Growling is one of many ways dogs communicate.

And growling, like many other communication signals, is often misunderstood by people.

Many people have problems understanding other people. There is conflict between families, communities and nations, because we don’t understand the others’ points of view. And we are all humans.

Conflicts between people and dogs, and dogs and dogs, could be prevented or averted if people would be able to accurately interpret what the dog is saying. Here are some common communication signals that’ll help you to understand your dog better.


A growl is a normal part of a dog’s communication and meant as warning, intended to get a response from the one the growl is directed to, or from the owner. It is never a submissive signal, but not necessarily a precursor to a bite. Growling is a warning, meant to avoid conflict and injury, but if the desired response doesn’t manifest, an attack can follow. Lower toned and prolonged growls come from a confident dog who is more likely to follow through with an attack.

Shorter duration growls signal a certain amount of insecurity. Sounds that are repeated in short intervals always signal arousal and urgency. A growl followed by a bark indicates that the dog is nervous. He calls for reinforcement. Interrupted and repetitive growls and barks indicate that the dog is in survival mode and will either fight or flee.

Dogs punished for growling unlearn to warn and often flash-bite; bite without warning. Growls signal that something is wrong: in either the relationship or present situation, or both. Neither punish nor ignore it, but address it, preferably with the help of an expert.


A hard mouth, taking treats hard, is a sign of high arousal. It can be your indication that your dog is becoming too charged up and you should take action.

If a dog is teased with food, for example if the hand that offers the treat retracts, the dog learns to snap for it – taking treats hard becomes a learned behavior.

A hard mouth can also mean that the dog was denied early socializing with other dogs and never learned inhibition and mouth control.


Barking - there are many reasons why a dog vocalizes. To alarm; calling for reinforcement is one of it. The alarm barks are in controlled intervals and intensify when the response isn’t coming, or cease if the trigger disappears.

The more excited the dog, the more he will bark. People are the same. Just think about spectators at a sport event. Feral and stray dogs bark less not because they are more wolfish, but because they are less stressed.

A dog that barks and growls low, with puckered lips, is ready to act on the warning, if he doesn’t get a response (or one he likes).

Frustration stress and panic barks are high-pitched and staccato like and typical for fence and chain barking.

Demand barks are lower in tone, spaced and directed to you. They can be combined with whining and pushiness.

Your response to a barking dog depends on the intention; why the dog is barking, and range from ignoring the dog to increasing or decreasing social distance to the trigger, or you.


Eye contact: No, your dog does not challenge you when she looks at you – at least most likely she isn’t. Dogs look because they are fearfully observing, attentive or want something. Rarely, they hard stare and mean to intimidate. Growling is a warning and shouldn't be punished. Offered, soft and prolonged eye contact is a sign of deep connection and shouldn't be discouraged either. Don't punish your dog for watching you, and don’t engage in a stupid stare-down competition. You are frightening your dog, loose attention and harm the relationship.

Dilated pupils mean arousal and excitement – it a sign of stress and tension, regardless if the cause for stress and excitement is positive or negative. A whale-eye, white sclera around pupils, indicates nervousness and panic. A flash snap/bite could follow.

Where your dog’s eyes focus, her mind is. And where the mind goes the body follows. A dog fixated on a trigger is worried, predatory, playful or aggressive and will act unless redirected. Staring with your dog in the same directing will increase his emotions. Instead, face your dog and/or shift your focus away from the trigger. Use your eyes and whole body to point away from the trigger and towards your dog, or opposite the trigger. Dogs use their whole body like people use hands and fingers, and also use their eyes to point to something interesting.


Tail – a lot of information can be gathered by watching what the tail does. Low wags signal submission, mid-wags relaxed friendliness, high wags confidence or conflict. Really fast wags are a sign of excitement and over arousal. A still tail a sign of tension. A tail up the belly indicates a very fearful dog. Sadly, in the name of beauty and idiotic breed standards, humans mutilate the tail and inhibit communication, which contributes to behavior problems.

Don’t only focus on the tip of the tail, but also watch the base of the tail’s position.


Watch your dog’s mouth and gain a lot of information. An open mouth is relaxed - a closed mouth signals tension, caution or focus, in various degrees. Watch for open/close mouth changes as the environment changes. If you dog clamps up, there is a potential problem. Observe how long it takes your dog to become relaxed again, go from closed to open mouth. It indicates the seriousness of the problem.

Lips pulled forward = confidence; neutral = concentrated and focused; pulled back = submission.

A panting dog is hot – either physically or emotionally.


Marking has several social meanings, one of it is to lay claim. But, it is not always a sign of superiority (traditional folks call it alpha behavior), but can also signal conflict, in which case marking is a stress relief – the dog feels better if surrounded by a familiar smell. Marking together is a sign of social bonding. A male and female mating wolf pair mark together, so do bonded dogs within one social group. It is not uncommon for female dogs to mark and lift their leg.

Mounting - like marking, can signal different things – and sexual arousal is often not it. And contrary to popular belief, dominance isn’t it either. Mounting, in many cases, is displaced social behavior. The dog feels awkward or insecure in a social setting and mounts because he is clueless about appropriate greetings and play, or has been punished in the past for executing appropriate behaviors, and mounts because he’s conflicted and doesn’t know what else to do.


Raised hackles – called pilo erection, is also misunderstood. It is not a sign of aggression, but indicates increased arousal, insecurity, conflict and excitement. Pilo-erected dogs bluff to make the opponent hesitate; the conflicted dog attempts to buy time to decide what to do next. Depending on the situation, reactive/aggressive outbursts can follow, but don’t have to.

A hip nudge, and shoving the back end in, are often misunderstood as bossy and pushy behaviors, but in fact signal friendliness and trust – the dog is turning the teeth away.

Nibbling around face and mouth is not to entice regurgitation of food, but an invitation for a playful face biting and jaw wrestling session between very bonded group members.