The focus of this lesson is to learn the basics of canine body language. This forms the foundation for everything you will you will learn in the remaining lessons of this course.
We will use the traffic signal colors – red, yellow, and green as a tool to help you learn to classify dog language behaviors. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to correctly identify the three basic body postures, different ear and tail positions and different aspects of a dog’s facial expressions. You will learn to classify each of these according to their appropriate traffic signal category. Additionally, you will learn the importance of scent and vocal communication in dogs and classify sounds by the traffic signal category.
Dog Language
We all know that dogs communicate with vocalizations which is easy to hear when dogs are boarding or growling. However, it’s important to understand the dog communication is much more than that. Much of dog language is communicated just with the body and is very subtle and occurs very fast. You are going to learn how to read dog body language throughout the remainder of this lesson.
- Dogs communicate with body postures, facial expressions and vocalizations
- Much of the language is subtle and occurs extremely fast
- To avoid miscommunication we need to learn their language
Dog Management Traffic Signal Chart
- Green indicates go. When you see green management behavior, that means you can approach the dog easily and without any fear
- Yellow indicates the dog is showing some behavior that causes a means for concern. You want to slow down, watch the dog for signs of stress, alert, or warning signals
- Red indicates a high-risk situation. You want to stop your approach and be very cautions in what you are doing
Management Signal | Color | Meaning |
---|---|---|
Green | Positive situation for approach and dog management. | |
Yellow | Concern for miscommunication or conflict. Monitor situation with caution. Watch for signs of stress, fear, alert, or other warning signals. | |
Red | High risk, work to diffuse or safely exit. Risk of conflict is increased die to high arousal, extreme stress or fear. |