Reading Your Dog’s Body Language

Behavioral scientists have long questioned whether dogs are capable of mimicking each other or people. A recent study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences has shown that dogs are not only capable of mimicking their owners, they do so automatically. In fact, their drive to copy our head and hand (paw) movements is so strong that they tend to do so even when it is not in their best interests.

Growling is a valuable means of communication for a dog – something that dog owners should appreciate and respect rather than punish. Of course, we don't want our dog to growl at us, but neither do we want him to fail to growl if something makes him uncomfortable; that's very important information in a successful canine-human relationship. It's very common for dog owners to punish their dogs for growling. Unfortunately, this often suppresses the growl – eliminating his ability to warn us that he's about to snap, literally and figuratively. On other occasions, punishing a growling, uncomfortable dog can induce him to escalate into full-on aggression.

Otto has gotten short shrift lately, poor guy. My husband and I had the brilliant idea of undertaking a minor home remodeling project over the holidays – just the bathroom! As is often the case with all-consuming home improvement projects, the dog was left to his own devices more than he should have been for a number of weeks. Months ago, that would have been a recipe for disaster; Otto would have excavated half the yard and chewed up everything he could have gotten his mouth on. But he must be growing up; even after a few weeks of minor neglect, the only thing he chewed up was one of my husband’s high-top leather work boots. Amazing, considering the number of tools and wood and paintbrushes left lying around. He amused himself largely with a new obsession: running along our back fence with our neighbor’s two-year-old German Shepherd Dog, Schotzie. Our lot is about 80 feet wide, and both dogs share a mostly unimpeded path along that entire boundary, with just an ivy-covered five-foot-high chain-link fence between them. They are both young, active, and bored (the neighbors have a new baby). So, up and down they go, thundering through the mud, whining with frustration and excitement. It could be worse; they could be fence-fighting and barking (and maybe, if we remodeled the entire house, it would advance to this). But they seem to enjoy each other. And at least they are both getting exercise!

Hang with dog folks long enough and you're sure to hear some pretty interesting theories about dog behavior. Some are, of course, useful and accurate, but the dog training world is littered with myths, many of which are at least several generations old. Some of them are just silly; some have the potential for causing serious damage to the dog-human relationship; and still others are downright dangerous. It's time to get past the myths.

sir ... Please go away so I can breathe again!" Even though the Shepherd-mix looks friendly enough

Human-dog interactions can be more difficult than dog-dog ones, since our native languages are so different. Our series of three photos this month depicts a classic conflict between a canine and a human; the two are strangers and neither really understands what the other is communicating. Similar interactions are played out every day in communities across the country, in which well-intentioned humans do all the wrong things in their efforts to be friendly with dogs.

It's not uncommon for humans to misread perfectly normal play behavior and interrupt/separate dogs who are having a rousing good time together. At the end of Week 2 of my group good manners classes – and every week thereafter – we have play sessions where the dogs get to play with their canine classmates. In each new class there is at least one owner, often more, who is very tense about her dog's play behavior.

the camera captures a scary expression of aggression that wasn't easily visible to the observer on the ground."

While dogs are primarily body language communicators, they also use their voices to share information with other members of their social group. Compared to their wild brethren, however, our domesticated dogs use their voices far more – a tendency we have genetically encouraged. We've created herding breeds, including Shelties, Border Collies, Welsh Corgis, and others, who use their voices when necessary to control their flocks. We've bred scent hounds to give voice when they are on the trail of prey.

not training. Proceed more slowly

Dogs are, first and foremost, body language communicators. While they do have a limited ability to communicate vocally, they are much more articulate with their subtle body movements, and much more intuitively able to understand ours. As Patricia McConnell says in the introduction of her excellent book, The Other End of the Leash, All dogs are brilliant at perceiving the slightest movement that we make

You may not want to hear it, but your dog is trying to tell you something. We’ll help you figure out WHY he is barking and how to get him to stop. Who says dogs can’t talk? In less than 30 minutes, I had been treated to five audible canine communications, each with a clear and distinct meaning and purpose. While dogs are, indeed, exquisite body language communicators, they are no slouch in the vocal communication department.