I look forward to the day when we can scan an animal brain and see what they think and feel. Till then, I can’t comment on whether animals think their babies are ‘cute’.
I think ‘response-to-cute-stimuli’ can be usefully defined on a behavioral level too.
I suggest this definition: the animal is interested in the cute-animal, often despite being strangers; it spends time looking at it or touching it, plays with it or talks to it (depending on the animal’s species-typical behavior). But it eventually forgets about it, leaves it behind (or allows it to depart), and does not protect or feed it—as it would an adopted baby. Doing these last things goes beyond “owww it’s cute!” and constitutes parenting behavior.
The question is—do animals reliably exhibit non-parenting behavior of the sort described above, and towards what patterns of other animals?
I think ‘response-to-cute-stimuli’ can be usefully defined on a behavioral level too.
I suggest this definition: the animal is interested in the cute-animal, often despite being strangers; it spends time looking at it or touching it, plays with it or talks to it (depending on the animal’s species-typical behavior). But it eventually forgets about it, leaves it behind (or allows it to depart), and does not protect or feed it—as it would an adopted baby. Doing these last things goes beyond “owww it’s cute!” and constitutes parenting behavior.
The question is—do animals reliably exhibit non-parenting behavior of the sort described above, and towards what patterns of other animals?