very attached to my boss and doesn't really like sharing his space or attention. R is an Australian sheepdog (one blue eye, one brown eye), which is a good sized dog, probably about 40 pounds.

Another of my coworkers just got a puppy (T). A miniature dachshund. T probably weighs no more than 2 pounds. T has lots of energy and has been busy exploring all over the office, including in R's cage and bowls.

R is so not happy. He won't let T go near him, he runs away from this tiny puppy who is just a slice of his size. He is so hurt every time my boss goes near T, and he hides and pouts and refuses to play. He is also really mad at the coworker who brought the new puppy. R won't let this co-worker some near him, he cowers and shrinks from his touch.

It's funny to see such emotion from an animal. They are like children in a way, unable to hide their feelings. I remember having debates in school about whether animals feel emotion. Now I have no doubt.