According to a recent study, scientists have confirmed what dog lovers have known for ages: dogs are communicating with us. In a study of 37 different dogs and 242 videos of the owners interacting with their dogs, scientists discovered dogs have the same basic movements to express what they wanted. Scientist focused on 19 specific gestures to carry a message resulting in “apparent satisfactory outcome” for the dog. Translation: when the dog communicates with their pet parent, their mom and dad know exactly what they need and act accordingly to the satisfaction of the dog. Here are the top 4 things dogs are trying to tell us:
#1: Scratch Me
The most common request dogs communicated was to be scratched, rubbed or petted. According to the study, there were 14 different gestures to communicate this. The most common way was simply rolling over to expose their belly. Sometimes they also put their heads forward or down to scratch behind their ears. Sometimes they would use their paws or turn their head as if to say “scratch me here.”
#2: Give Me Food Or Drink
Dog owners will not be surprised to find out one of the most common thing our fur-babies are trying to tell us is: “I’m hungry, please feed me.” This communication had the most variety of ways to tell their pet parents, depending on the dog. The head tilt was most often used to gesture as if to say, "When is dinner?" Other ways of communicating this were nudging their dog food bowl, sitting on their hind legs with paws up, putting their head under your chin to nudge it and pressing their nose against your face or body of the human.
#3: open the door
Dogs need to go outside so they are saying, “Please open the door.” This is usually demonstrated with a head turn or simply sitting by the door. Most would agree this is the most obvious message our dogs deliver. The response is delivered without hesitation or confusion from pet parents.
#4: Get My Toy/Bone
Every dog loves attention. Playing with your dog is the best way you can show them the undivided attention they desire. The most common way dogs show playfulness is to bring a toy directly to you or to strike the downward dog yoga pose with a wagged tail. Many dogs may jump from side to side in a playful way. This is all fun for your dog so be sure to engage when they do this. Plus, it will put you in a better mood no matter how your day may have gone!
Honorable Mention: I Love You
Surprisingly not mentioned in the study, but most pet parents would agree something often communicated by our dogs is how much they love us. This is shown when we come back after being away any amount of time, as they greet us at the door with a wagging tail. Our dogs sit next to us, lean on us and sometimes sit right on us. They also look at us and hold our gaze. They raise their eyebrows when we talk to show interest in what we have to say. A dog’s love is one of the best parts of being a pet parent and the reward is our fur-babies show us they love us in many ways.
Overall, this study confirms what most of us already knew: our dogs really are communicating with us. The best part is: we understand.
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Looking for more guidance on what your dog is trying to communicate? We found this easy-to-understand chart by dog illustrator Lili Chin. This will show you some simple doggie language as interpreted by Chin and her Boston Terrier.
