page_title: Dog communication
section_title: Tail
hierarchical_section_title: Dog communication / Visual / Tail
caption_attribution_description: Deutscher Retriever Club, Bezirksgruppe Kamen, Übungsgelände Heeren-Werve, Datum/Uhrzeit: 10.07.2011 14:56:00
context_page_description: Dog communication is the transfer of information between dogs, as well as between dogs and humans. Behaviors associated with dog communication are categorized into visual and vocal. Visual communication includes mouth shape and head position, licking and sniffing, ear and tail positioning, eye gaze, facial expression, and body posture. Dog vocalizations, or auditory communication, can include barks, growls, howls, whines and whimpers, screams, pants and sighs. Dogs also communicate via gustatory communication, utilizing scent and pheromones.
  Humans can communicate with dogs through a wide variety of methods. Broadly, this includes vocalization, hand signals, body posture and touch. The two species also communicate visually: through domestication, dogs have become particularly adept at "reading" human facial expressions, and they are able to determine human emotional status. When communicating with a human their level of comprehension is generally comparable to a toddler. Humans can artificially alter how dogs communicate with other dogs and with humans by surgically cropping their ears and docking their tails.
context_section_description: Tail held high - communicates confidence, arousal, and willingness to be approached by other dogs or humans
  Tail horizontal, pointing away from the dog but not stiff – signals attentiveness.
  Tail horizontally straight out, stiff, and pointing away from the dog – displays an initial challenge that could lead to aggression if feeling threatened or anxious.
  Tail up, between the horizontal and vertical position – conveys dominance .
  Tail up and slightly curved over back – signals confidence; seen in a dominant dog that feels in control.
  Tail held lower than horizontally but still some distance off from the legs, perhaps with an occasional swishing back and forth – an unconcerned, relaxed dog.
  Tail down, near hind legs, legs straight, tail swings back and forth slowly – dog feeling unwell, slightly depressed or in moderate pain.
  Tail down, near hind legs, hind legs bent inwards to lower the body – expresses timidity, apprehension, or insecurity.
  Tail tucked between legs – expresses fear, anxiety, or nervousness; can also be a ritualized pacifying signal to fend off aggression from another dog.
  Tail fast wagging – excitement.
  Slight tail wag, each swing of only a small size – greeting.
  Broad tail wag – friendly.
  Broad tail wag, with wide swings that pull the hips from side to side – happy greeting.
  Slow tail wag with tail at half-mast – unsure of what to do next, insecure.
  Tail wagging is also recognized as a calming signal.
  Tail wagging to the left side of the body - the dog senses a negative situation, such as unfamiliar dogs or people.
  Tail wagging to the right side of the body - the dog feels comfortable and safe.
  Dogs are said to exhibit a left-right asymmetry of the tail when interacting with strangers, and will show the opposite right-left motion with people and dogs they know.
  It is equally important to consider the breed and the morphology of the dog when determining what each tail position truly means. Ability to move their tails can be different among different breeds due to the fact that humans can dock their tails or remove them completely.
caption: A dog rolls on its back and rubs its shoulders on the ground to display contentment[1]:199
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