Understanding Dog Body Language - Learn how to read dogs behavior better 

I like the fact that you combined the text on the screen with the videos depicting the behavior. I am recommending this video to others because often the signs are misinterpreted - such as a wagging tail - and they do not always mean that the dog is friendly!

I am a canine behaviorist. I just wanted to say this is the best video on canine body language I've seen so far! Great job! ^_^

She forgot to include this: When a dog's butt is up and the front body is down just like when they are stretching... it means that they want to play... if a dog does the play signal to another dog and the other dog gives the same signal, it means that they both want to play...

So I've been working at a dog kennel for 2 years now and I learned how to read dog behavior/body language over time. I think it's very important to understand not only your dog but other people's dogs. I see people who come pet a dog they just met from not only over their heads but also towering over them and that's a great way to intimidate a new dog and possibly get bit too. You should always get down to their level (Kneel down) and hold our a flat palm just barely under their chin. This gives them the chance to see you at eye level and they can monitor your movement. If they sniff your hand and approve then you may pet under their chin or their cheeks and make your way to the back/neck area and THEN pet the top of their heads. If they sniff your hand and turn away like this video mentions, don't make any more moves until the dog shows interest in you. It's really crazy how much a dog's behavior can tell you about the dog. Some dogs take a few times to warm up to you and some dogs simply don't wish to be bothered and there's nothing you can do there. Let the dog be, it doesn't plan on making any new friends.

This was really helpful. I'm volunteering at an animal shelter, so recognizing stress behaviors & calming signals are great - but knowing when to act and what to do is critical. This is the piece I'm working on. Thank you so much!

You can always learn new things about dog body language and Kristin does a great job with video clips sharing stress behavior in dogs. I am constantly reminded that there are many people who try to humanize dog behavior and who do not understand how close they are to their dog blowing a fuse. Direct eye contact, smiling, high pitched voice, leaning over the dog, it's a recipe for disaster. Highly recomment watching to learn the stress signals. Lip licking, staring into space, ground sniffing, avoidance, the 'statue', panting, sweaty paws... all signals that humans need to recognize.

I see a lot of this behavior in my schnauzer/poodle mix. She was bit pretty badly a couple years back and still has anxiety issues around other dogs (she tends to distrust and fear all other dogs now sadly). Great video to help me understand some of what she's going through.

Thanks for this video! We have 2 boxers we are introducing to each other right now. One is a 3yo female (she's been an only dog for 6 months...had do put 13yo boxer down in Feb) and the other is an 18 month old male. Both are spayed/neutered, however, the male was just neutered the week before we brought him home. It's been a challenge, but it looks like we are going the right direction in our correction of behavior, etc. I wanted to look this morning for something that showed just what you have in the video, as we are giving it a month to make sure he is a good fit for us. We've had him 2 days now and we already see a large improvement. Thanks again!

I have studied body language in humans and dogs. I did like this video - however... there are some things I would like to point out about bl. Say for instance the folding arms across chest can mean a person is closed off or guarded or uncomfortable with what is being said to them or even maybe folding arms across chest is an individuals resting stance etc...(goes for other b.l in humans) Same with a yawn (or other b.l) in dogs... can mean self comforting before going for a walk or stay out of my space - even a prelude to a bite - etc - Reading body language in any species is to be read along with circumstances/personality/surroundings. One can't just say this body language means this - without looking at the entire situation of the individual (dog, cat, horse, bearded dragon, human etc). But you did paint a great general picture of body language in dogs - I only wish you would have pointed out that the same body language can mean a variety of things. Maybe you did - but did not catch it. Correct me if I am wrong. I love constructive criticism - it is how we learn new things and keeps us humble. Right? I was training a dog (really teaching the owners) to learn how to calmly wait before going outside for walk. This will help keep dog submissive and calm during walks. This particular dog is a very high strung anxious dog - I was showing the the owners how to calm the dog before going outside. I have done this a billion times with a variety of dog breeds. This dog was a pit mix and very strong. This technique is vital with strong dogs because someone - or dog - can get hurt if not calm before walk. Obviously. As we waited at the door - the dog was doing marvelous - sit position - mouth open - lolling tongue - great! But couple high pitched barks demanding to go- I knew he was not fully relaxed (we had only waited two minutes- this dog would have been completely relaxed a learn patience after maybe one more minute- this dog is alert and eager to please everyone) - However, after the owner of dog saw your video where a yawn means anxiety she stopped the training session as soon as her dog yawned at the door and pretty much fired me on the spot. Because she didn't want her poor baby anxious. Needless to say - the dog was simply self comforting...which was great he was learning to do this on his own and not demanding by pulling. He never pulled once on his leash. I held it with two finger - as I showed the owner. This type of b.l in canines in this situation is much like a person with anxiety disorder that shakes there leg while sitting - to comfort themselves... but they are learning to be in a place they need to be and taking strides to self comfort... that is awesome! After being in that situation several times - and self comforting - both a human and a dog will learn how to comfort self without becoming overly anxious and the yawning and leg shaking will lessen and maybe even stop. Like a person with anxiety disorder that does not force self into uncomfortable situation - taught comforting behaviors - they may become agoraphobic. A dog also will become neurotic if not trained to overcome uncomfortable situations. Don't just automatically take a dog out of an uncomfortable situation - if it is not dangerous to the dog or others. It is a recipe for disaster and a very sad life for a dog. Sadly - these owners still have not mastered the walk with this poor dog. The man cracked his patella after the dog pulled him over on a walk - now the dog is locked up all day (a lonely b.y.d = backyard dog). If only they knew a yawn was not always a bad thing. It would have taken me five minutes to show them how to properly calm and walk their dog buddy.

