How to tell your dog's mood by wagging its tail. A dog's tail shows his mood When the dog is in a good mood
People know how to talk, they use different words, but sometimes we and our pets understand each other without words. But this is for experienced owners! How can inexperienced owners understand their pets?
If the shape of a dog’s eyes has narrowed and they have become barely noticeable, this means that the pet is scared or very tense. When the dog looks a little askance or squints, it means something hurts him.
Your pet's ears tilted back a little means that he is welcoming and friendly towards you. If they are pressed tightly to the back, then the dog is very scared. Well, the ears being in their usual position means that the dog is relaxed and completely calm.
Of course, four-legged pets are different and their ears are different in shape, so it can be difficult to understand exactly how their ears are now located, but watch for a while and you will understand the mood of your pet.
If a dog wags its tail, it means it is in a playful mood and is very happy about your presence. A tail curled to the right indicates the dog is in a good mood, nothing bothers him, and a tail curled to the left indicates anxiety and worry.
If a dog, as if repeating the behavior of a cat, tries to make itself bigger - stretches out its paws, sticks its ears and tail on end - this is a sign of aggression. If he presses himself to the ground, as if he wants to appear completely unnoticeable, it means he is scared. When the dog suddenly froze in one position, it means he sensed some kind of danger. If your dog's breathing suddenly becomes quieter, it means he is alert. If the dog wants to play, he takes the position of the letter “C”.
Bared teeth indicate 100% extreme aggression of the dog. Aggression can also be caused by sudden movements, especially by a person unfamiliar to the dog. If the dog begins to growl, as if it wants to draw a person or other dogs to a threat, it means it sensed danger.
If a dog starts barking, it means it is happy with its owner. When a dog barks briefly and persistently, it means he hears someone’s steps at the door. If a dog howls low and for a long time, he is probably hungry or in pain.
In addition to states associated with certain instincts and caused by their manifestation, the dog exhibits moods that are not directly related to instincts. An example is fear due to so-called “remorse.” It closely resembles real fear with its flight response and expression of resignation. At the same time, the dog’s moods, which by analogy with a person can be called jealousy, disappointment, sadness, joy and love, are in many respects phenomena of a different order. Anyone who knows his dog well quickly notices how developed the world of feelings is - of course, in a certain sense. There is no doubt that such moods have the same basis as a person in similar situations, and their consequences are similar to those of humans.
Jealousy and envy are common feelings in dogs. This was noticed by anyone who had to have several dogs at the same time, especially if it concerned a breed that was not very sociable. But a dog can show similar feelings towards a person. Both of my dachshund females showed clear examples of envy and jealousy on a daily basis. Either they were jealous of each other, or their feelings turned just as strongly towards the person. If one of our family members somehow singled out one of the dogs, giving it any advantages, the other would certainly be offended (the younger dachshund reacted especially violently) and for a long time showed hostility towards the “offender”. This was expressed most clearly by my dachshund daughter when I took only my mother for a long walk. Upon my return, she barely greeted me at all, and showed real malice towards her mother - to the extent that she generally decided to be angry towards a stronger individual. True, in relation to her mother, the daughter changed “anger to mercy” within a few minutes, but she did not show friendliness towards me for hours: she did not respond to calls, almost did not wag her tail, and even refused the favorite dishes that I offered her. This mood of disappointment could continue until the next day. But then the dachshund suddenly seemed to forget about everything and again became friendly and cheerful, as if nothing had happened - the bad mood passed without casting a shadow on our relationship.
I have thought a lot about the role that feelings of disappointment, resentment or jealousy can play in the lives of animals living freely. One thing is probably indisputable: such moods manifest themselves in a wolf no less strongly than in a dog. It seems to me that, in principle, such conditions can arise when puppies are growing up. One of the obvious explanations is the following: an individual that for some reason becomes “disappointed” in another individual becomes independent from it. Finding themselves in the grip of “disappointment,” young wolves can abandon the pack or free themselves from dependence on their mother and gain freedom to lead the life characteristic of an adult.
The dog often experiences sadness. The disappearance of a friend - be it a person or another dog - from the animal's life circle causes a search response. In this state, the dog sometimes begins to howl. The howl is a calling cry caused by a feeling of loneliness. But the hallmark of sadness is prolonged despondency. This condition can last for several days, a week, or even longer. A saddened dog is inactive, it lies on its bed and almost does not touch food. Information about how a dog perceives the death of a loved one is contradictory and shows considerable individual variability. Some animals become so “grievous” that their continued care becomes burdensome. Others are more likely to react more to the depressed mood of those around them than to the loss of a family member.
