hint of muscle relaxation, facial softness, or averted eye contact.
It is well known in human psychology circles that body language, physical movement and even posture can directly affect our emotional state. In a rather neat experiment by researcher Fritz Strack in 1988, subjects were asked to rate how funny they found cartoons while they held a pen in their mouths. Participants consistently rated them as more humorous when they held the pen between their teeth, an action that forced their mouths into a semi-smile, than they did when they held the pen in their lips, which forced a partial frown. This study has since been replicated several times, all with the same fascinating results: facial expression can affect mood, rather than just the other way around. Still sceptical? Sit in a slumped position and hunch your shoulders forward. Let your head droop towards your chest. Sigh deeply once or twice. Look at your feet. How do you feel now? Perhaps it’s no accident that we describe the feeling this posture can engender as being ‘down’. Now, change your posture and see how it changes your state. Just try to be depressed while standing up tall, clapping your hands in front of you, smiling and keeping your shoulders back. Now look up and to the left. Walk about briskly. OK, you may feel a little silly, but humour me – the chances are you will feel much more cheerful.
Fearful dogs tend to keep their heads still while moving their eyes to follow anything they think may be threatening, so George clicked for Dave’s head turns, no matter how small. Scared dogs keep their ears pinned back to their heads, while relaxed and confident ones allow their ears to be in a relaxed but alert position, so George clicked ear movements too. Tension nearly always causes dogs to shut their mouths and hold their breath, or to stress pant – a bit like human hyperventilation. George clicked and treated Dave for a relaxed mouth and, when unsure what else to reward, simply for eating in the presence of someone scary.
In that first session, all I wanted Dave to learn was that good things can happen around a stranger. He had little idea why he was being clicked and treated, but he came as close to enjoying an outing as he ever had before, and despite the fact that I couldn’t risk getting up to see them out, I was pleased with our gentle progress. George went home armed with Dave’s body wrap and clicker, with instructions to reward calm and quiet behaviour whenever possible.
Over the next two months, George and I worked with Dave several times a week. Gradually, very gradually, the big dog began to relax in my presence and accept me moving about close to him. He would still startle if surprised by a sudden movement, but given enough space he would choose to back away from me rather than attempt to get me to move. However, we still needed to give him some different options when meeting other people.
George and I started to watch Dave for unconscious reactions when he felt fearful and defensive. We videoed his behaviour and watched it repeatedly for clues. The most obvious of these was a tendency to move backwards one or two tiny paces before coming forwards again in a barrage of lunging and barking. George used the clicker to mark the ‘backing up’ behaviour, and then reinforced or rewarded it with a piece of food. He needed to be pretty accurate, but the exquisite timing of the click allowed this and we soon began to see results. Indeed, by the end of the session Dave was backing away four paces instead of just two. I sensed we might have a chance of encouraging him to choose that option in a moment of panic and sent the pair home to practise once again.
The following week I arranged a home visit to see how Dave and George were getting on. In this new setting, Dave was once again unnerved by the presence of a stranger, and barked at me from behind the safety of a baby gate across the kitchen door. George ignored this completely, knowing that any attempts at intervention or ‘discipline’ would only fuel the big dog’s anxiety. Instead, once Dave’s initial fear had subsided, he was brought in on a long line to allow him freedom but also keep him under control. Instead of rushing at me, teeth bared and frothing with saliva, Dave’s new-found option kicked in. He took one look at me and gracefully retreated, by neatly reversing out of the room. Encouraged by his own success, and lured by the sounds of George and I chatting and laughing about this new development, Dave soon reappeared – peering round the edge of the door to see what was going on. This of course elicited a click and treat from George, which brought the big dog another couple of paces into the room.
For the next twenty minutes, Dave shuttled back and forth, in and out of the living room doorway, in forward and reverse gears. Finally, discovering that this was rather tiring, he decided to come right in and say hello. This was the break-through we needed. Allowing him to make his own decision about whether to retreat or approach seemed to give him new-found confidence, which in turn helped to bolster his emotional state when he was around new people and new situations. While Dave was never going to be a dog to wear his heart on his sleeve, at least he had a strategy to employ when the going got tough. Quite literally, the tough got going.
TOP TIPS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR DOG
» Learning any new language takes a little time and effort. Try to think about how your dog is feeling, rather than simply imposing a human interpretation.
» Basic play gestures, such as the play bow, in which the front end is held in a low stalking posture and the dog’s bottom stays in the air, are easy to spot once you know what to look for.
» Dogs clearly experience emotions, but don’t be fooled into thinking they are the same as ours. For example, most dogs that appear to be looking guilty are really showing fear.
» Watch out for stress symptoms in your dog, especially in new situations or those that could present a risk – such as around children. Stressed or anxious dogs may react defensively so be proactive in removing your dog from a situation in which he’s showing signs of being uncomfortable.
» Watching video footage of your dog allows you to view in slow motion, repeat clips and to watch without sound – all of which will help you to notice subtle aspects of your dog’s body language and facial expression.
» Dogs don’t understand human words, so if you shout at your dog it probably sounds to them as if you are barking encouragement.
» Your tone of voice is important when talking to your dog – low tones can sound gruff, while high-pitched sounds can be exciting – but your body language is even more crucial. For this reason, try not to bend over your dog or stand ‘square on’ facing a dog that is lacking confidence.
» Dogs watch our body language and facial expressions avidly. They can easily tell when we are engaged with them or not, and can be encouraged or intimidated by even small changes in our posture and movements.
» Dog wraps and T-shirts can be a helpful tool when treating dogs with fear-based problems – however, in my opinion, that’s no excuse to dress a dog up like a human just for amusement. Dogs definitely look and function best in their own ‘ready-made’ outfits.
All too often, dogs showing aggression are labelled as dominant. Their owners are told they have no control because their dogs lack respect for them, and that they must re-establish their leadership in all manner of ways that domestic dogs are meant to understand.
When I see a dog that is showing aggression, however, I take a different route. I look for the underlying emotional state – and this, in the vast majority of cases, starts out as fear. Fearful dogs would always rather avoid confrontation. They don’t want to take risks or escalate the threat they are experiencing. It’s dangerous. Avoidance is not possible in many situations – we block dogs’ opportunities for flight by having them on the lead, in a kennel, or tied up – and this means they are effectively forced to take defensive action.
Once this has happened and the behaviour has been reinforced, or rewarded, by relief and success, then of course it is going to happen again and again. Unfortunately, for some dogs this new strategy is enough to alter their emotional state from one of fear to one of satisfaction. Now
