Does Everyone Think Your Dog is As Attractive As You Do?

I’ve got a question for you – do you think your dog is attractive? The answer is likely a resounding “yes” because most pet parents undoubtedly think their furry charges are regulation cuties. Take my former street dog, Lucy, for example – while I see her as the lovechild of a teddy bear and a baby fox, she has previously been likened to the Crack Fox from The Mighty Boosh and Estelle, the unhinged taxidermy fox puppet on Instagram. Obviously, both of the people who made these jibes are now in friendship jail. Indefinitely.

Of course, it doesn‘t really matter. I love Lucy and Lucy loves me and I think she‘s a perfect 10. But it got me thinking; how do we decide as a society that some dogs are conventionally gorgeous and others are... not?

Navigating life with a new pet? Head to littleKin!

littleKin™ is Kinship’s home just for puppy and kitten parents. Hop over to check out expert advice, new pet tools and special deals – all curated for your newest family member.

Get Free Advice

What about the golden ratio? The golden what? It’s a mathematical formula that was used by Renaissance artists and architects back in the 14th to 17th centuries to ensure they were creating aesthetically pleasing masterpieces. Basically, the golden ratio is 1.618 (that’s phi to all you maths fans), so in terms of human beauty, the ideal human face is supposedly 1.618 times longer than it is wide. Rather specific, but there you go. Can this also be applied to dogs? Apparently so, according to a rather bonkers press release from online casino, McLuck, who applied the golden ratio to dogs to find out which breeds are the most attractive. (No, we’re not sure why an online casino did this either, but we’re rolling with it.)

Related article

Baby Face: The Allure of Cute Dogs

Kindchenschema might explain why pet parents anthropomorphise their cuddly companions

This also got me thinking about all the other ways in which we perceive attractiveness in dogs. How much does evolutionary psychology, cultural bias and modern beauty standards come into play? Do we judge canine beauty in the same way we judge human beauty? Let’s find out.

The top 10 most attractive dog breeds, according to the golden ratio

To compile their list of the most beautiful dog breeds, McLuck collated images of dog breeds collected from the UK Kennel Club and American Kennel Club and fed them through an in-house dog mode algorithm. Their 14-point canine landmark detector calculated golden ratio-based facial aesthetics, which were then converted to a percentage; the closer to 100% a breed is, the more attractive they are... or so they claim.

So, without further ado, here are the top 10 most aesthetically pleasing dog breeds.

Well, would you look at that – six out of the top 10 breeds are from the UK! Now, us Brits have long been mocked by the rest of the world for being, ahem, less attractive (we’re definitely the funniest though, so whatever), but it’s clear to see it’s because we’ve been putting our efforts into producing absolutely gorgeous dogs. This is fine by me, ‘cos I don’t need everyone to find me attractive, but I will hex you if you don’t think my dogs are stunning. Got it?

(If you want to read the full list of the 66 most attractive dog breeds, it’s here.) 

The psychology behind which dogs we find dashing 

In reality, there’s actually way more than the golden ratio at play when it comes to how we perceive attractiveness in dogs (and humans). You’ve probably heard that we’re attracted to people who look like us, which scientists think is because it signifies kinship. This could also be due to something called the mere exposure effect, where we view something more positively if we see it a lot. It’s hypothesised that this is because the brain finds it easier to process things we see repeatedly, making them feel familiar and safe. So, if you’re looking at your own mug in the mirror every day, science says you’ll be drawn to people with similar features to you. This can also be applied to our attraction to dogs – have you ever noticed that dogs often look like their owners? A systematic review from last year suggests that this is also the mere exposure effect at play. I can attest to this, as I used to have a thing for Afghan Hounds back in my 20s, purely because we had similar hair (although I can only dream of being so chic). Our brain’s preference for familiarity can also mean that if you grew up around certain breeds, you’re more likely to be attracted to those same breeds throughout life. 

Related article

Why You Should Adopt a ‘Less Adoptable’ Dog

Why you shouldn’t rule out senior dogs, special-needs pups, bully breeds or tripods

“If a Golden Retriever evokes a safe family environment, or a Staffordshire Bull Terrier evokes a frightening memory, those stored emotional associations can shape attraction or aversion very quickly,” explains psychologist, Dr Tracy King. “Familiarity is often coded by the nervous system as safety.”

