Traits such as big eyes, fuzziness, and having pudgy bodies, we tend to often find them cute and adorable. From babies to baby animals, it's hard not to be excited when we see them; this is only natural due to how our bodies are programmed. 
Our brains are filled with "feel-good chemicals" whenever we see something cute. We often find ourselves in gigil. This is also known as cuteness aggression.

The Science Of Cute

Most of us are aware of this cute tactic pulled by certain animals but more likely with dogs. As wolves evolved to become domesticated to they developed an irresistible look pulled with their sweet beady little eyes. 
Scientists that studied the behavior of dogs in shelters believe that dogs have developed this to exploit human preferences in order for them to find a new home.

The Puppy Dog Eyes

Cute baby creatures are adorable; lambs gambolling in a field, fluffy ducklings in a nest or kittens playing with a ball of&nbsp;wool can make even the hardest soul melt. But what makes the ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ escape us when cute creatures are around, but not when we’re faced with a swarm of bees, for example?<img src="http://howitworks.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Baby_lama.jpg" alt="Baby llama" width="352" height="251" srcset="https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Baby_lama.jpg 1400w, https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Baby_lama-450x321.jpg 450w, https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Baby_lama-1024x731.jpg 1024w">Looking at cute creatures floods our brains with feel-good chemicalsThe science behind the cutesy faces is simple: we like baby animals because we are biologically programmed to like human babies, and we need to like our human bambinos so that we take care of them, ensuring the human race lives on.There are certain features that a lot of baby mammals have in common and these are the triggers that make us go gooey on the inside.&nbsp;Among others, big eyes and fuzzy, podgy bodies push our buttons. Babies have these traits, as do puppies, along with many other things that you might not even notice. Ever wandered past a car and thought it looked cute? Not a coincidence. The manufacturers of the Mini Cooper have thought ahead and made the headlights large, rounded and forward-facing to mimic a pair of large baby peepers and send our cute receptors firing all over the place.The reason why we love cute things is because they flood our brains with feel-good chemicals. If you’re having a bad day, just do a swift internet search for a baby llama and you’ll feel better in no time. Interestingly, many people will look at that llama and think it’s just&nbsp;so incredibly adorable they could smoosh it up and eat it. This is called cuteness aggression and, although it sounds a bit weird, it’s perfectly normal. Your brain senses the cute, but then tries to overcompensate for it! As long as you don’t actually take a bite out of the little guy, you’re fine.But why are we so cute? It’s because we walk on two legs. Due to our bipedalism, our pelvises shifted, meaning that women can’t give birth to anything larger than a baby’s head. Our human brains are already disproportionately large, which is why a baby’s head is so big and round at birth. This sends our cute response into overdrive and we can’t help but want to take care of the mini person forever.<h3>Did dogs evolve to be cuter?</h3><img src="http://howitworks.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/214887-puppies-cute-puppy.jpg" alt="Cute puppy" width="625" height="469" srcset="https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/214887-puppies-cute-puppy.jpg 1600w, https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/214887-puppies-cute-puppy-450x338.jpg 450w, https://www.howitworksdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/214887-puppies-cute-puppy-1024x768.jpg 1024w">Domesticated dogs are big softies, with floppy ears, silky fur and friendly faces, whereas wolves have much more angular features, with pointy ears, sharp eyes and rougher fur.Anyone who owns a pet dog will be no stranger to ‘puppy dog eyes’ – the look our pooches give us that we just can’t resist.We know that domestic dogs are descended from wolves and it’s also very clear to anyone who’s ever set eyes on a labrador, that there are features domestic dogs have that make them far cuter to us. An aggressive wolf approaching a group of early humans with teeth bared is far less likely to be tolerated than a friendly wolf that gives the classic puppy dog eyes.So, it may be that this doe-eyed expression that sends us reaching for the treat jar may have developed as dogs have exploited human preferences. This manipulation tactic may even work so well that it ensures rescue dogs find a new home: scientists studied dogs in shelters and those that pulled certain facial expressions that we find to be cute were more likely to be adopted!Discover more amazing science in the latest issue of&nbsp;How It Works&nbsp;magazine.&nbsp;It’s available&nbsp;from all good retailers, or you can order it online from MyFavouriteMagazines. If you have a tablet or smartphone, you can also&nbsp;get the digital version for&nbsp;<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/how-it-works-magazine-science-and-technology/id471270590?mt=8" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">iOS</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a href="https://play.google.com/store/newsstand/details/How_It_Works?id=CAowr9HnAw" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">Android</a>. To make sure you never miss an issue of&nbsp;How It Works&nbsp;magazine, make sure you&nbsp;<a href="http://imaginesubs.co.uk/subscribe-to-how-it-works" rel="noopener noreferrer" dir="ltr">subscribe today</a>!Plus take a look at:

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Cute baby creatures are adorable; lambs gambolling in a field, fluffy ducklings in a nest or kittens playing with a ball of wool can make even the hardest soul melt. But what makes the ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ escape us when cute creatures are around, but not when we’re faced with a swarm of bees, for example?

Looking at cute creatures floods our brains with feel-good chemicals

The science behind the cutesy faces is simple: we like baby animals because we are biologically programmed to like human babies, and we need to like our human bambinos so that we take care of them, ensuring the human race lives on.

There are certain features that a lot of baby mammals have in common and these are the triggers that make us go gooey on the inside. Among others, big eyes and fuzzy, podgy bodies push our buttons. Babies have these traits, as do puppies, along with many other things that you might not even notice. Ever wandered past a car and thought it looked cute? Not a coincidence. The manufacturers of the Mini Cooper have thought ahead and made the headlights large, rounded and forward-facing to mimic a pair of large baby peepers and send our cute receptors firing all over the place.

The reason why we love cute things is because they flood our brains with feel-good chemicals. If you’re having a bad day, just do a swift internet search for a baby llama and you’ll feel better in no time. Interestingly, many people will look at that llama and think it’s just so incredibly adorable they could smoosh it up and eat it. This is called cuteness aggression and, although it sounds a bit weird, it’s perfectly normal. Your brain senses the cute, but then tries to overcompensate for it! As long as you don’t actually take a bite out of the little guy, you’re fine.

But why are we so cute? It’s because we walk on two legs. Due to our bipedalism, our pelvises shifted, meaning that women can’t give birth to anything larger than a baby’s head. Our human brains are already disproportionately large, which is why a baby’s head is so big and round at birth. This sends our cute response into overdrive and we can’t help but want to take care of the mini person forever.

Domesticated dogs are big softies, with floppy ears, silky fur and friendly faces, whereas wolves have much more angular features, with pointy ears, sharp eyes and rougher fur.

Anyone who owns a pet dog will be no stranger to ‘puppy dog eyes’ – the look our pooches give us that we just can’t resist.

We know that domestic dogs are descended from wolves and it’s also very clear to anyone who’s ever set eyes on a labrador, that there are features domestic dogs have that make them far cuter to us. An aggressive wolf approaching a group of early humans with teeth bared is far less likely to be tolerated than a friendly wolf that gives the classic puppy dog eyes.

So, it may be that this doe-eyed expression that sends us reaching for the treat jar may have developed as dogs have exploited human preferences. This manipulation tactic may even work so well that it ensures rescue dogs find a new home: scientists studied dogs in shelters and those that pulled certain facial expressions that we find to be cute were more likely to be adopted!

Discover more amazing science in the latest issue of How It Works  magazine. It’s available from all good retailers, or you can order it online from MyFavouriteMagazines. If you have a tablet or smartphone, you can also get the digital version for <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/how-it-works-magazine-science-and-technology/id471270590?mt=8">iOS </a> or <a href="https://play.google.com/store/newsstand/details/How_It_Works?id=CAowr9HnAw">Android </a>. To make sure you never miss an issue of How It Works  magazine, make sure you <a href="http://imaginesubs.co.uk/subscribe-to-how-it-works">subscribe today </a>!

The science of cute

The Science Of Cute

The Puppy Dog Eyes

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