Picturing National Puppy Day and its extreme cuteness, because this selection of photos is one of the most heart melting ones you’ll ever see, so don’t miss it. Gaze into the eyes of some lovely puppies and learn the science behind their cuteness.

From the University of London which found that human yawning is ‘contagious’ to dogs to Cockapoos, also sometimes known as spoodles or cockadoodles that are a relatively recent breed, emerging in the 1950s, all these photos will melt your heart.

Check them out for more information and start to see our world through photos!

A yawning jack russell terrier. In 2008, the University of London found that human yawning is ‘contagious’ to dogs. It was the first study to show that the human yawn impulse could be transferred to another species by a visual cue alone.

Photograph: Eureka / Alamy/Alamy

The phenomena of ‘puppy dog eyes’ is a scientific fact. In 2017 the Dog Cognition Centre at the University of Portsmouth published research that showed that dogs vary their facial expressions specifically to communicate with humans.

Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA

The dachshund’s distinctive sausage dog shape comes from being bred to hunt down badgers and get into their setts.

Photograph: Alamy Stock Photo

The ethics of dog breeding have become more complex as technology has progressed. These puppies were cloned in South Korea in 2009 through fat stem cells from a beagle donor. Barbra Streisand recently made headlines by cloning her beloved dog, and now has two young dogs identical to her deceased pet.

Photograph: STR/AFP/Getty Images

The popularity of squash-faced breeds like this pug has soared in recent years, prompting the British Veterinary Association to launch the #breedtobreathe campaign earlier this year to highlight the health problems that pugs suffer.

Photograph: Alamy

Puppies all over the world are trained to be sniffer dogs, with prominent uses including searching for drugs and explosives. However, a study in the Animal Cognition journal in 2011 suggested that sniffer dogs are often responding to visual cues from their handlers that someone or something is suspicious. In controlled experiments, dogs would identify an area to search for drugs if their handler had been told drugs were there, even if there was nothing to find.

Photograph: William West/AFP/Getty Images

The Kennel Club says that the labrador is the most popular of all pedigrees. The breed originated as a fisherman’s helper and its popularity is fuelled by the fact labradors are highly intelligent and affectionate.

Photograph: Sergey Ryumin/Getty Images/Moment Open

The English setter breed was first developed by Edward Laverack in the 1820s. The ‘setter’ name comes from the breed’s habit of crouching when out hunting.

Photograph: ROMAOSLO/Getty Images/iStockphoto

The British bulldog was originally bred for farm work and the barbaric practice of bull-baiting. Dogs would be set upon a tethered bull – with a dog winning if it grabbed the bull by the nose and dragged it to the ground, or losing if killed. The practice was outlawed in 1835.

Photograph: GK Hart/Vikki Hart/Getty Images

Cockapoos, also sometimes known as spoodles or cockadoodles, are a relatively recent breed, emerging in the 1950s. They are a cross between the cocker spaniel and the poodle and have become very popular although they are not officially recognised by the Kennel Club.

Photograph: Alamy