Testing your knowledge about
Dog Communication:
What does it mean that dog raises its hackles? What does it mean when a dog growls? What does it mean when the dog gives you a paw? How will a dog naturally interpret a human smile? What does a hug mean to a dog? What is the first spot you want your hand to touch a
dog when greeting it, after letting it sniff your hand first? Do you know why dogs bark?
(No, it is not a threat signal...)
(No, it does not indicate aggression...)
(No, it is not a greeting gesture...)
(No, it is not perceived as any kind of friendly
gesture...)
(No, it is not an expression of love or affection...)
(No, it is not the top of its head...)
(There are at least 20 different reasons, but they all have a
common denominator that is NOT rooted in aggression!)
Is it important to know this? Well, for your dog, it is VERY
important that you know too! Dogs are very social, and they have
a very rich language they use for communication. They do not
have the ability to learn to bark understandably in English,
but Dog Language is not that difficult to learn for a person!
There are quite a few pitfalls you need to avoid -
as the above examples show. Natural human body language
does not always translate well directly...
Dogs are fortunately very forgiving. They sincerely try
to understand what you attempt to express, so even if you have a thick "accent", they
don't care! As long as you communicate something that makes
sense to them.
Your dog will love you for trying!
Click on the picture below to find out how you get the answers - for your dog's sake...