Dog Body Language

[7/25/20 via twitter]

Dogs express their emotions with their bodies, but we’re not always able to correctly interpret the messages they’re sending. Or worse yet, we misunderstand their intent, which can make a challenging situation even worse.

Learning to read what your dog is communicating is one of the most important things you can do to strengthen your relationship with them. While every dog will have their own unique nuances to their communication style, most dogs rely on similar postures to convey how they’re feeling.

When reading a dog’s body language, it’s important to note that the dog’s entire body plays a role in signaling; for example, a wagging tail doesn’t necessarily mean that a dog is happy, especially if the rest of their body is stiff.

Everything from your dog’s ears and expression on their face to the placement of their feet, and of course, the tail, work together to help communicate your dog’s emotional state.

Here are some dog body language basics to help you understand what your dog is trying to tell you.

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[5/6/08] While looking up dog play, I came across this article on dog body language at wagntrain.com. The article also touches on Turid Rugaas and Calming Signals.

Turid Rugaas, a dog behaviorist from Norway, points out that dogs, as pack animals, have highly-developed ways of avoiding and diffusing conflict and aggression. Dogs therefore use "Calming Signals" to reduce stress for themselves and others they interact with (including humans). Calming signals include: Yawning, looking away, lip-licking, moving slowly, circling, sniffing the ground, becoming "distracted", sitting or lying down. Some of them are also the "appeasement display" behaviors that are developed to turn away aggression and threats of aggression - these are often confused with "the guilty look" that dogs may appear to be giving when scolded for doing something. Note that most of these are the opposite language from the directed attention that would be found in an aggressive interaction.

They have a number of additional informative articles in their Training Tips section.

*** [9/23/17]

Canine Body Language