‘Golden Retriever Personality’ May Hold Some Truth as Humans Share Same Genetic Roots
Many people claim to have a “golden retriever personality” — and, as it turns out, they might not be wrong.
A new study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, revealed that golden retrievers and humans may have personalities driven by the same genetic pathways. These genes can influence everything from anxiety and intelligence to how long we think about our embarrassing moments.
This research is a rare glimpse inside the minds of humans and dogs, and helps to explain why we feel so emotionally close to our furry friends.
“The findings are really striking — they provide strong evidence that humans and golden retrievers have shared genetic roots for their behavior,” said study lead Eleanor Raffan in a press release. “The genes we identified frequently influence emotional states and behavior in both species.”
Read More: Why Do Dogs Let Out That Long, Disappointed Sigh?
What Dogs and Humans Have in Common
During this study, the team discovered that many behavioral traits in golden retrievers — like trainability, fear responses, and even aggression towards other dogs — are linked to specific genes. And some of these genes also shape human behaviors and emotional responses.
Golden retriever puppy.
(Image Credit: Morris Animal Foundation)
One example is PTPN1, a gene linked to aggression in dogs but tied to intelligence and depression in humans. Another genetic variant that shows up in fearful golden retrievers also influences whether a person hyperfixates on embarrassing experiences. Finally, the gene ROMO1 is tied to trainability in dogs and is related to emotional sensitivity in humans.
These genetic overlaps suggest some humans and golden retrievers are hard-wired to experience the world a certain way.
As first author Enoch Alex explained, “These results show that genetics govern behavior, making some dogs predisposed to finding the world stressful. If their life experiences compound this, they might act in ways we interpret as bad behavior, when really they’re distressed.”
How Did Researchers Map Golden Retriever Behavior?
To find out the link between behaviors and genetics, researchers used one of the most comprehensive canine databases: the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study. From this study, they assessed over 1,300 dogs between the ages of three and seven, with owners completing detailed questionnaires covering over 70 behaviors, including the dogs’ fear of strangers to their vacuum-related panic attacks.
These behaviors were then placed into 14 distinct categories. The team then matched each dog’s behavioral scores to its full genetic blueprint, searching across the entire genome for variants that appeared more often in dogs showing behaviors in these 14 categories.
This genome-wide comparison allowed researchers to pinpoint genes that influence emotional states and control how dogs regulate stress and sensitivity to stimuli.
What This Research Means for Dogs and Humans
These findings suggest that genes shape golden retrievers’ broader emotional and regulatory patterns, much like they do in humans. And understanding this connection better has practical implications for both species.
For veterinarians, seeing links between golden retriever fearfulness and human anxiety-related genes could help shape targeted treatment and medications. For dog owners, recognizing there is an emotional component to your dogs’ behavior may drastically change how you approach training.
“Dogs in our home share not only our physical environment, but may also share some of the psychological challenges associated with modern living. Our pets may be excellent models of some human psychiatric conditions associated with emotional disturbance,” concluded Daniel Mills, a specialist in problem animal behavior from the University of Lincoln, in the press release.
Read More: Do Dogs Grieve Other Dogs?
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