What is your dog trying to tell you?

Dogs have a lot to say

No, I'm not talking about Barky McBarkerson next door.  Well, Barky does have a lot to say, but that isn't exactly what I'm talking about.  I'm talking about dog body language.  Dogs are brilliant when it comes to reading our body language, but we aren't so good at reading theirs.  Let me give you an example.  My little dog, Flea, always knows when it's bath time.  It blows my mind every time because I have no idea how he knows.  Yes, there is the obvious cue when I go to the closet and grab a towel, but I grab towels all the time and it's not that often that it means he gets a bath. Occasionally, I will mix more shampoo, but that isn't every time.  So, how the heck does he know?  I can't tell you.  I can tell you how I know he knows.  He will go in the corner and lay down, with his head low, ears pinned back, eyes wide and he'll curl up and submissively roll on his back when I grab him as if I abuse him and if he lays down, maybe I won't see him.  I do see him, and I ignore all of his body language because the bath has to happen and I kind of don't feel so bad about it.  I mean, the water is warm, he has a non-slip mat in the tub and the boy has like no hair, so he's dry in about 45 seconds.  It's not that hard (for me).  So there it is, my dark secret - I totally ignore my dog's body language when he clearly tells me he's scared.  So what's the impact of this? I'm confident that he isn't going to bite me when I pick him up, so it might sound like no big deal.  But in reality, I'm teaching him that I can't be trusted and sometimes I randomly decide to 'torture' him.  A little dramatic, but in his mind, I think he thinks I'm torturing him.  Now that I've exposed my horrible secret of dog abuse, I will work on changing his bath time to be a more positive experience.

Flea on his back in the corner of my office is an example of pretty obvious body language that anyone can spot. But dogs communicate in much subtler ways and we owe it to them to understand what they are saying. Not just for our safety, the safety of others, but for the quality of life every dog deserves.

There is so much to learn, and we'll just cover some basics.  But my hope is that knowing the basics will create a habit of paying attention and being aware of those little movements, and over time learning more.

To start, can you picture your dog relaxed and comfortable? If not try to notice when your dog is relaxed and comfortable.  You'll be able to see the relaxed face, ears will be in their natural position, not pulled in any direction. The body will be relaxed and balanced without the weight shifting forward or back and tail in a natural position.

Now think about what your dog looks like when he or she is happy.  Soft, wiggly body, ears forward, tail wagging.

Have you ever seen your dog stiffen, with weight shifted back, head up and tail up?  What was the situation?

So these are all pretty big, overall changes that speak pretty loudly.  But often there are much smaller signals before the big ones.  So let's go over some more subtle things to look for.

You might hear of some of these being referred to as calming signals because they are used to calm themselves when feeling stressed or to communicate to another dog as a way to avoid conflict or deescalate a situation:

• Yawn - This is probably the most well-known sign of stress.  Of course, dogs do yawn naturally when not stressed, but if it's not nap time and your dog has a big yawn when it seems out of place, ask yourself if something is happening that could be creating stress for your dog.
• Tongue flick - a quick nose lick or a few quick nose licks.
• Look away - Sometimes this can be a super quick moment where the dog looks away from the stressor and instantly back again.  Other times the dog will continue to look away.
• Panting  - panting when it's not hot.
• Ears to side  - this can be a quick flick of the ears to the side or held to the side, usually along with an expression that just looks worried.
• Scratching - A dog that randomly has an itch that just can't be satisfied in the middle of a training session, is not really itchy.  It's stressed.
• Front paw lift  - this can indicate to another dog to slow down and not to come straight in at 100mph.
• Won't eat - a dog that is stressed out most likely won't take food.
• Whites of eyes showing (whale eyes) - eyes wide open with whites showing.
• Sniffing  - Dogs do sniff, so this one requires a little evaluation of the situation and environment.  
• Shaking  Often you'll see dogs shake after a stressful situation, a vet evaluation, a scuffle with another dog.  It's almost like they are shaking off that bad energy and resetting.

Below is a chart of illustrations by Lili Chin that show body language so well.