Playlists for Pups: The Best Songs for Calming, Health, and Happiness – For Your Dog!

In anticipation of National Dog Day on August 26, Deezer, one of the world’s leading, on-demand digital music streaming services, found that our four-legged friends aren’t that different from us and need music to enhance their overall health and happiness. These findings come from a study done in partnership with internationally renowned and respected animal behaviorist Dr. Sands, which explores the effect of music on animals, including variables such as track frequency and beats per minute (BPM)*.

Recognizing that music can have a profound effect on a dog’s health and happiness, Deezer and Dr. Sands created two canine-approved playlists: one keeps pups content and chilled to contribute to tip-top health, while the other releases the “paws” button for ultimate happiness.

“One of the best things about music is there’s something for everyone to enjoy, and now this includes our furry friends as well,” said Rick Bañales, U.S. Editorial Manager for Deezer.

“Knowing that certain types of songs keep them healthier and happier, Deezer created a playlist for pets and their two-legged friends to enjoy together.”

For Happiness
The likes of OutKast’s Hey Ya, Avicii’s Wake Me Up, and The Prodigy’s Firestarter result in an upbeat, energetic pup, as these have stop-start rhythms and high frequencies. But it’s Pharell’s Happy that takes the cake as the ultimate heart raiser, resulting in a BPM of 160 (20 beats over the normal heart rate of 140). The Deezer Happiness playlist raises pooches’ pulses resulting in active states and one happy dog.

“It’s recommended to keep the playlist to a few tracks at this intensity, followed by a short break that allows your dog to rest and prevent hyperactivity,” said Dr. Sands.

For Health
The Deezer Health playlist features low, slow beats matched to individual breeds’ heart rates in order to create a sense of calm for dogs. Adele’s Someone Like You and Justin Bieber’s Love Yourself keeps canines content and tranquil. However, not all dogs are Beliebers as the exclusive Deezer analysis found the ability for certain dogs to hear and love Bieber depends on the size of their ear openings. So Chihuahuas might be less likely to “love themselves” than a poodle, which can hear up to 20kHZ.

In order to reach the ultimate doggie Zen — lyrics are most important. This is because when our dogs are lounging around with us it is often when we are in conversation or on the phone, causing spoken word to become very familiar to dogs.

“In my clinical research with people, pets and sounds, I’ve discovered dogs totally chill to spoken words,” said Dr. Sands. “Words become associated with togetherness and calm.”

Health & Happiness at Home
Not only is it important for dogs to be healthy and happy, but it’s equally important for you to be as well. When canine owners are calm and in good spirits, they project the same feeling of happiness onto their pets. The normal resting heart rate of an average adult is between 60 to 100 beats per minute, but listening to favorite music tracks can raise the heart rate to match the increased heart rate pups experience from the exact same tunes.

“Your overall health and happiness has a huge effect on your canine counterpart,” said Dr. Sands. “Both humans and dogs are stimulated by the frequency range, pattern and volume of the beats in music. This is why turning on your favorite tunes cannot only positively affect you, but also your dog. So, go ahead and put on your best dance tune to perk up both you and your pup, or something a bit more calm so you can both have a chill day.”

Deezer Happiness: Songs to Make Your Pooch Happy

• The Prodigy — Firestarter
• Major Lazer, Fuse ODG & Nyla — Light it Up
• Skepta — Shutdown
• Daya — Sit Still, Look Pretty
• Timbaland, Keri Hilson, D.O.E. – The Way I Are
• Avicii — Wake Me Up
• Salt-N-Pepa — Push It
• OutKast — Hey Ya!
• Underworld — Born Slippy (Nuxx)
• Bee Gees — Stayin’ Alive

Deezer Health: Songs to Chill Your Canine

• Bob Marley & The Wailers — Could You Be Loved
• Adele — Someone Like You
• Blur — Parklike
• Justin Bieber — Love Yourself
• Caribou — Can’t Do Without You
• Baz Luhrmann — Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)
• The Stranglers — Golden Brown
• Queen — Bohemian Rhapsody
• Snoop Dogg, Charlie Wilson, Justin Timberlake —Signs
• Pulp — Common People

Deezer is the first truly worldwide digital music streaming service, available in over 180 countries, with over 6 million subscribers worldwide. Deezer is at the forefront of a music revolution, allowing fans instant access to the largest streaming music catalogue in the world, with more than 40 million songs and 40,000 podcasts on any device. Combining the best of man and machine, Deezer’s global editorial team searches for the best music around the world and its algorithmic recommendations help fans discover music they truly love. Deezer is available on your favorite device, including smartphone, tablet, PC, laptop, home sound system, connected car or smart TV.

Deezer is currently available as a free download for iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows devices or on the web at deezer.com.

*Research conducted by animal behaviorist Dr. David Sands for Deezer together with a review of the following current research:

• Do Dogs Have a Music Sense? Dogs have definite musical preferences and a sense of pitch. (Stanley Coren, PhD., DSc., FRSC., Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia — online Apr 02, 2012
• Dr. Deborah Wells: The influence of auditory stimulation on the behavior of dogs housed in a rescue shelter Wells, D L; Graham, L; Hepper, P G
• Animal Welfare Volume 11, Number 4, November 2002, pp. 385-393 (9)
• Patricia McConnell, PhD ‘New Research on Dogs and Music’ (online January 4, 2013)
• Behavioral effects of auditory stimulation on kenneled dogs
• Lori R. Kogan, Regina Schoenfeld-Tacher, Allen A. Simon (Journal of Veterinary Behavior (2012) 7, 268-275)