I feel like humans put so much personification onto dogs that we don't understand what a dog is really saying or how it really thinks.

I'm a trainer but I typically only train obedience. I want to go further into the behavior aspect so your videos are really great. They confirm what I'm seeing communicated. I have trained a successful protection dog and a successful PTSD dog. I am now involved in rescue and I want to do everything I can to help the dogs. So much of that required reading the body language and then determining the best resolution. Thank you so much for your videos!

Love both the part 1 and part 2 of these videos. Being able to watch actual video clips of real dogs displaying the body language signals is so valuable. I'm a dog trainer too and I require all my clients to watch them.

Smart dog at the end, feels in danger so what does it do ? Makes the big one happy !

Thank you Kristin for putting together this video. Actually seeing the body language displayed between dogs is so much better than reading about it. No disrespect to books. I'm looking forward to your next edition on this subject.

i know this is old but i just wanted to say thank you! i recently got a job at a doggy daycare/boarding facility, and while i have dogs of my own and i know key body language, the smaller nuances can give me a bit of trouble. i am receiving training but i've been doing research and taking notes; this is the best video i've seen! you explain everything extremely well and note all the little cues that add up to how a dog is feeling. i can't thank you enough-i'll be able to keep the dogs safe because of people as awesome as you!

Lip licking is not always saying "I'm uncomfortable" , sometimes they do it to say "everything is OK, I'm fine, I want you to feel OK with me"

I love this video! I have worked with dogs in a veterinary setting for over 5 years and I admit I have only fully learned this "secret language" in the past two years....I don't know how I ever worked with dogs before I had this knowledge!!

Very clear and easy to understand video. As one viewer already mentioned, by adding text/audio to the image, one can easily adopt the concept/idea. Plus the videos are great too! Many thanks for this!

In the language of dogs, the yawn is often used as a calming signal. ... Your dog may yawn repeatedly when he's waiting in the vet's office as a way of dealing with nervousness. Sometimes dogs yawn in anticipation of something enjoyable, such as a walk-this is a way of controlling his enthusiasm.

I very happy to have been shown all the subtleties of dog body language, everyone knows the big, obvious ones. As someone who has never had a dog, and will soon have to socialize a puppy, this is all very important to know and watch out for, thank you very much!

This video, I've found, is also helpful with reading cat-on-cat interactions. Sure, they have different kinds of body language, but the clip with the two pitbulls, for example, helped me to recognize when one of my cats is trying to tell the other cat he's crossed a line during playtime, and I was able to separate them before anyone got too upset. It can be really hard for a lot of people to tell when an animal has crossed a line during play, so thank you so much for including those parts!

Trainer and Behaviorist here, excellent video. great examples and clearly explained!!

Visual clips of actual interactions are SO important. Just writing about it is often so useless. I feel so sorry for dogs whose owner are clueless and let anything happen to their dog.

Im glad 1M ppl saw this, this is probably one of the most important things you need to learn in life

THANK YOU for making this video! It's very helpful. I just recently started work at a doggy daycare where dogs interact with each other all the time. I knew the basics of signs of dogs not wanting to play and being stressed out, like the stiff bodies, growling, showing teeth, yawning, and so on.. but there have been times where I got confused as to whether one of the dogs wanted to play with the other or not. Your video has helped it make more sense to me. :)

Thank you!! I always get worried when I'm walking my dog and I have an encounter with another dog, since my dog is quite big and really playful he can be a bit much for other dogs sometimes, but what worried me the most was when to intervene and knowing what was okay for him to be doing and what wasn't. This will definitely help a lot :)

Makes a lot of sense, at the ending you can see the dog shake off, like shaking of the stress he had just like you said before. Great stuff!

