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Dog’s communicate with humans in two ways. They bark and they use body language. Barking is fairly limited and is more useful when you can’t see your pet. However body language is far more powerful. You can get a good sense of how your dog is feeling by understanding and studying his body language. This article will identify some of the meaning behind common dog body language.

The meaning of your pet’s body language will become clear once you have lived with him for a few years, until then however here are a few pointers about dog body language.

When dogs are happy or in a playful mood they will raise their hindquarters in the air and wag their tail. They may also prance or bounce about on their front legs. This is really obvious when they drop a ball in front of you hoping you will throw it for them. Their mouth will be open in a doggy smile.

Dogs will also show submission to you as a superior in their pack or to other dogs that they feel are superior. The most obvious sign of this is when they roll over revealing their belly. Other forms of submission are a lowering of the head, ears and eyes as they walk towards you. The tail may wag gently in lowered position between the legs.

A relaxed dog will have it’s weight evenly distributed. The tail may wag intermittently. The head will be raised with the eyes focusing in the direction that it is walking or looking.

An alerted dog will have the same demeanor however the weight of the dog will be ever so slightly forward making appear to lean forward. The hair at the base of the tail may stand on it’s end. The ears will rise and point in the direction of the noise or disturbance.

An aggressive demeanor is similar to an alerted body language with a few important and obvious differences. Firstly the dogs face and muzzle will look completely different. The lips will be raises to reveal the teeth and it may even start to snarl. The eyes may have a wild or strained look in them as the focus intensely on the object of their aggression. The hackles will be raised. This is the fur on the shoulder blades just below the top of the neck. The body may be prone or rigid in a state ready to attach or run away.

Once you have seen these signals once or twice in your pet, you will understand what they mean. You will be able to modify your behavior or even the dogs if you feel that it is not appropriate. It can also help you understand what kind of behavior training your dog needs based on it’s body language to you.

Tags: Dogs

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