Goats Can Tell How You're Feeling Using Your Voice Alone, Shows Study

Goats have shown an uncanny ability to distinguish between happy and angry human voices, marking a milestone in our understanding of interspecies communication, according to a new study published in Animal Behavior on January 30.

The research, co-led by Professor Alan McElligott from the City University of Hong Kong, sheds light on goats' unexpected sensitivity to the emotional nuances of our vocal expressions.

The study indicates that goats may have developed this skill due to their long association with humans. Professor McElligott, renowned for his expertise in animal behavior and welfare, spearheaded the investigation to explore whether goats, with their already known capacity to read human facial expressions, can also interpret the emotional valence of our voices.

The experiments at Buttercups Sanctuary for Goats in southeast England revealed intriguing results.

When subjected to voice playbacks expressing positive or negative emotions, 75 percent of the goats displayed a distinct reaction, suggesting they had perceived the shift in emotional content. Notably, the goats spent more time gazing towards the source of the sound after a change from a happy to an angry voice or vice versa.

Dr. Marianne Mason from the University of Roehampton, UK, emphasized the significance of the findings in a press release:

"This study offers the first evidence that goats can discriminate between cues expressed in the human voice, namely, emotional valence. These findings contribute to the limited literature available indicating livestock, like companion animals, are sensitive to human emotional cues."

Differences in cognitive abilities

However, not all goats responded uniformly to the auditory cues. The variations in reactions could be attributed to differences in cognitive abilities among goats or other external factors. Interestingly, no significant physiological changes, such as an elevated heartbeat, were observed, suggesting that the goats processed the emotional cues without a notable stress response.

The implications of this research extend beyond the barnyard. Understanding how goats interpret human emotions can influence animal welfare practices, particularly in the context of human-animal bonding. Negative voices might induce fear in animals, while positive ones could have a calming effect and encourage proximity.

Professor McElligott underscored the need for further research to unravel the intricacies of the human voice's impact on the emotional lives and welfare of goats and other domesticated species. The study was supported by the Centre for Animal Health and Welfare at City University of Hong Kong, a multidisciplinary team committed to producing high-impact research for the well-being of animals.

As we uncover more about the emotional intelligence of our four-legged friends, it seems that our voices resonate more deeply with them than we could have ever imagined.

The study was published in the journal Animal Behaviour on January 30.