Behavior

There are several different ways dogs may react to your negative mood. After all, this is not surprising. Dogs are very in tune to our emotions and most dog owners have some story about how their dogs have reacted to their feelings.

If your dog barks at other dogs while in the car, you are likely concerned about the behavior and wonder how you can stop it. For sure, the behavior isn't amusing, especially when it gives a heart attack to a person calmingly walking his dog nearby your car.

If your dog whines when the car stops, it would be important knowing what is triggering the whining in the first place. Based on the exact cause, you may need a different plan of action. So let's take a look at some common and not-so common potential causes and ways to reduce the whining

A sploot in dogs is something you may have never heard about before, but there's always time to learn something new. In the dog world, there is definitely no shortage of colorful expressions and words to entertain us and keep our minds busy. So let's discover more about sploots in dogs and what they mean.

Whether dogs see themselves in the mirror is an interesting subject. Maybe more than asking the question whether dogs see themselves in the mirror, the big question is whether dogs recognize themselves in the mirror, proving to us that they may have a sense of self. The answer to this question requires looking into what research has to say.

A dog barking at children playing outside can be a problematic behavior. Yet, it's not like you can stop children from playing, and you can't just press the "mute button" on your dog, so what's left to do? There are several things you can do fortunately, and they require less drastic measures

When dogs lower their head when you pet them, it may seem like they are not enjoying the interaction. Recognizing the accompanying body language can tell you a lot about how the dog feels. Learn what can make dogs "head shy" and what better ways there are to approach them.

With dogs digging holes all of a sudden, you may be wondering what they may be up to, and most of all, what is causing this whole new fascination with dirt. In the dog world, there is digging and digging, and therefore, to get to the root of the problem, you'll need to take an investigative look at what exactly drives the behavior.

Calming signals in dogs were studied in depth by a Norwegian dog trainer who dedicated an entire book on this topic. As the name implies, calming signals are behaviors that are carried out by dogs with the intent to reduce tension and therefore pacify a potentially tense situation. Dogs have been known to display calming signals both towards humans and other dog

There are several medications for dogs with separation anxiety, but in order to be effective, they need to be accompanied by a behavior modification plan. With dogs suffering from separation anxiety to the point of it affecting their physical and emotional wellbeing, it's important tackling the issue correctly. Veterinarian Dr. Ivana lists several medications for dogs with separation anxiety.

Many dogs misbehave when their owners are gone, whether the absence is just a few minutes as you go grab something out of a room, or you are out of your home for several hours. Regardless, many dog owners are unhappy to find a mess upon their return and may wonder what's going on with their canine companions.

Many dogs fight at the dog park, leaving dog owners wondering whether it's still a good place to take their dogs considering the negative repercussions. Discover why dogs fight at the dog parks, and most of all, what you can do to reduce exposure to triggers that may evoke altercations.

Many dogs keep their mouths open when playing and dog owners may wonder all about this doggy facial expression and what it denotes. In order to better understand this particular behavior, it helps taking a closer look into how dogs communicate with each other and the underlying function of the behavior.

Whether you should let your dog through the door first boils down to personal preference. You may have heard that allowing dogs to go out of doors first is bad because by doing so we are allowing dogs to be "alphas over us," but the whole alpha and dominance myth is something that has been debunked by professionals.

Dogs eat tissues for the simple fact that they are rather indiscriminate eaters and will gulp down things like there's no tomorrow. This is the short answer. The longer answer takes a look at a dog's health, behavior and sense of taste. Veterinarian Dr. Ivana shares reasons dogs eat tissue and what can be done about this behavior.

Dogs wag their tails because they use their tails to communicate. This is the most simple and short explanation. The longer explanation entails ultimately understanding how dog tails work and how dogs use their tails to send olfactory information for other dogs to pick up. Understanding the scientific reason why dogs wag their tails is fascinating to discover so let's delve deeper into the real function of tail wagging.

The behaviors of intact female dogs are for the most part hormone-induced. In other words, when an intact female dog is spayed, a portion of these behaviors should decrease due to the reduction of hormones. Veterinarian Dr. Ivana shares a variety of behaviors of intact female dogs.

When dogs mark territory with pee, the behavior may appear quite odd from our humanoid perspective, while from a dog's point of view, it's a totally normal behavior. For us humans pee is just waste that is quickly flushed down the toilet, while dogs find pee fascinating. Veterinarian Dr. Ivana Crnec shares what's behind the practice of dogs marking territory with pee.

The German shepherd teenager phase can sweep through like a tornado, finding you puzzled and unprepared. Not surprisingly, this is the phase that most dog owners struggle with. Right when your German shepherd puppy got potty trained and was starting to be responsive to you, comes the teenager phases with its turbulent heap of challenges.

Many dogs growl when playing tug of war and dog owners may be concerned about this behavior. Is growling during a game of tug-of-war a sign of the dog becoming aggressive? Every dog is different and there is growling and growling in the dog world. It's therefore important considering the dog's accompanying body language and the context in which the growling occurs.

Many puppies pee when excited and this behavior can get rather annoying after some time. Will you always be stuck carrying a paper towel to clean up messes when you greet your puppy? Discover more about the dynamics behind excitement urination in puppies and what you can do about it.

