Have you ever wondered why your dog is both your best friend and your baby? Scientists have discovered something great about our relationship with dogs.

A new study published in Scientific Reports shows that the way we bond with our dogs is very special - it's like a mix between how we feel about our friends and our children.

Researchers asked over 700 dog owners about their relationships with their dogs, friends, family members, romantic partners and children. They wanted to find out exactly what makes the relationship between dog and human unique.

“Owner-dog relationships exhibit characteristics of both parent-child and best-friend relationships, combining the positive aspects of a parent-child relationship with the minimal negative interactions of close friendships,” the researchers explained.

What's really interesting is that people reported feeling happier with their dogs than with almost any person in their lives (except their children). Dogs got really high marks for being good companions, for giving their owners someone to care for, and for being reliable - all while causing much less trouble than most people.

The scientists also found something surprising. People who have great relationships with people tend to have great relationships with their dogs, too. This means that people don't get dogs because they can't relate to people - dogs actually contribute to an already good social life.

“In our sample, people don't seem to use dogs to compensate for insufficient support in their human relationships,” said co-author Dorothea Uyfalusi.

One of the big differences between relationships with dogs and those with humans? Strength. With friends and family, your relationships are usually pretty equal. But with dogs, humans make most of the decisions and have almost complete control - and maybe that's why people feel so satisfied with their relationships with dogs.

“The asymmetry of power, the control over a living being, is a major aspect of dog ownership for many,” noted senior author Eniko Kubini, head of the department of ethology at ELTE.

People who do not have children tend to rate their relationship with their dogs higher in terms of companionship and affection compared to dog owners who have children. This suggests that dogs may partially fulfill the role of children for some people.

So the next time someone mocks you for treating your dog like a human, you can tell them that science actually supports the thesis that your dog is sort of a middle ground between a best friend and a child in your social circle. | BGNES