Learn to recognize your dog's signals, especially when your dog is trying to warn you about something. Your dog's signals are important to know as a dog owner, as it can help you avoid unnecessary and potentially dangerous situations.
The dogs signals
By being able to read your dog's signals, you can better understand and communicate with your dog. Dogs constantly give signals about their mood to communicate with their owner or other dogs. The most important signals are the warning signals, which we should be particularly attentive to in order to avoid unfortunate situations. Your dog may give warning signals when it feels threatened, pressured, or nervous in a given situation.
Some of the warning signals include
- a snarling mouth with short corners
- a high tail carriage (which can be mistaken for a wagging tail, but here the tail is wagged quickly and with short movements)
- growling and showing teeth
- ears forward
- large eyes with a direct gaze,
- a wrinkled forehead, and a bristling coat.
The above signals indicate that the dog is warning you. If you are not attentive to the dog's warning signals, the dog may feel compelled to make a mark and then bite. In such situations, you should NEVER touch the dog or move down to its level. The dog may be so locked in and unaware of what is happening around it that it misunderstands your action, and you risk the dog becoming aggressive and biting you.
Read our article: Signals - communicate with your dog
Warning signals - when the dog is on a leash
If you experience any of the above signals from your dog while on a leash, you should use exercise 1 out of the 6 basic exercises. Exercise 1 - sit at my side - is your anchor in such a situation. Keep the leash short and remain calm. It is important that you do not talk, touch or look down at the dog.
Focus on the other dog and stand still. If your dog is free, the situation will be completely different - it is difficult to handle as the dog will be out of reach. Never let your dog loose if you know it can exhibit this behavior. It can cost one's life. Learn to recognize your dog's signals and always think twice if your dog can handle this freedom. Be a responsible and sensible dog owner.
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