The behaviors of intact male dogs is something all dog owners should be aware of when considering not neutering their male dogs or postponing the procedure. Knowledge is power and therefore being aware of these behaviors can help you better understand your dog and what to expect once your puppy reaches maturity.

When dogs eat their own vomit, dog owners are often disgusted by this behavior and can't come to terms with the fact that their best friend engages in such a repulsive behavior. To make matters worse, sometimes dogs seem even eager to eat their vomit or even the vomit of other dogs and cats sharing the household. What's up with these dogs?

If your dog mounts guests, you are likely very embarrassed by this behavior and don't know what to do about it. The behavior seems to start from nowhere, one moment your dog is sniffing the guest, the next, he's humping his leg. One important thing to consider is that dogs may mount for several reasons and it's not fair to lump it into one universal category. There is mounting and mounting in dogs. Fortunately, there are several ways you can stop your dog from mounting guests.

A dog not eating treats may feel disappointing for dog owners eager to start training their dogs. Their high hopes of their dogs learning new obedience behaviors and cool tricks therefore goes down the drain as they feel helpless as they're not sure what they can do to go over this hurdle. Why does your dog not eat treats as many other dogs do? There are various possibilities.

A puppy biting your older dog can be a problem, considering that older dogs may be reluctant to interact with young, boisterous puppies who all they want to do all day is play. It's not surprising therefore for older dogs to try to keep distance or go to places where puppies can't get to.

If your dog barks at children, rest assured, you are not alone. Many dogs bark at children, but there is barking and barking in the dog world, so it's important to address this issue rather than assuming it's just a phase that your dog will get over with time or that it's a rather innocent behavior considering that all dogs bark to some extent.

If your dog barks when you go upstairs, most likely there's something that your dog has associated with you going to the upper floor that he doesn't like. To better understand the behavior, it helps to put yourself a bit in your dog's mind and view the world from a dog's perspective. Let's discover what may be going on!

Many dogs escape their yards leaving dog owners wondering what they can do to keep their best friends enclosed where they should belong. Whether you have un-fenced acreage or a gap in a gate enclosing your small yard, one thing is for sure: some dogs seem to really think that the grass must be greener on the other side of the fence.

Many dogs bark when playing and dog owners may often wonder what triggers this behavior. Why do dogs have to"talk so much" when they are having fun? What are they trying to say? And most of all, where's that "off button"? How can we reduce a dog's barking behavior when playing?

Dogs sigh for similar reasons humans sigh, but there is sighing and sighing and some forms of sighing in dogs may warrant veterinary attention. Discover why dogs sigh and when you should play it safe and have your dog see the vet.

Many dogs guard food from cats and will do whatever it takes to send any inquisitive felines away from their chow, but why do they that? Why can't cats and dogs peacefully cohabitate without going through disagreements? Turns out, dogs will be dogs and cats will be cats, however, we can take some steps to decrease the risks for scuffles and try our best to keep everyone safe.

If your dog's doesn't want to be held, it's important to listen to what your dog is trying to tell you: "I am not comfortable with this type of interaction, so please don't do that!" Your dog may communicate his dislike for being held up in your arms in a variety of ways, the most common being growling, barking or even baring his teeth and biting.

Some dogs act scared of their water bowls, and the behavior often leaves dog owners baffled. What's wrong with the dog's water bowl? And why do dogs act scared as if their water bowl is their biggest enemy? Last time we checked, water bowls didn't bite, so what's up with these dogs? Discover what may be going on.

Dogs pee on beds for their own good reasons. To better understand the behavior, it helps to put on your investigative hat and sort through several underlying causes so to go the root of the behavior and address it accordingly. Despite what you may think, dogs do not pee on beds on spite because of anger or to seek revenge.

Many dogs poop after coming inside just after spending time in the yard and this behavior often frustrates many dog owners. What gives? What causes dogs to behave this way? And most of all, what can be done about it?

It seems like dogs flip their food bowl over and over for the main purpose of irritating us, but dogs don't really think in terms of purposely making us angry. Rather than acting out of spite, dogs instead act out of instincts. So don't get angry with Rover, he likely has his own good reasons for pushing his food bowl around and over.

Many dogs get scared in cars and this can make traveling for both dogs and owners quite a miserable event. Affected dogs pace back and forth, pant, whine or bark for the entire duration of the car ride. Truth is, car rides can't be avoided for a lifetime, there is always a time when your dog must be taken somewhere. What can you do to help your furry friend?

Dogs bark when excited just as children shriek or squeal when they're enthusiastic about something. Since dogs don't have the words to communicate their emotions, they must rely on their vocalizations as a way to express themselves. In order to better understand the behavior, it helps to take a closer insight into what stimuli and situations make dogs excited and how they impact them.

Dogs destroy things when you're not around most likely for two main reasons: negative associations and anxiety. No, despite what you may think, Rover doesn't chew on your favorite rug out of spite or because he seeks revenge for not taking him along for the car ride. Forget about that guilty look on his face being undeniable proof of his wrongdoing, truth is, he's just reacting to your emotions.