Animals Experience 'Full Range of Emotions,' According to Research

Emerging research seems to indicate that our previous perceptions about the emotional capacity of animals may have been largely innacurate, if not wrong all together.

According to the New York Times, recent studies have demonstrated animals to be closer to humans than previously thought in terms of their ability to feel emotion.

For instance, crabs have been observed to feel and even remember pain, zebra finches enter REM sleep, dolphins and elephants can recognize their own image in a mirror and chimpanzees will aid each other without the expectation of anything in return. 

The idea that animals can think or feel emotions at a near human level "may be rampant among pet owners," according to the Times, but such notions make scientists uneasy.

According to Philip Low, a neuroscientist interviewed by the Times, discussions about advanced emotional capacity in animals often cause his colleagues to lower their voices or to speak in whispers or to change the subject.

"They don't want to touch it," says Low.

But that may all be changing. As recently as 2012, a group of scientists signed a document (born out of a movement spearheaded by Low) called "The Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness in Human and Nonhuman Animals."

The document stated the shared belief among these scientists that certain animals "possess consciousness and, in all likelihood, emotions and self-awareness," reports the Times. 

Though this would seem like a huge leap forward in terms of an agreement among scientists about advanced emotional capacity among animals, others caution that the declaration signed in 2012 is pretty generalised.

The consensus seems to be that scientists agree animal consciousness exists, though Low admits that many have yet to agree on a "working definition of consciousness" reports the Times. 

One voice from outside the hard scientific community is animal behaviorist and veternarian Dr. Vint Virga.

Virga recently wrote a book on the matter of animal emotions entitled "The Soul of All Living Creatures."

He is committed to the notion that animals "possess unique personalities and vibrant emotional lives," states the Times, who interviewed Virga as well. And Virga should know, perhaps, as it is his job.

A veterinarian by trade, he is paid by various zoos around the country and the world to act as a consultant to ensure the "psychological welfare of animals in captivity," reports the Times.

Zoos typically contact Virga after an animal is beyond the help of trainers, vets and zookeepers, and they look to him to get the results that traditional practices simply can't. 

According to Virga, the secret lies in listening to animals in ways that are not readily apparent to most.

"With animals, we often don't know the reason for a behavior," he stated. "And searching for a cause can be a circular, time-consuming trap. The important thing is treating the symptoms."