Dogs use their body language to communicate to their owners. The messages may be less urgent they should never be ignored. Learn about the Dog Behaviors you Should NOT Ignore.
Tail Twitching
Dogs use their tails for more than just happiness. If it stiffens and points straight up, the dog may be cautioning an oncoming person or dog. When the tail drops between their legs they could be anxious or need space from the trigger causing fear. If there is twitching at the end you need to de-escalate the situation. The dog is most likely guarding food, toy or other resource. It could also just be their way to let you know they are uncomfortable. When this happens try to recall and take note to avoid the next time.
Staring
Staring typically only happens when something is going wrong especially when combined with other behaviors. They are alerting to something. You should be able to tell what it is easily though as they usually are looking right at it. The stare will intensify as adrenaline is released into the body. It then puts the body into fight or flight. Tight body language follows. When you see this try to figure out what is wrong then create space from that trigger.
Lip Licking
Sign of mild anxiety. This happens when they are out of their comfort zone. This can be good if you are rehabilitating an anxious dog. In the right environment for training this means the dog is in the learning zone. Lip Licking is also a sign the brain is working to solve a problem. They are unsure and need help to figure it out. Give them space and allow them to approach when they are ready.
Refusal
Many times a refusal is just the dogs way to say they don’t want to do that behavior or next behavior in a sequence. An example is a dog refuses to go into their crate after the owner finished lunch as they know that means their owner is leaving them.
Hiding
This behavior is the number 1 cause of dog bites. As humans we want to rescue the frightened dog that is hiding but we really should avoid that. Hiding behaviors occur when a dog is over threshold. They are not thinking straight and need space to feel safe. When you enter that space you are breaking their safe space which may lead in growling, lunging or biting.
Time and patience are all that they need in most cases with these Dog Behaviors you Should NOT Ignore. Try to avoid hands in their space, looking at them and even treats. They need time to recover and gain trust again.
In the end all these behaviors mentioned can escalate. The best tool we have is for owners to learn and understand their dogs body language and communicate properly with that they are saying. If you need help with this please contact me today.
