The role of the dog’s tail Since the birth of the “dog” species, it began to wag its tail, its original purpose is to maintain body balance. For example, when running, they wag their tails to prevent falls, and when swimming, they wag their tails to change direction faster or turn around. In addition to maintaining body balance, dogs wag their tails for a more important purpose: communication. Dogs wag their tails to transmit their unique signals and markers to communicate with each other; and in the process of getting along with people they wag their tails to express their rich emotions to their owners, such as happiness, sadness, anxiety, fear, excitement, worry, anger, depression and so on. This is one of the reasons why people like to have dogs as pets – they have a wealth of emotions to communicate with you. Of course, this does not mean that dogs are born wagging their tails, most dogs do not wag their tails until about a month and a half, they wag their tails to make their bodies smoother and learn to run faster, they wag their tails to communicate with their siblings and mothers. Is a dog wagging its tail a sign of friendliness? Some people believe that a dog wagging its tail is a sign of friendliness, which is very wrong. While all dogs will wag their tails when they are friendly, wagging their tails does not necessarily mean they are friendly. To determine if a dog is friendly, in addition to looking at the tail, you need to look at the dog as a whole to see if the expression is grim or friendly, if the eyes are defensive or expectant, and if the ears are alert or relaxed. If a dog’s tail is wagging violently, muscles are tense, eyes are fierce, grimacing, then beware, it is not eager for you to hug it, but may be trying to attack you. Dogs wagging their tails is to “say” what the tail position is different to convey different signals for puppies, if their tails wagging high back and forth, while the amplitude is small and the frequency is high, it indicates that they are happy and relaxed; if their tails are horizontal backward and not in a hurry wagging from side to side, it means that they just feel curious about the outside world. Curious; when the tail is tightly clamped between the legs, it means that they are afraid and submissive; and when the tail is wagging lower and lower, it means that they feel uneasy about the surroundings and lack of security. Do dogs wag their tails when they are alone? Dogs often wag their tails at other dogs, people, cats, and even a fluttering butterfly, but research has found that dogs rarely wag their tails when they are alone because they don’t need to. Just like us humans, will communicate with other people through gestures, eyes, smiles and other body language, when a person but very little body language will occur, if you say you are alone when you will also dance and laugh, then you must be watching the jitterbug again. The most important way for dogs to communicate is through body language, so when they are alone, they rarely wag their tails. Dogs are natural body language interpreters, and a well-socialized dog will begin to observe another dog’s tail position and behavioral traits early on and respond with their own body movements and tail wagging, thus reducing unnecessary conflict. On the other hand, a dog’s tail wagging also stirs the air around it, allowing the scent from the anal glands to travel faster (of course humans can’t smell it). Each dog has its own unique scent, and the dog that takes the lead in a pack will release more scent than the other dogs. Usually, when a dog holds his tail tightly between his legs, it means he is afraid and does not want his scent to get out and be discovered by “others”. Do dogs know they are wagging their tails? Unlike humans who can communicate with words, dogs can only communicate through body language. Their eyes, ears, front and back legs, body, tail, and even their whole body hair are their communication tools, but wagging their tails is their most common and most effective method of communication. So, is it voluntary for dogs to wag their tails? Or is it forced? We can’t talk to dogs and let them tell us whether their tail wagging is voluntary or involuntary. But scientists believe that: “dogs wagging their tails and human smiling similar”, humans will smile without knowing, but also can make their own initiative to smile, such as one day you are particularly unhappy, but meet the opposite sex you still make yourself smile; dogs are the same, they will sometimes wag their tails without knowing, but they can also control themselves Active tail wagging, such as begging for a snack in your hand or other dogs like. And a “2007 study on dog body language” published in the American Journal of Current Biology found that different sides of the dog’s brain determine the position of the tail. “When dogs feel happy or confident they place their tails on the right side of their body through the left side of their brain, while when they feel scared and depressed they place their tails on the left side of their body through the right side of their brain.” So, scientists believe that tail wagging is inherent in dogs, but they learn it later in life. For example, if you take your dog’s temperature for the first time, your dog may not react to seeing the anal thermometer, much less clench its tail, but when you take out the anal thermometer again, it will want to run away and clench its tail. What about dogs without tails? We know that some dogs have “no” tails, so what about dogs without tails? Shake your butt! The asshole is not protected!