Canine beauty standards vs human beauty standards 

Human beauty standards are ever changing (and exhausting), and they differ globally. In the Western world, ‘Instagram face’ is the current trend – full lips, high cheekbones, big eyes and a clear jawline. Interestingly, one study of 100 caucasian female Instagram beauty influencers found that their faces did indeed match the aforementioned golden ratio. In Japan, the beauty standard is fair and glowing skin with youthful features, while in Latin America, it’s fair skin and smaller noses, showing how Eurocentric beauty standards have crept into these cultures (which is a whole other discussion in itself). 

Beauty standards for dogs also vary around the world – while ear cropping (where a dog’s ears are removed or altered) is now illegal in the UK, it’s still a popular (and legal) thing to do in some places. Tail docking is the practice of partially amputating a dog’s tail, either for cosmetic reasons or to prevent injury to a working dog. Bar exemptions for some working dogs and medical reasons, tail docking is illegal in the UK, but again, it’s common for certain breeds in America. And then you’ve got Asian Fusion dog grooming, which has its roots in Japan and Korea and involves sculpting a dog’s coat to make it resemble a cartoonlike teddy bear. 

Despite our cultural preferences, one thing we’re all predisposed to be drawn to is softer, childlike features. In 1943, ethologist Konrad Lorenz coined a concept called the baby schema, where he proposed that humans with babyish physical features (like a large head, chubby cheeks, small nose, large eyes) are perceived as cuter than those who don’t have them. More recent research shows that men find women with childlike features more sexually attractive, which is… extremely creepy? Moving on swiftly – does this also work with dogs? If you look at the pups entered into New York City’s dog beauty pageants over the years (yes, really), the majority are toy or small breeds, with – you guessed it – big eyes and cute, short noses. 

“Baby schema can be seen in dogs with large eyes, rounder faces, shorter noses, and softer proportions,” Dr King explains. “Humans tend to respond quickly to these cues because they’re associated with vulnerability and the need to care. In brain terms, this appears to involve systems linked to emotional salience, reward, and approach.”

Dr King says there’s also an evolutionary perspective at play here, as we’re hardwired to care for the young – if we weren’t, we’d have probably gone extinct a long time ago. “We’re already primed to react to cues of softness, need and attachment, which help build cooperative bonds,” she tells me. “However, we can also be drawn to dogs that appear strong, competent, protective or socially impressive, which may help explain the appeal of breeds such as German Shepherds, Dobermans, Rottweilers, Cane Corsos or even XL Bullies.”

Cultural influence

Most breeds have stereotypes, which stem from what they were bred to do (eg protect, fight, hunt), as well as information we may subconsciously absorb from narratives fed to us by films, TV, and news media. 

Related article

From Labradors to Frenchies: The UK’s Favourite Dog Breeds Revealed

We know your dog is always the best in your eyes, but which breeds are stealing the nation’s hearts?

“Perception isn’t passive,” warns Dr King. “Dogs become symbols inside larger stories about family life, masculinity, softness, danger, status or belonging. For example, a Golden Retriever in a film or advert often stands for warmth, trust and domestic stability, while a Bull-type dog may be framed as intimidating. Once a breed enters culture in that symbolic way, public feeling can become highly emotional and much harder to separate from stereotypes. In fact, research on breed labelling suggests that what people think a dog is can alter how attractive, adoptable, or risky they judge that dog to be.”

She points me to a study where Pit Bulls in a shelter were either labelled as Pit Bulls or didn’t have a breed label on their kennel. Researchers found that perceived attractiveness was lower for the dogs labeled as Pit Bulls, likely because of the breed’s negative stereotypes. 

Does any of this really matter?

In reality, none of the above matters, because aesthetics are so far down the list of priorities when it comes to our canine companions. It’s even been shown that prioritising appearance over health or temperament in purebred dogs is detrimental to their welfare, so we should all remind ourselves that dogs don’t exist to please our aesthetic preferences or win beauty contests. A mixed breed shelter dog is just as exquisite as a perfectly coiffed Cairn Terrier. Facts. 

In fact, some researchers have even debunked the golden ratio as complete nonsense when it comes to human beauty, so you can put that ruler down and stop measuring your/your dog’s face. Plus, let’s not forget that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and in the words of a wise philosopher (me): “All snoots are beautiful.”