How Your Dog Reacts to Daily Human Behavior

You speak to your dog, they tilt their cute little head, maybe bark a bit, and, as far as you're concerned, the two of you are having a conversation. But as far as the dog's concerned, that conversation is going on the entire day, just not in the way you think. 

They use their entire body as a language, so every yawn and every lick means something. 

If you think about the situations where something between people and dogs goes wrong, most of that doesn't happen because the dog has been 'bad.' It's because someone missed or misunderstood what the dog was saying. What the person sees is the dog's final 'NO!', but they said a lot of 'I'm not so sure' before that. 

The article you're about to read won't tell you how to predict trouble to avoid risk. 

The point is to learn how to be your dog's best advocate because, honestly, it's your responsibility. When you learn their language, you can step in before they feel stressed or scared. 

And don't you think that's worth learning about?

Why Dogs Rely on Body Language More Than Sound

Let's take a look at this from your dog's point of view. 

Long before they met us, their wild relatives lived in a world where you couldn't be too noisy because, if you were, you'd attract the wrong kind of attention. Barking 'Hey, man, over here!' isn't an ideal survival plan when you're trying to hunt or stay safe. 

So what do you do? 

You become an expert at quiet language, like posture, ear position, etc. That's what's in the dogs' DNA. You're probably wondering about barking and whining, and it's not like the dog checked his/her watch and saw it's bark o'clock and just went for it. 

Barking/whining came later and mostly as a way to talk to us. 

People love to chat. We'll talk all day long if possible, so we get some stuff backwards. 

To a person, a dog wagging their tail means it's saying hello, and one that's looking away is ignoring them. The problem is, the person is looking at this from their own point of view and, in doing so, missing what's actually going on. 

Dogs have their own dictionary, and it's body language. 

If you put all their signals together, you can see that they come down to two kinds – 'come closer' and 'give me space.' A happy body is an invitation; everyone knows that. 

But if they're scared, they'll let you know. They'll send the 'give me space' signals before ANYTHING scary even happens. They'll yawn, lick their nose, or look away. 

And this isn't them being rude. Quite the contrary, in fact, they're being incredibly polite. 

Just imagine two scenarios where you're talking to someone, and they suddenly shout at you simply because they're annoyed or are having a bad day. And then take that same scenario, but the other person instead tells you, "Look, I need a minute, I'm kind of overwhelmed at the moment. Talk in 5?" – that'd be SO much nicer, right? Well, dogs do that all the time.

They're calmly telling you to chill out because they don't feel their best and hoping you'll take the hint. 

If you keep missing those polite requests, the dog gets more and more stressed until it all becomes too much. They don't want to react, but at one point, they don't have any other options left. And even experts like Chicago Dog Bite Injury Lawyers – who deal with dog-related disputes often – will point out how important education and awareness are as a first line of prevention. 

The problem wasn't a 'mean' dog, but a person who doesn't understand how dogs communicate.

Early Signs Most People Overlook

You often wait for that big, dramatic growl you see in cartoons because that's what a warning sign looks like. 

Right? Nope. 

That could still happen, of course, but the most important signals are the quiet ones. 

The Small Signs of Stress

Is your dog licking their lips even though there's no food around? Are they yawning even though they're not tired? Do they suddenly look away when they stumble upon a specific person or animal?

You might mistake these for boredom or politeness, but in reality, these are signs of stress. 

Quiet-Looking Fear

A scared dog isn't necessarily dramatic or loud. Sometimes, fear doesn't look like anything. A dog who freezes in place or crouches low to the ground isn't being a 'good boy,' they're shutting down. 

You might see this with some rescue dogs. 

If you push a dog who is in this state to interact, you'll only make things worse. 

Too Much Excitement

A dog zooming around the yard or spinning is usually seen as super happy. And it's true that happiness is part of this, but really, this is an overstimulated dog who can't regulate their own feelings. 

Busy parks, lots of people, or even a high-pitched tone can make it hard for your dog to calm down. 

Conclusion

There's no 'Learn Dog Language School'. Sure, there are some that teach you what specific behavior might mean, but that doesn't mean you're able to get in there and have a proper conversation with your dog. Well, to be fair, that'd be super cool. But (unfortunately) we aren't there. Yet anyway. Who knows what future technology might bring us? 

But at least now you can recognize some specific behavioral patterns, and you might now have a clearer idea about what they could mean. 

Once you get more accustomed to these, you'll definitely feel your friendship has gone to a new height, which is probably what every 'pawrent' wants.

Cheers!