Thank you! This video is so informative. We adopted two puppies for the first time and we were nervous with the way they play, the high pitched barks, so seeing many samples and warning signs helped alot

according to this, my dog is nervous, anxious, scared, or angry 100% of the time.

This is such a helpful and insightful video, thanks so much for sharing!

Hi Kristin I just found your channel . I have border collies and like you have studied canine behaviour in depth Won training awards etc So good to find somene who knows their stuff . Well done. I recently lost my eldest to cancer and as you know this can ,if allowed,really disrupt the pack. Zelly had to be put to sleep with severe cancer.I've trained all my dogs in service/assistance work.My Blue Merles do the day shift and though Zelly has passed they still respect where she use to sleep on my bed. I really believe we as humans need to take time to understand out dogs and not humanise them. I've subscribed and look forward to watching more. I found when the girls were growing up and sorting out pack places that simply saying "enough" would stop "play" that was getting a bit enthusiastic.Obviously I train my dogs from day one so that makes it all much easier. Keep up the great work :)

Training humans is the hardest! These wonderful creatures are sharing their world with us and we know so little about Them!

Fan -freaking -tastic video!! I'm a regular foster and I am going to send this to ALL new adopters from now on!! Thank you so much for making this video. It is much much appreciated

Great video. It helps me to understand dogs better. Obviously they can't "talk" to us, so we have to learn THEIR language so we can understand what they are telling us.

This video is so helpful! I just got a rescue greyhound and i was trying to do some research to understand how he’s feeling. This is really great thank you so much ☺️

As a visual learner, this was very helpful.

This helped me a lot especially the one with if you put your face in the dogs face

Best vid on dog body language I've seen so far... well done!

*I fought my dog once, He beat me. Now I sleep in a cage.*

This is so good! I wish more people would watch videos like this instead of ignoring their dogs' body language.

Thanks! For putting together many of the behaviors and tagging them..

When I was a kid I never feared dogs, in fact I played with them. Now I am really afraid of dogs. And I'm 25. I'm watching these videos to gains some confidence.

Please keep these body language videos up forever! I share them with clients allllll the time.

I like this video, and agree three mode (text + video + vocal) demonstration helps. Especially appreciated are the intro of what we are about to see. Rather than read, I'm listening and watching the dog. But later, I can play back and read. Lip lick, tail wag, and even yawning are often mis-communicated.

My dog doesn’t mind the face thing he always ATTACKS my face with kisses 😂😂😂 I think that just depends on the dog

The part where the lady is talking in a frantic voice in Greek to a tied up puppy is quite disturbing!

I've been working with dogs for 30 years and I chose to take on Catahoulas for personal companionship 4 years ago. Your stuff is good. But my Catahoulas seem to yawn with no rhyme or reason. But mostly self soothing when the get excited. Great videos.

Hi Kristin, Thank you! I will do so shortly.

"We'll be talking about fear and stress in dogs" Dog in background **SNORE**

This was very helpful. I am dealing with a 1 yr old GSD that is extremely hyper (my Riddlin pup) and my 5 month old GSD who is calm. Then there is a a 2 1/2 yr old GSD female that I just rescued from a puppy mill and she has been caged her whole life. She is not too interested in play but will join in on chasing and trapping my 5 month old. It was pointed out to me from a FB post that my pup was terrified and trying to hide. Once I watched it with this new information and no sound I was horrified that what I thought was play was doing major damage to my pup. So thank you for this information.

This video is the best video I have found until today to “read” dog language. Thank you!

Super video! Thanks

Thank you for making this!

Great video! I would've loved to donate some clips myself, but i guess i didn't notice when you asked for them. I might just have been inattentive when you asked for them though :) Reading your own dog comes naturally i would guess, at least it did to mee :) My challenge is reading the other dogs my dog is interacting with. Especially when there are more then one. Luckily its easy to look at my own dog and see how she reacts to the others, so if she is scared or uneasy i would step in, but if she's glad and playful the opposite dog won't be aggressive so if thats the case theres never a problem :P

Thank you explain these dog cues. This really helped me to understand.

This was incredibly informative and wonderful behaviorists approach to dogs. THANK YOU!

Thank you so much for this video.....I have a pitbull/vallybulldog mix, and she`s vary anxious ....this video has REALLY Helped, i enjoy your explanations and it is vary helpful

I am thinking of raising a dog, this is very helpful!

