# What is he 'saying'?



## Charliethree

These pics were taken within a 20 second time frame, and they speak 'volumes'. They show the natural progression of 'calming signals' in a dog that is faced with a situation that makes them feel nervous or threatened. Charlie was resting, and I approached him with the camera.






-curious, watching me 







-the 'look away' - ears back, tension in his face/body, head turned away slightly- tells me he is nervous - worried







- yawning - the 'look away' didn't work, so he is giving me a more obvious signal that he is become more nervous and is trying to calm himself.

These signals arise in many dog to dog (or dog to human) interactions when the dog is feeling nervous or threatened, they often happen quickly and are easy to miss if you aren't watching for them. The appropriate response to the 'look away' would have been to stop what I was doing and/or move away from him. I kept the camera on him and he responded with the more obvious 'yawn' telling me he was becoming more stressed with the situation, was trying to calm himself and he wanted me to stop, (which I did). Had I continued, he would have got up and moved away.
Our dogs 'speak' to us all the time, using body language, stress signals and calming signals - we owe it to them to listen.


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## Nairb

Bella does that too when I point a camera (actually my phone) at her. It's really hard to get a decent picture of her. I literally have to follow her around, and continuously hit the button, and hope one turns out. Once she realizes what's going on, she comes charging up to me.


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## Mandemetz

Odie is a camera ham. He actually poses believe it or not. The hard part is to keep him standing still!!


Sent from my iPhone using Petguide.com Free App


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## Pixie

Thank you for this post.

I find super important that people with dog are aware of the body language of their dogs! They say so much without speaking that sometimes it is hard for us to listen...


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## Buddy's mom forever

This is an excellent post. Pictures speak more than a thousand words. Thank you for "documenting" it.


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## Charliethree

'Lip licking' is another calming signal, most easily observed in dark or black faced dogs. A quick flip of the tongue over the nose or licking of the lips (unrelated to eating) is a sign the dog is in a stressful situation he is not sure how to deal with. He uses it to calm himself or to tell other dogs (or you) he is not sure of them or the situation.


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## Buddy's mom forever

Wow, never thought about that. Thank you so much!


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## Jessie'sGirl

Thanks for posting. Very interesting stuff. Do you know of any good books on this subject.


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## nolefan

On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals by Turid Rugaas. It is fascinating.

Amazon.com: turid rugaas calming signals: Books


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## Charliethree

Canine Body Language by Brenda Aloff is a good intro to dog to dog communication.
DVD: Calming Signals What Your Dog Tells You by Turid Rugaas


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## Karen519

*Charliethree*

Charliethree

Thank you so much for sharing this with us!


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## Jessie'sGirl

Thanks for the book suggestions. I'm really interested in this.


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## Wendy427

Excellent! Thanks for posting!


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## OutWest

Charliethree said:


> These pics were taken within a 20 second time frame, and they speak 'volumes'. They show the natural progression of 'calming signals' in a dog that is faced with a situation that makes them feel nervous or threatened. Charlie was resting, and I approached him with the camera.
> View attachment 129162
> -curious, watching me
> 
> View attachment 129170
> -the 'look away' - ears back, tension in his face/body, head turned away slightly- tells me he is nervous - worried
> 
> View attachment 129178
> - yawning - the 'look away' didn't work, so he is giving me a more obvious signal that he is become more nervous and is trying to calm himself.
> 
> These signals arise in many dog to dog (or dog to human) interactions when the dog is feeling nervous or threatened, they often happen quickly and are easy to miss if you aren't watching for them. The appropriate response to the 'look away' would have been to stop what I was doing and/or move away from him. I kept the camera on him and he responded with the more obvious 'yawn' telling me he was becoming more stressed with the situation, was trying to calm himself and he wanted me to stop, (which I did). Had I continued, he would have got up and moved away.
> Our dogs 'speak' to us all the time, using body language, stress signals and calming signals - we owe it to them to listen.


Too bad Cesar Milan doesn't read this forum. He might have not been bitten by the dog last season. 

(Sorry couldn't resist.) 

Thanks for the info. I find most humans interpret a dogs yawn as just a yawn. It pays to remember to not put our stuff onto other species.


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## Bentleysmom

I love this thread! But of course I learn something *every* time Charliethree posts anything!


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## goldensrbest

I have always thought that spirit jumps,because he is nervous, but he likes his picture taken, do dogs jump because they are nervous,i know when out walking him,his tail is between his legs,ears down,and he breaths heavy.


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## Charliethree

We take our dogs into our homes and hearts, and spend infinite amount of time teaching them what is 'appropriate' in 'our world', it only makes sense to try to understand what is going on with them in their 'world'.
This next photo is a young dog just rescued from a shelter. 






Eyes closed, tight, big 'yawn', head turned slightly away- totally overwhelmed by the situation and not sure what to do. He was asking for space - I gave it to him.


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## goldensrbest

I would love to know ,what you think about spirit.


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## Pixie

Pixie actually jumps when she is afraid of something and wants to go home. It is a bit her way of saying "get me away from here".

Of course that she also jumps when she is excited (still trying to stop that behavior when she greets my boyfriend), but somehow it is a different type of jump.

OutWest, about your yawning comment. Please correct me if I am wrong, but dogs also yawn by the sake of yawning right? Every morning after waking up Pixie gives a huge yawn! It is different from her stressed yawn. This one is a full open mouth with a sound that comes from really inside (if this means something...). It is like she is saying "aaaahhhhh I had a nice nap  )


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## Charliethree

goldensrbest said:


> I have always thought that spirit jumps,because he is nervous, but he likes his picture taken, do dogs jump because they are nervous,i know when out walking him,his tail is between his legs,ears down,and he breaths heavy.