The reaction of one dog to the death of another is also ambiguous. Often death is preceded by an illness, during which the sick dog seems to drop out of the life of its friend. Then the reaction is not violent. In addition, a sick dog sometimes evokes a clearly negative attitude in a healthy one. It seems that the specific smell from a dying dog repels the female tribesmen; they walk around the patient and do not sniff her, even if she comes very close to them. I have repeatedly observed a similar picture in both my own and other people’s dogs. If dogs begin to blatantly ignore their sick friend, it means her days are numbered.
Dead newborn puppies cause some concern in the mother. She can lick them, even squeal, but soon carries them away. The female Doberman who lived with me buried a dead puppy and then never visited that place or defended it. If a dog is taken away from all its puppies at an early age, it will be very restless for several days, looking for them everywhere. In the natural environment, loss of offspring occurs when babies leave the den on their own. Some she-wolves do not react at all to the taking of their cubs, but there are those who become enraged just because they are touched.
Dogs are usually not characterized by a long-lasting feeling of love that persists outside the nature of the bitch’s sexual arousal. But, having met a bitch who is in heat, a male often experiences a “love impulse” for several days; as the bitch's excitement wears off, the dog's feelings fade away. Being in the heat of love, a male dog shows an unusually strong desire to move. Every now and then he asks to go outside to get closer to his chosen one’s home, and loses his appetite. In this state, he is more prone to aggressiveness than usual. Anger is sometimes taken out on a person. Some females exhibit similar behavior in the midst of heat, but males are usually much more active.
Such manifestations of love and sexual desire are observed, although in a slightly different form, in many mammals; thanks to them, the likelihood of a meeting between a male and a female increases. Perhaps, due to the strong competition between males for the female's favor, these feelings contribute to improved sexual selection.
Dogs whose relationships are not marked by sexual desire may relate to each other differently. We have already dwelled on the feeling of anger and manifestations of hegemony and submission. But dogs can also be just good friends. Most of them have several friends: one is a hunting friend, the other is a playmate, some are simply greeted, and others are avoided. Some dogs quickly acquire such acquaintances, varying in the degree of expression of sympathy; for others, making friends is the result of a long and difficult habituation. But most dogs have their enemies. Unfriendly relationships are marked by anger or fear. Most often, long-term anger is caused by the fact that the angry dog, while he was a puppy, was not taught how to properly treat other dogs. But sometimes this feeling is based more on the character of the individual than on upbringing.
In addition to states associated with certain instincts and caused by their manifestation, the dog exhibits moods that are not directly related to instincts. An example is fear due to so-called “remorse.” It closely resembles real fear with its flight response and expression of resignation. At the same time, the dog’s moods, which by analogy with a person can be called jealousy, disappointment, sadness, joy and love, are in many respects phenomena of a different order. Anyone who knows their dog well quickly notices how developed the world of feelings is - of course, in a certain sense. There is no doubt that such moods have the same basis as a person in similar situations, and their consequences are similar to those of humans.
Jealousy and envy are common feelings in dogs. This was noticed by anyone who had to have several dogs at the same time, especially if it concerned a breed that was not very sociable. But a dog can show similar feelings towards a person. It often happens that dogs living in the same family become jealous of each other, and such feelings are equally strongly directed at humans. If one of the family members somehow singles out one of the dogs, giving it any advantages, the other may be offended and show hostility towards the “offender” for a long time. This mood of disappointment may continue until the next day. But then the dog often forgets about everything and again becomes friendly and cheerful, as if nothing had happened - the bad mood passes without a trace.
The dog often experiences sadness. The disappearance of a friend - be it a person or another dog - from the animal's life circle causes a search response. In this state, the dog sometimes begins to howl. The howl is a calling cry caused by a feeling of loneliness. But the hallmark of sadness is prolonged despondency. This condition can last for several days, a week, or even longer. A saddened dog is inactive, it lies on its bed and almost does not touch food. Information about how a dog perceives the death of a loved one is contradictory and indicates significant individual diversity. Some animals become so “grievous” that their continued care becomes burdensome. Others are more likely to react more to the depressed mood of those around them than to the loss of a family member.
The reaction of one dog to the death of another is also ambiguous. Often death is preceded by an illness, during which the sick dog seems to drop out of the life of its friend. Then the reaction is not violent. In addition, a sick dog sometimes evokes a clearly negative attitude in a healthy one. It seems that the specific smell from a dying dog repels the female tribesmen; they walk around the patient and do not sniff her, even if she comes very close to them. If dogs begin to clearly ignore their sick friend, this means that her days are numbered.
Dead newborn puppies cause some concern in the mother. She can lick them, even squeal, but soon carries them away. If a dog is taken away from all its puppies at an early age, it will be very restless for several days, looking for them everywhere. In the natural environment, loss of offspring occurs when babies leave the den on their own. Some she-wolves do not react at all to the taking of their cubs, but there are those who become enraged just because they are touched.
