Is My Dog Smiling at Me?
When you walk into your home after a long day, you can tell your canine companion is happy to see you by their excited energy and rapidly swinging tail. Sometimes our pups might follow that up with a hunched back with their head down, looking at you with a deep stare. You may feel like your pooch is trying to tell you something, but it’s not always easy to know what that is exactly. Understanding Fido’s body language can help you to better bond with them, so here are some tips on how to do just that.
Is That a Smile?
When you catch your furry friend with their lips curled up, you might wonder if they’re sending you a smile or not. According to the experts, dogs smile at us and learn how to do so because they’ve observed us doing it! Plus, when we catch our canines flashing us a smile, we often reward them with verbal or edible praise – so that positive reinforcement encourages them to smile more as well. Bottom line, when you catch Fido smiling, it’s usually a sign of happiness and contentment.
Staring Contest
Although a direct stare can be a sign of aggression, the most common reason for a canine making direct eye contact with you is to simply get your attention. From there, however, you should be questioning why Fido is trying to get your attention and to understand that you’ll want to observe their body language. If your furry friend has a tense body and their head is down, they might be in pain. Or if your pooch is relaxed with an eager face, then it might be a plea for food or pets.
Won’t Meet Your Gaze
If your four-legged friend makes eye contact, holds your gaze, and then looks away – then this is typically a sign of submission. But if your dog never meets your gaze, then this is a significant indicator that they are nervous when it comes to engaging with you. If your pup is a rescue dog, then this could be due to poor experiences with humans in the past, or it might be because you recently scolded them. If your canine companion will let you, try to reassure them with positive words and pets.
Understanding your canine companion better, like knowing what their smile means, are great ways to help you become a better pet parent and increase the lasting bonding between you and your pup.