Jumping up can be a result of being nervous or uncertain. My dog jumps up if startled or unsure of a situation, most often when on leash or in a room where his 'flight' option is removed.
When walking Spirit, it sounds like he is stressed, not feeling very confident about what is going on. Tail between the legs, panting out of context, (has not been exercising or is not hot) and ears lowered are all stress signals. Can be caused by lack of confidence, fear or physical discomfort.


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## goldensrbest

Charliethree said:


> Jumping up can be a result of being nervous or uncertain. My dog jumps up if startled or unsure of a situation, most often when on leash or in a room where his 'flight' option is removed.
> When walking Spirit, it sounds like he is stressed, not feeling very confident about what is going on. Tail between the legs, panting out of context, (has not been exercising or is not hot) and ears lowered are all stress signals. Can be caused by lack of confidence, fear or physical discomfort.


 Thank you, i think this is exactly right, i really want him to enjoy walking with me, what can i do to help him?


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## Charliethree

goldensrbest said:


> Thank you, i think this is exactly right, i really want him to enjoy walking with me, what can i do to help him?


Confidence building exercises can go a long ways to helping a dog feel more comfortable 'out there'. Training, practicing and rewarding basic obedience skills help the dog understand what is expected of him and build confidence. Teaching simple 'tricks', touch, shake a paw, weave (between your legs), anything the dog can easily succeed at, can help. Play is a great confidence builder and reward for a dog, fetch, find it, even hide and seek or tag. Each 'success' is a step in building more confidence in a dog.


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## OutWest

Pixie said:


> Pixie actually jumps when she is afraid of something and wants to go home. It is a bit her way of saying "get me away from here".
> 
> Of course that she also jumps when she is excited (still trying to stop that behavior when she greets my boyfriend), but somehow it is a different type of jump.
> 
> OutWest, about your yawning comment. Please correct me if I am wrong, but dogs also yawn by the sake of yawning right? Every morning after waking up Pixie gives a huge yawn! It is different from her stressed yawn. This one is a full open mouth with a sound that comes from really inside (if this means something...). It is like she is saying "aaaahhhhh I had a nice nap  )


Well I'd like to know what Charliethree says, but I think you're right. My dogs do yawn just for yawning, like humans. And I thinks it sounds/looks a bit different than a stress yawn. I guess the thing is to know your dog really well and be tuned into different environments to interpret what things like yawns mean at any moment.


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## Charliethree

Yes, dogs do yawn 'for the sake of yawning', but as you noticed it seems different - the dog will seem more relaxed over all and especially afterward. Know your dog, know what he looks like when he is relaxed and content, from there you can tell if your dog is stressed or not. Keep in mind that a little stress is not a 'bad' thing - after all learning is stressful to a degree and so is excitement.


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## Buddy's mom forever

Charliethree said:


> Confidence building exercises can go a long ways to helping a dog feel more comfortable 'out there'. Training, practicing and rewarding basic obedience skills help the dog understand what is expected of him and build confidence. Teaching simple 'tricks', touch, shake a paw, weave (between your legs), anything the dog can easily succeed at, can help. Play is a great confidence builder and reward for a dog, fetch, find it, even hide and seek or tag. Each 'success' is a step in building more confidence in a dog.


Thanks Charliethree for this useful info. How do you teach "touch"?


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## nolefan

Buddy's mom forever said:


> How do you teach "touch"?



hold your hand out with your palm facing toward your dog. Place a tiny bit of a treat under our thumb and hold it against your palm with your thumb. When the dog goes for the treat, say "touch" the minute his nose hits your skin and release the treat. Keep practicing and you will eventually be able to stop using the treat, just make sure when you transition that he still gets a treat whenever he 'touches'. If his nose doesn't make contact with skin, no treat.


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## Jessie'sGirl

I ordered the two books recommended in this thread and they arrived Friday. Very interesting reading. 
Jess likes to stay close to me but is not a cuddler. Yesterday morning I gave him a little hug. He did the " look away".


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## Charliethree

Jessie'sGirl said:


> I ordered the two books recommended in this thread and they arrived Friday. Very interesting reading.
> Jess likes to stay close to me but is not a cuddler. Yesterday morning I gave him a little hug. He did the " look away".


Dogs are extremely tolerant of our social 'ineptness', there are a lot of things we do (and are acceptable in human interactions), that may make them feel uncomfortable with us- hugging (bending over top or putting our arms around them and restraining gently), head petting, eye contact can be perceived as a threat to a dog especially if it is from a stranger. But we can and should teach them that these behaviors from us are good things by pairing them with rewards, so that when they occur when encountering a stranger or a child (children love to hug dogs and almost always, it is human nature, make eye contact) they are less likely to respond negatively to that person.


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## OutWest

I read the book on calming signals, and really enjoyed it. Igot some other books too. See thread here. I'm going to post some of what I learn...helps me remember it to take notes. 

http://www.goldenretrieverforum.com...dogs-what-im-reading-lengthy.html#post2036866


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## Charliethree

There are many great books out there once you start looking for them.

Feisty Fido - Help for the Leash Reactive Dog - Patricia B McConnell.
How Dogs Think - Stanley Coren
Dogs are from Neptune - Jean Donaldson.
The Other End of the Leash- Patricia B. McConnell


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## davew

Mandemetz said:


> Odie is a camera ham. He actually poses believe it or not. The hard part is to keep him standing still!!


My pal Jack (now passed) used to pose also.. he'd stay still for ages too


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