Dogs are usually not characterized by a long-lasting feeling of love that persists outside the nature of the bitch’s sexual arousal. But, having met a bitch who is in heat, a male often experiences a “love impulse” for several days; as the bitch's excitement wears off, the dog's feelings fade away. Being in the heat of love, a male dog shows an unusually strong desire to move. Every now and then he asks to go outside to get closer to his chosen one’s home, and loses his appetite. In this state, he is more prone to aggressiveness than usual. Anger is sometimes taken out on a person. Some females exhibit similar behavior in the midst of heat, but males are usually much more active.
Such manifestations of love and sexual desire are observed, although in a slightly different form, in many mammals; thanks to them, the likelihood of a meeting between a male and a female increases. Perhaps, due to the strong competition between males for the female's favor, these feelings contribute to improved sexual selection.
Dogs whose relationships are not marked by sexual desire may relate to each other differently. In addition to feelings of anger and displays of hegemony and submissiveness, dogs can simply be good friends. Most of them have several friends: one is a hunting friend, the other is a playmate, some are simply greeted, and others are avoided. Some dogs quickly acquire such acquaintances, varying in the degree of expression of sympathy; for others, making friends is the result of a long and difficult habituation. But most dogs have their enemies. Unfriendly relationships are marked by anger or fear. Most often, long-term anger is caused by the fact that the angry dog, while he was a puppy, was not taught how to properly treat other dogs. But sometimes this feeling is based more on the character of the individual than on upbringing.
Observations of dogs' behavior can be used as an early warning sign that their elderly owners' health is deteriorating.
Experts at Newcastle University in England are using motion sensors to detect normal dog behavior when the animals are in or out of the house.
Shedding light on hitherto unknown aspects of the lives of man's best friend, the sensors show not only when a dog moves, but also when it barks, sits, digs and makes other dog-like movements.
By studying the normal behavior of a healthy and happy dog, Dr. Cas Lada, Dr. Nils Hammerla and student Emma Hues were able to determine the norms against which dogs' behavior was subsequently assessed. This made it possible to track the slightest changes in their behavior, which could indicate illness or fatigue.
Presenting their findings at the 2013 UbiComp conference in Zurich, a project led by Lada, the scientists said the next step was to use dogs' behavior as an early signaling system that allows older people to know in advance about impending changes in their health.
“A lot of our research is aimed at developing smart systems that can help older people live independent lives longer,” explains Lada, who works in a laboratory at Newcastle University.
“But developing a system that will warn the family and those caring for an elderly person is impossible without introducing it into the person’s private life. We're just taking the first steps now, but the idea behind our research is to help people without invading their privacy or using cameras."
Behavior expert Nils Hammerla adds: “Humans and dogs have lived together for thousands of years, allowing them to achieve a strong emotional and social bond. A dog's physical and emotional dependence on its owner means that it is able to recognize any changes in the owner's behavior, especially when it stops being walked regularly, fed regularly, or simply displays unhappy behavior - all of which can be a signal to the older person's family that that he needs help."
How the technology works
In England, approximately 30% of households have at least one dog, with a total of approximately 10.5 million animals in the country.
Today, the development of an animal welfare indicator is very relevant, because nowadays animals are more often left at home alone for a long time. So a team of scientists created a high-tech, waterproof dog collar equipped with an accelerometer - a device for tracking movements, with data on different breeds of dogs.
“To determine the normal limit, we needed to determine what movements are habitual for dogs; for this, at the beginning of the research, in addition to collars, we also used cameras,” explains Lada.
By analyzing two sets of data, the team identified 17 dog behaviors, such as barking, chewing, drinking, lying, shaking, sneezing, and more. The team also examined these movements in dogs of different breeds.
“This works with all dogs,” explains Lada, “we found that the meaning of a dog’s behavior does not change, whether it is a bulldog or a chihuahua.”
Hammerla adds: “This is the first system of its kind that allows us to monitor a dog's behavior without our direct presence. But it also gives us a great opportunity to use our four-legged friends as “barometers of health.” It's already well known that pets are good for human health, and this new technology means dogs can also help their elderly owners live independent lives in a different way than they would normally do.”
There are times when the tail wags the dog, but in most cases, however, the opposite is true. It was the dog’s tail moving back and forth that researchers of our four-legged friends turned their attention to in order to understand the manifestation of emotions in dogs and the connection of these emotions with the hemispheres of the brain. The dogs were studied from nose to tail, and an interesting picture emerged.
Every dog owner and lover knows how they let you know about their mood. If the ears are pressed to the head, the whole body is tense and the tail is extended, this means “You better not mess with me.” Your pet's ears stand up, and he, without ceasing, curls at your feet and at the same time waves his tail so much that it will come off at any moment? Everyone should understand what this means: “I’m so glad to see you!”
And recently, scientists discovered one very interesting feature of dog behavior, which not only the best dog breeders (with their recommendations), but even dog experts were unaware of.
