Do Dogs Laugh, Maybe But Not Loudly Patricia Simonet, development and programme co-ordinator for Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service, also found that the sound of dog laughter comforts other dogs. When she played a recording of "play panting" through the speaker system at a shelter in Spokane Valley, all the barking dogs quieted within a minute.
"I wanted to see if I could reduce (the dogs') stress by playing the sound in the shelter," Simonet said. "I was surprised when they were calm and quiet."
Simonet, who has a doctorate in animal behaviour, presented her study on reducing shelter dogs' stress at the International Conference on Environmental Enrichment last summer at Columbia University in New York.
READ MORE ON ON THIS STORY  ¶ Monday, December 12, 2005