Better Communication – Uncovering Dog’s Body Language
Dog language may be tricky, as they can not write you a note or send you a text message explaining why are they behaving the way they are. Instead, they talk to us (and each other) via body language, facial expression, vocalizations, and scent signals.
Understanding what your dog is trying to tell you could be life-saving in some situations. Most importantly your relationship with a dog is built upon communication. When your dog knows you are listening and reacting to what he is saying his confidence grows (important for insecure dogs), he trusts you more (knowing you will be there to protect) and he calms down (vital with all dogs, whether you are dealing with fear, stress, anxiety or aggression).
Manifesting different signals and behaviors allows them to communicate their emotional state and their intentions to others around them. Social signals work the same way as a traffic light signal. The green light allows traffic to proceed, red means stop. Apart from green and red, there is also yellow light, which means proceed with caution and be ready to stop.
In canine language we also have 3 types of signs:
GREEN – Signs of sociability
YELLOW – Calming Signals
RED – Warning Signals.
How would you feel if a complete stranger came up to you in the street and put their hand on your head, maybe even stroke your hair? Sounds a little creepy, doesn’t it? Your dog thinks the same way. While many of them learn to cope with humans approaching them and having someone caressing the top of their head… Others don’t.
In fact, dogs like to be the ones to approach, on their own pace, they would prefer to be able to initiate the interaction. If you see the dog turning his face away, or moving away from you, he is saying that he would rather not interact.
Green and red lights are very well known to dog owners, but what we tend to underestimate is the yellow color. Calming signals many times are much of a subtle sign, such as blinking, whale eye (showing the whites of eyes), yawning, lip licking, panting, putting ears back, turning head away or very well readable, walking away (there are many more calming signals then ones mentioned above).
Some of you may start wondering ‘So whenever my dog is panting or yawning he is stressed out?’. The answer is: NO. You need to look at the whole picture. If you just got back home from a walk around the park it is totally normal your dog will be panting after running with other dogs. Same goes to yawning, he may do it when he is sleepy or bored, but if you notice other signs of stress, react.
A little girl crawling to dog resting on his bed may cause this canine to start showing calming signals. As she reaches to him he may turn his head away, starts yawning, show whites of his eyes and (if you are lucky) walk away. If you are not, your girl ends up being 1 of of 69 that are being bitten by a dog per year [1].
Read your dog the same way as you would behave while driving a car. If you notice yellow light in front of you be prepared to stop what you are doing, do not continue the interaction. Using calming signals dogs communicate when they feel stressed out, uncomfortable, insecure and frightened. They warn you, that if you won’t stop they will go into warning signals, and from there to attack is very thin ice.
Warning signals are much more recognizable by pet owners. Growling, teeth showing, snapping the air, barking and lunging are only a short performance before the show starts. This is a clear red flag, however, it could have been prevented. Science proves, that FEAR quickly escalates into RAGE. Do not wait, allowing your dog to deal with it alone. He will choose the only way he knows, the language he has been practicing his whole life.
What language do dogs speak?
They do not speak english, spanish, german or polish. Dog’s are masters in reading body language and that is their way of communicating with the world. Since they are lips reader and communicate with their body language, they are masters of watching our bodies.
Very clear hand signals during training are important (or gestures and facial expression in general) and will go a long way. Imagine that you could communicate with your dog without using verbal commands. It is possible. Train your dog by using hand signals and you could cue your dog to lie down without interrupting your conversation with your friend. And don’t stop there.
Take your communication to the next level and use calming signals as you are living with your dog. If there is anything that you are not enjoying while interacting with your dog, show it with calming signals, e.g. turn around when your dog tries to jump on you (you may also yawn, I am not kidding).
Dog Behavior Specialist
Ewa Hemmy is behaviorist and dog trainer who is also a writer on top of that. She has College Degree in Animal Behavior earned in Poland, where she comes from. She still consistently study, participate in online courses, webinars and reads through most recent research. Ewa has been writing articles for few years now and loves to educate dog owners on providing better care and understanding of their pet. She believes you can solve unwanted behavior, because your DOG is ABLE to be TRAINED! She can be contacted at ewa.hemmy@gmail.com or call at (785) 822 7409.
