Your dog doesn't speak, but communicates every second: with his tail, ears, eyes, and posture. Learning to read his body language is the key to building a relationship of trust and preventing conflict.
The tail: not just "happy or sad"
Position
- High and stiff: excitement / confidence / possible challenge
- Horizontal: alert, neutral
- Low and relaxed: calm
- Between the legs: fear / submission
Movement
- Fast wag to the right: positive (happiness)
- Fast wag to the left: negative (stress, anxiety)
- Slow and wide: friendly
- Only the tip quivering: tension, possible aggression
The ears
- Forward: alert, curious
- Upright but relaxed: listening
- Pinned back against the head: fear, submission, calm
- One forward, one back: uncertainty, assessing
The gaze
- Soft eyes, half-closed lids: relaxed, trusting
- Hard, fixed stare: warning, possible aggression
- Looks away: stress management (calming signal)
- "Whale eye" (you can see the whites of the eyes): severe stress, move away
The mouth
- Mouth slightly open, tongue out: relaxed
- Mouth closed and tense: alert / concerned
- Yawning: stress, calming signal
- Lip licking: stress, anticipation
- Shows teeth without snarling: warning
- Growl with bared teeth: clear threat
The 9 calming signals (Turid Rugaas)
Dogs use these to reduce tension during difficult interactions:
- Looking away
- Yawning
- Nose licking
- Turning the head
- Sniffing the ground (suddenly)
- Approaching in a curve
- Sitting / lying down
- Slow movement
- Blinking
When your dog shows these signals while interacting with you or another dog, he is saying "easy, I'm a friend".
Full-body postures
Play bow
Front paws on the ground, hindquarters up, tail held high and wagging: a crystal-clear invitation to play.
Belly exposure
He rolls onto his side, exposing his belly: the ultimate sign of trust. But if he is stiff and looks away, it is instead fearful submission.
Raised hackles (piloerection)
Strong arousal: fear, excitement, or aggression. Always a high-tension situation.
Mistakes to avoid
- Hugging your dog: for us it means affection, but for them it means restraint (look at photos: they often show whale eye)
- Staring into their eyes: in the canine world, this is a challenge
- Approaching head-on: better to approach from the side, at an angle
- Pressing your hand down on their head: better to offer it under the chin
To build a relationship based on communication, also read our guide to positive training.
