Exactly. I know my dog is a lot more excited to see me after I’ve been a way a while than when I just return from work. Of course, their feeling of missing me grows strong as time goes on. Same thing with birds too.
If I go down and get a Dr. Pepper right now, my dog will probably raise her head briefly and then go back to sleep. When I come home, though, she barks and runs around excitedly.