Can My Dog Cry?

You’re curled up on the couch with your pup, watching a sad movie, when you start to cry. When you look over, it looks like your dog’s eyes are filled with tears too.

While you might see your dog tear up from time to time, those tears might not mean what you think.

Of course dogs have lots of feelings, but do they cry when they’re feeling sad, hurt or scared like humans do? And can they cry tears of joy?

To find out, The Dodo spoke to Dr. Stephanie Austin, a veterinarian at Bond Vet, to get the scoop on whether or not dogs can really cry.

While dogs do feel sadness and pain, it doesn’t make them cry emotional tears like we do.

“Dogs can produce tears, but they don’t cry in response to strong emotions,” Dr. Austin told The Dodo. “Emotional tearing, with a very large production of tears in a short time, is just something their eyes aren’t equipped to do.”

Of course dogs do “cry,” or produce some tears, but their tears aren’t because of their emotions. So what’s the purpose of their tears?

“Like humans, a dog’s tears help their eyes function properly and provide some degree of protection,” Dr. Austin said. “A dog’s tears are functional in nature, including basal tears (the fluid that keeps the eyes lubricated) and reflex tears (extra tear production that flushes the eye in the case of irritation or a piece of dirt stuck in the eye).”

Dogs’ eyes produce tears to help take care of their eyes just like people’s eyes do, but you won’t see a dog crying because she’s hurt or sad.

So if it does look like your dog has been crying, she’s probably not sad — but there are some other reasons why you might see tears.

“Watery eyes in dogs often indicate some sort of eye irritation or problem,” Dr. Austin said.

There are a bunch of reasons why your pup might have watery eyes, such as:

But depending on the type of dog you have, watery eyes might not always be a symptom of a medical issue.

“Some breeds, especially those with short noses, might naturally have more watery eye discharge than other breeds due to their conformation [or body structure],” Dr. Austin said. “This may be normal so long as no other symptoms occur, and usually it’s only a cosmetic issue that doesn’t require treatment. But ask your vet if you’re not sure.”

The best rule of thumb is if you’re ever unsure about symptoms your dog’s displaying, just ask your vet (better safe than sorry!).

Because tearing up is usually a sign of an eye problem, you should get your pup checked out by a vet.

“If tearing persists or is accompanied by other symptoms, like redness or squinting, it’s best to see a veterinarian as soon as possible to check for any medical issues that could require treatment,” Dr. Austin said.

Treatment will depend on the cause of your dog’s tears:

Basically, if you’re worried your dog is crying because she’s emotionally upset, you can relax — dogs don’t cry like people do. But you should get her checked out by your vet to make sure her tears aren’t a sign of an eye problem. The good news is that most eye problems in dogs are easily treatable with medication, or sometimes just a little patience and TLC.