Mary Allen
Dogs use their facial expressions and body language to communicate and resolve conflict situations. We have put together a compact summary of what dog owners should pay attention to.
Facial expressions and body language tell us a lot about the mood of our dogs. It is important to recognize these signals and to be able to interpret them correctly. To function smoothly in the pack, wolves and dogs have developed a very fine communication system that focuses on body language cues that help resolve conflicts non-violently. About the social structure, the guiding principle applies: Peaceful as long as possible.
Dogs usually try to avoid serious conflicts out of self-protection. To do this, they often use subtle but clear signals that we humans should also know and take into account to deal with them respectfully and safely.
Appease
To defuse stressful situations, dogs use so-called calming signals. These include, among other things, looking away, yawning, lowering the head, sniffing, making small, licking over the muzzle, raising the front paw, urinating, etc. Some dogs also show the so-called “submissive grin”, a grin that doesn’t be confused with aversive baring of the teeth.
To test your knowledge of how well you know your dog’s body language, you can try our quiz.
Warn Dogs Before They Become Aggressive
Dogs often give numerous calming signals before they show aggressive behavior. If they are not seen or ignored by humans (or the other dog), conflict can arise.
There are also numerous misunderstandings in communication between humans and dogs that can lead to conflicts: While it is considered polite among humans to look the other person in the eye, dogs perceive direct eye contact from strangers as threatening. If a loose dog approaches in a threatening pose, it is best to avert your gaze.
Another misconception: if the dog wags its tail, it is in a friendly mood. However, tail wagging means excitement first and foremost, and often it isn’t positive. If you look closely, you can see that dogs show different ways of wagging their tails. Only the tail position in combination with amplitude, speed, and other body signals provides information about the mood the dog is actually in.
Vocalizations
In addition to distinctive facial expressions and body language, dogs have several acoustic signals that play a relatively minor role in overall perception. The most common vocalizations include:
- whining,
- growls (friendly play growls and threat growls),
- bark
- and woof.
Communication Through Smell & Touch
One dimension of dog perception that humans completely elude is communication via smells. Dogs pass on important information about smells, and they get this information directly (sniffing another dog) or indirectly (sniffing urine or feces). In this way, dogs can learn everything about the other’s age, gender, status, health, or current mood in a matter of seconds.
Touch is also important in the dog world: nudging, jostling, licking the corners of the mouth, or jumping up are among the so-called tactile signals. Knowledge of complex communication is the cornerstone of good training.