Understanding Your Dog’s Body Talk

by Trish King

Having a happy relationship with your dog means learning how to work together. If there´s a topic you´d like to see Trish cover, email editors@fetchthepaper.com.

Andrea has a cute little Sheltie named Frank. Frank is outgoing and friendly toward everyone he knows, but he’s always been a bit shy with strangers. In puppy class he hid beneath Andrea’s chair at first when other puppies were out and about. It took him a few weeks, but eventually he socialized with other shy puppies and seemed to enjoy himself. But he’s never been the type of dog who goes out of his way to meet new people or new dogs. This has been okay with Andrea who only requested he stand still when strange people approached and asked to pet him. Andrea herself is shy, and Frank has provided a good way for her to meet and chat with people. And so everything was just fine. Or so it seemed.

What’s that sound? Everybody look what’s going down

One of the rules of behavior is that it’s never static and so it proved with Frank. Over a period of years Frank’s shyness seemed to escalate, adding noise sensitivity as a trigger and adding apparent aggression as his response. When I saw the pair, Frank was just over four years old. His problems involved barking at almost everything that made a noise when he was in the house, lunging at other dogs passing by, and growling at people who stopped to pet him. He had also actually snapped a few times at people’s hands though he had not connected.

This behavior was mortifying to Andrea, who had no idea what to do about it. Should she tell him to stop it and jerk his leash? Should she soothe him and tell him everything is all right? At this point she tightens his leash whenever she sees a passerby and crosses the street whenever she sees a dog. All the enjoyment has gone out of her walks; she tries to avoid people and especially dogs. She’s embarrassed that her darling little dog is anti-social, and she’s getting confused and angry.

Look at me; I got a case of body language

When I met Frank he jumped out of the car and immediately hid behind Andrea. His mouth was open, he was panting slightly, and his tail hung straight down. He didn’t look at me or our volunteer. Instead he moved to the opposite side of Andrea and stood quietly. As we walked to my office Frank remained on the far side of Andrea. His eyes darted everywhere, and he continued to pant. We passed a dog being walked, and Frank lunged, barked, and returned to Andrea’s side. As we entered my office Frank stuck like glue to Andrea until she sat down. He then stood next to her, staring into her lap. If I moved, he flinched, then trembled. I stood up and leaned down towards him, and he moved further back towards Andrea, then growled. Andrea exclaimed “There, that’s what he does: he growls unpredictably over nothing.” I’ve described Frank’s body language pretty thoroughly, and it probably seems obvious that he was frightened. However, you would have to be watching very carefully to catch some of his movements, and often we forget to watch. After all, most of the human world is viewed above waist level. Virtually the entire dog’s world is viewed below waist level. We’re not looking down at them most of the time, and they’re not looking up at us. The result is that we don’t notice when our dogs are stressing out, so we’re surprised when they take some sort of action like running away, barking, growling, or lunging. Though it’s unexpected to us, it’s the last resort to them.

Why look at the time! Gotta run!

A dog that is extremely stressed must make some sort of decision about what action to take. He can run away, he can fight, he can freeze, or he can try to make friends. We can help them make the right decision, but we have to notice what’s going on first! I thought it might be interesting to list some of the signs indicating a dog is under stress. The easiest way to do that is to compare a happy dog with a stressed dog.

The first thing to observe is the overall state of the dog. A happy dog is wiggly from front to back. A stressed dog will usually look stiff and tense. He may move slowly, seeming to place his feet carefully. Alternatively, he may strain on the leash as he tries to go anywhere but where he is. A stressed dog may look rapidly from side to side or, while keeping his head still, may try to look in the direction of the danger. This causes the whites of his eyes to show (often called “whale eye,” since whales cannot turn their head and so have to show the whites of their eyes when they look around). His pupils may also be dilated. His ears may swivel from side to side as he tries to keep tabs on what he believes to be dangerous. He’s likely to pant, either quick, dry panting or excessive drooling. The panting sometimes confuses owners. The dog’s mouth is pulled back, giving the look of a smile. Dogs do pant when they’re happy but the mouth is generally slightly open, and the tongue usually protrudes slightly, and there’s just a little drool, if any at all (with the obvious exceptions of dogs like St. Bernards, who tend to drool under all circumstances).

Now, the tail. We were all taught as kids that a wagging tail means a happy dog. Unfortunately that’s not quite true. A tail that is wagging in big sweeps starting at the base or, even better, at the hips is happy. If a dog’s tail is raised and is wagging quickly he is most likely angry. If it’s low and wagging he is most likely trying to appease a person or another dog, to make friends. A stressed dog’s tail might well be dropped straight down or be carried under his body.

Other stress signs include substantial sudden hair loss, yawning, and stretching, all of which are his body preparing itself for flight. He may do what are called tongue flicks, sort of like when we nervously lick our lips. Whining or barking can also be signs of stress. And sores caused by excess licking of the feet or legs are signs of chronic stress.

Frank is just Frank

Dogs who are stressed need time to relax. They don’t need coddling and stroking as much as casual reassurance that everything is normal and taken care of (by you). And we need to understand is that all dogs are not all the same. Our culture seems to expect all dogs to be extroverted and to welcome strange touches. Frank was an introverted dog who was being forced to be extroverted, and he became more and more stressed until he couldn’t cope any more. His behavior modification program includes understanding him as an individual and teaching him that Andrea can keep him safe. She stopped pushing him to do what he was not capable of doing, like meeting strangers. Instead she taught him to obey her cues, and to look to her for direction.

Now that Andrea knows what Frank’s body is saying, she can respond appropriately to his needs. Frank can now relax knowing that Andrea, his guardian, will keep him safe.