After conducting a series of experiments on 30 dogs of various breeds, it turned out that if the dog is generally positive, then he waves his tail more to the right side. If he is upset or angry about something, then the movements are shifted to the left side of the sacrum (Current Biology).
If the dog sees the owner, then its tail waves to the right, which means it is safe to approach. If she sees a dominant dog, then the movements shifted to the left signal “I think I’ll go” (photo Marcello Siniscalchi/University of Trieste).
Many researchers are still arguing whether emotional asymmetry of the brain can manifest itself in any animal other than humans, in whom the left side of the brain began to evolve along with the development of speech.
Previous work by various scientists has shown that in most animals, including birds, fish and frogs, the left hemisphere of the brain is responsible for positive emotions and so-called energy enrichment. For example, in humans, the left hemisphere is associated with feelings such as love, affection, peace and security, when they appear, the heart rate slows down, and the body experiences a feeling of peace and satisfaction.
The right hemisphere, on the contrary, is responsible for behavior related to energy consumption and output. For people this is: fear, depression, flight, physiologically expressed by rapid heartbeat and stopping the functioning of the digestive system.
Since the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body, and the left hemisphere controls the right side, the asymmetry of body movements is opposite to the activity of the brain hemispheres.
Apparently for this reason, many birds search for food using their right eye to a greater extent (left hemisphere, saturation of the body), and control the presence of predators around them with their left eye.
The right side of the human face tends to express happiness, while the muscles of the left side show all the sorrows and sorrows. For left-handers, however, the opposite is true.
Top view - the video camera records the angle of deviation (photo by The Center for Neuroscience/University of Trieste).
“But the dog’s tail is located on the midline of the body, neither on the left nor on the right half. Can it show emotional asymmetry?” - asks Dr. Richard J. Davidson, head of the laboratory of emotional neurophysiology at the University of Wisconsin (University of Wisconsin).
Italians Giorgio Vallortigara, a neurophysiologist from the University of Trieste (Università degli Studi di Trieste) and his veterinary colleagues from the University of Bari (Università degli Studi di Bari) Angelo Quaranta and Marcello Siniscalchi answered the question Davidson and showed that it can.
To do this, they placed pets in cages equipped with cameras that accurately recorded the angle of deviation of the tail from the midline of the body. They were then presented with 4 different stimuli: their owner, an unfamiliar person, a cat, and an unfamiliar “dominant” dog.
In each case, the dog observed the person or animal for one minute. Then the experimenters took a break for one and a half minutes, and then the next picture followed. The experiments lasted 25 days with 10 sessions daily.
When they saw their owners, the dogs vigorously waved their tails with a shift to the right side; when they saw a stranger, the movements also shifted to the right, but were not so frequent. The sight of a cat caused tail movements shifted to the right, but with less amplitude. If an aggressive unfamiliar dog (a large Belgian Shepherd) appeared nearby, the tails immediately reacted by moving to the left.
Thus, it can be assumed that the muscles of the right part of the tail are responsible for the expression of positive emotions, and the left - negative.
Australian neurophysiologist Lesley Rogers from the University of New England adds that brain asymmetry is observed not only in mammals, but also in many lower animals, from which life evolved to higher forms.
For example, bees learn better if they use their right antennae, Leslie says, and male chameleons show aggression by changing their body color when they look at another chameleon with their left eye. The toad is more likely to try to hide from a predator if it appears on the left (right hemisphere - fear), while it prefers to throw its tongue to the right when catching insects (left hemisphere - satiation).
Chickens use their left eye to search for food, and their right eye to look around and monitor dangerous situations. However, if chickens are raised in the dark, Rogers notes, they do not develop normal brain asymmetry.
Sheep are very good at recognizing faces and use the right hemisphere of their brain to distinguish between Dolly and Molly.
"Chimpanzees have the same emotional brain asymmetries as humans," says William D. Hopkins, a researcher at the Yerkes National Primate Center. According to him, when monkeys are excited, they often seem to scratch the left side of their body, thereby betraying strong negative emotions. Moreover, left-handed chimpanzees are more fearful than right-handed chimpanzees. Their dominant right brain makes them more cautious.
Brain asymmetry appears to be an ancient characteristic, Rogers generalizes. This asymmetry gives the organism a certain advantage for the survival of the species. After all, animals that can do two important things at the same time (for example, eat and watch out for predators) have an easier time surviving than those that are absorbed in only one thing. In addition, in animals with two cerebral hemispheres, functions are not duplicated, and nerve tissue is used with maximum benefit.
As you can see, the research, which at first glance was at most a candidate for an Ig Nobel Prize, has revealed some secrets of the evolution of the animal world. And in this case, the dog’s tail not only showed scientists what a dog’s mood is, but also, perhaps, prompted new research, because no one has yet proven that dogs do not have their own language.
