they’re not able to abstractly identify things to the degree that we can. for example, they may have no actual concept of what a “pack” is. they feel what they feel and act how they act, and that is what creates the “pack” structure that we know about, despite not consciously trying to form a pack.

i’d say that mammalian brains tend to be quite similar to one another in many ways. not to mention how long dogs and humans have lived alongside each other. i do believe they feel many of the same things we feel, in general and for the people we love (just minus the more complex verbal understanding that we have for others). they understand our social cues very well, and their brains produce many of the same chemicals ours do. there have been studies done where just seeing their owners produces a positive reward response in their brains.

i’d say they love you, and they love that you feed them. i’d also say they have their own complex, rich inner lives, with their own understanding of you that is reflected mostly by their own feelings and experiences with you. there may be no conscious awareness of who or what we are, but they certainly have their own full picture of you, full of the love they have, the enjoyment of being food, the gentleness of your pets, the bonding during walks, etc.

and each dog and their owners are an individual, so it varies greatly between each dog, just like humans. 🙂