Is a smile a human thing only humans can do?

[tooldtocare]

Is the smile a man made Phynamina?
A smile is a smile

When a wolf shows his teeth,.,./\,./\.,.,

.,.,.,..,.He means business

When we humans show our teeth it’s called a smile

Is the difference an evolutionary thing and once upon a time we smiled for the same reason wolves smile today-?

is a smile universal-? Just asking -

Dada smile:

http://tinyurl.com/kpsv7cj

Now this IS a smile--

http://tinyurl.com/p2pzhs3

What are you smiling about-?

 

[roamer_1]

naw... Having had Wolf/Malamute/Shepherd mixes most of my life, I can tell you certain that they smile. It is not always a threat when the teeth are bare - and one certainly knows the difference...

 

[grasping the after wind]

How is this relevant to ethics and morality?

 

[DaisyDay]

I don't think this one from your link is a smile:

Look up the difference between a Duchenne smile and a Say Cheese smile.

I concur with roamer that dogs do smile and laugh.

 

[jacknife]

Actually for a wolf they like to see the teeth, if your ever near like a rescued wolf or anything don't close your eyes and let them see your teeth.

 

[tooldtocare]

someone said the topic doesn't belong here and I growled when I read it

 

[tooldtocare]

Actually for a wolf they like to see the teeth, if your ever near like a rescued wolf or anything don't close your eyes and let them see your teeth.

Ya right and then the wolf shows his teeth just before he bites your ## off LOL

 

[tooldtocare]

Da real smile

 

[tooldtocare]

 

[Dave-W]

Da real smile

Ya can't tell if you do not see the eyes.

 

[Locutus]

As with many behaviours considered exclusively human (like ethics and smiling), one need only study a wolf pack for an hour or two to get some perspective.

Refusal to do so will be considered an acknowledgement that we are far closer to our canine brothers than we are to deities

 

[loveofourlord]

I think some animals have different kinds of displays that can mean the same thing, many primates laughs are much different from ours, what we would consider a laugh, to many primates means, "Back off before I rip your arm off."

 

[KitKatMatt]

Dogs evolved very closely with humans for a long time. They have picked up on human behavior in this time, and it wouldn't surprise me if a dog "smile" came from this long term domestication and partnership.

Dogs do smile, but they are not the same smiles as human smiles. Here's a great post about dog smiles and what they are and aren't: http://tinyurl.com/hejj8dr

Smiles seem to be universal among humans, though sometimes with conditions such as eye contact and other things.

Wolves are very different from dogs, even though they shared a common ancestor. Their behavior is very different, including the way they view humans. I do not know if wolves "smile" in the same way that dogs do, which may have to do with the fact that they did not evolve right next to us and so do not understand our behavior as much. It has been proven that wolves do not look at humans as members of their group, even hand raised wolves. Dogs look at us as other members of their family (interestingly enough, they know we are not dogs!), to the point where they even release the same bonding chemical when they look a human in the eyes that they release after giving birth to puppies!

Not all smiles are equal though, even in the human world. A person can tell with someone else's smile is forced, or if they're grimacing, or sneering. As the link above explains, this is also true for dogs- the have "happy" smiles that mean "I'm content!", and then stressed facial language that means "I'm not comfortable".

 

[DaisyDay]

I think what people have that makes us unique among animals is written, symbolic language that allows us to accumulate knowledge far beyond our immediate acquaintance.

 

[Chesterton]

This is a good one. Right when the camera hits him:

 

[Nithavela]

Animals have their own body language to convey happyness and amusement.

Dogs were partially domesticated because their body language is quite similiar and easy to read for humans, while cats appear as aloof and strange because their body language is non-intuitive for us. For example, a cat smiles by slowly closing it's eyelids. Contrast these dogs doing their level best to convey happyness:

 

[Locutus]

Dogs are incredible. I cannot imagine a life without them.

 

[tooldtocare]

I purchased a house with a carport and storage closet in the carport. The first day I moved in I noticed the storage room door was open so I closed it. Several days later I noticed a smell coming from the closet so I opened it. To my dismay I saw six dead kittens on the shelf. When I turned around there was a black cat at me feet. I looked down and promises her that if she ever had another litter I would care for them. Several months latter I saw another litter on the same storage shelf.

Several weeks later while sitting in my back yard I watched the mother and the kittens crossing my yard into the forest beyond. To my surprise one of the kittens broke rank and came running over to me. Ten years latter that cat is still with me. And she does indeed smile from time to time. I will try to get a picture of her smiling if I can.

Some animals do indeed smile from time to time
Btw she is a spitting image of her mother

-

 

[tooldtocare]

 

[Hetta]

Animals have their own body language to convey happyness and amusement.

Dogs were partially domesticated because their body language is quite similiar and easy to read for humans, while cats appear as aloof and strange because their body language is non-intuitive for us. For example, a cat smiles by slowly closing it's eyelids. Contrast these dogs doing their level best to convey happyness:

I find these infinitely more touching than the human reactions to soldiers coming home.