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Understanding canine body language can make animal interactions safe
- 1. Understanding Canine Body Language Can Make Animal Interactions Safe William R. Rawlings & Associates 11576 South State Street Bldg. 401, Draper, Utah, 84020 (801) 553-0505
- 2. Once a dog bites a person, the dog's owner is often the first to say they had no idea their beloved pooch was going to attack. Animal experts, however, state that there is a good chance their pet was exhibiting signs of distress, but the owners didn't notice. A study published in the journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science suggests that understanding the way dogs convey distress may reduce the likelihood of dog bites in both adults and children. Canine Signaling Training Helps People Understand Dogs Better Psychologists from the University of Lincoln came up with a project consisting of three phases involving a group of parents and children aged five, four, and three years old. In the first phase, the psychologists asked each group to watch short dog video clips showing various behavioral signals, ranging from happy pooch actions to conflict-escalating behaviors, such as snarling and growling. After the video show, the researchers requested the participants to rate their perception of dog behaviors from “very happy” to “very angry/unhappy.” The groups then joined a training phase where they watched the same clips again. This time, the videos included details explaining the kind of behavior the canine was exhibiting. An example is a worried- looking dog clip followed by a safety message. After the training phase was over, the researchers asked participants to undergo a test to establish their judgment of canine behavior. The psychologists tested the participants again six months after and a year after to determine if the training provided a lasting effect.
- 3. The findings revealed that before the training phase, kids had more difficulty interpreting canine distress signals correctly. Fifty-three percent of three-year-olds misinterpreted high-risk signals like snarling and growling. The results showed that 17 percent of the parents also misunderstood these behaviors. After the training intervention, however, both adults and children displayed a better understanding of dog behavior. The psychologists found the most improvement on conflict-escalating signals. Before training, only 55 percent of four-year-olds interpreted high-risk behaviors correctly. This number rose to 72 percent post-training. The figure increased to 76 percent 12 months after the training, suggesting that the training has a lasting effect. Warning Signs a Dog is About to Bite The warning signs a canine displays may appear subtle (and even friendly) to untrained individuals. An article by BarkPost provides body language examples that indicate a dog may attack: Raised Fur – A dog is on the verge of biting when it raises its fur. The raised hackles suggest that the pooch is unhappy with what is going on around them. Rigid Body – A canine attack may be imminent if every muscle in its body becomes stiff. A rigid posture indicates that it is highly uncomfortable with its surroundings. Wagging Tail – While a wagging tail is usually an indication of happiness, it could also mean that the pooch is on edge. A dog is likely to bite when it slowly wags its raised tail while the rest of the body remains perfectly still. Professor Kerstin Meints, the lead researcher, says that the project is the first to provide intervention to improve people's abilities to interpret canine signals accurately.