I have found describing this to humans infuriatingly frustrating. It is so lost on people that if you listen and see the whole picture dogs are communicating. So many people stressing and not listening to their animals and most frustrating not listening to owners who want you to respect their dog. I don't want people petting because they don't know enough to know weather my dog is consenting to pet or telling you to back off they just assume it feels good for the dog to get man handled by a totally strange unfamiliar mammal. Thank you for explaining this so well and I hope this goes viral. (though it's even far more complex so I hope you keep making videos)

I really enjoy your videos and the way you explain everything in a easy to listen too manner. Keep up the good work, I have also utilised some of your methods with my 7 month old Rhodesian ridgeback and they work really well.

I'm having a hard time reading my Lab's signals. We moved in with my parents to help take care of them as they age but my lab, Murphy, who has never hurt anyone (he's 7 years old and has been fixed) has lunged at my parents, snapped at them thought thankfully, never drawn blood. Since then, I've been careful to keep their interactions very limited. It doesn't help establish any kind of connection and only increases the disconnect but they are elderly and I can't have my dog hurting them. I'm at a loss as to what to do.

2:30 woah Tibetan mastiff

Awesome video. I've had dogs all my life, but I totally learned something here. Thanks for the upload.

Thank you! Seeing the behaviours and listening to you is very helpful.👍👍

My fur baby and I were recently attacked by another dog. My Daisy is a pit bull rescue used for breeding and as a bait dog. She’s now very timid about even going on walks. How do I integrate her back into being social?

My dog rolls on her back, but for belly rubs 😂

Great tools in dog communication . I watched part 2 and had to find this part 1 . After watching this . I had to favorite it .

brilliant description of dogs behaviour. thank you.

Whenever my dog goes up to another dog she stays really still has her ears back and keeps her focus on the dog

so when there are those signals against us what should we do

The best videos I have seen in dog behavior..They give multiple examples and suggestions.

Thanks! thinking about getting into a career dealing with dogs this was helpful

what is we, humans, start doing the lip lick or the yawn to them. will they know we (humans) are trying to talk to them in their ways?

I was just wondering what was the breed of the large black dog at 7:11, We have a dog coming into our garden and excreting in the back garden..She knocks over the bins and its troublesome so we called her cheeky 😂

Thanks for your insights into what our dogs are trying to tell us!

Nice informative Vid! My dog sighs when he cant figure something out. When my dog comes up to and stares at me while I'm sitting, I'll ask him what he wants. If he wants to eat , he will lick his lips. If he is thirsty he will lick his lips and squint. If he wants to go for a walk he moves his head in a "what's up" kind of gesture. I love my dog. I pay very close attention to him and He knows I know what hes telling me. We have a VERY strong bond.

When a dog rubs his face against you or presses his face against you, it's a positive sign, right?

I love this video, but doesnt it seem like that dogs will lip lick like for everything ?

Finally a video with dog in motion. It is much easier for humans to see the signals in motion vs. pictures. Thank you so much for sharing! I have tried really hard to create my own for my students, just not so great at editing videos, so you just saved me time and effort! Keep up the great work and the great videos....we love them @ Doggy Haven.

Great video! Thank you, I learned a lot.

oh god now I feel bad about my dog because I didn't know what stressed looked like and he does the symptons of stress all the time

When I put my face close to my dogs he licks it. Is this a bad sign?

Great video. So far I have seen the best presented real situations. Thanks for sharing!

Great advice and clips!

The only issue with the "agressive" white border is that they are rewarding it for the negative communication that is why it did the behaviour again..... not hating but you should re evaluate your dog communication in some ways.

If your own dog isn't licking your face when you put your face next to it, you need to work on trust building and leadership skills.

This is an amazing video! thank you

According to this, my dog approaches me for head rubs to feel uncomfortable lol

i still didn't understand a thing. it's like a dog stick his tongue for everything

Thank you so much for uploading this!

Great Video!!! Love the real world examples on video and the explanation included during the demonstrations.

If only Cesar Millan would have known this right? haha

This is super helpful as someone who just started working with dogs and was told to start to watch some videos.

Great video! Clear examples and explanations. Thanks!

To be watched 'till fluent. Thank you so very much Kristin!

I'm looking to get a dog in the next year or so, but I've never had one before - I wish there was a class I could take or something!! I know there are classes in my area for new dog owners, but that's when you've already adopted/bought the dog. I want to know at least the basics BEFORE I take over full responsibility for a living being. So grateful for videos like this, I'm really learning a lot!!

Thank you for the resources.

Very amazing. I loved observing your youtube video. I am looking forward to viewing some extra in the near future.

Excellent video! Thanks for sharing your insight.

thank you so much for this informative video, I just adopted an american staffy from the shelter, and i need to read her signs to avoid any problems with other dogs or my small niece and nephew. THANK YOU it was very easy to follow and you werent talking too fast, please make more!