Why should dog communication concern you? Surely, teaching your pet a few necessary commands to get by is enough.
While it is true that you can manage if you teach your dog the basic commands such as sit, stay, down, come, and heel, you will be missing a lot if you do not take it to the next level.
It depends on what you want to accomplish and what kind of relationship you want to establish with your dog.
You have to keep in mind that dogs speak a totally different language from humans.
Dog communication relies a great deal on body language.
You will see this when dogs meet or pass each other on the street.
A simple look can tell the other dog a lot.
It can indicate dominance and therefore a challenge to the other dog.
Or it can simply mean that the male is interested in the female.
How one dog looks at another is just one part of dog language.
How dogs face one another, how they stand, how they all hold their heads, how they tilt the ears, and even how they wrinkle their brows will indicate exactly what message is being transmitted.
It will help if you understand how dog language works so that you can make it work for you.
In time, your dog will learn your body language even though it is different from his.
Dogs do not tolerate being stared at but they soon discover that with humans, the same rules do not apply.
By adding several dog communication methods to your own, you can teach him a new language that you both can understand.
Take some examples from what your dog is trying to say when he stands still with his tail level and taut.
He will do this when he confronts another dog that has "told" him that he is challenging his authority.
By lowering his head, however, he is submitting to the other dog.
The amazing thing about dog communication methods is that you can adapt them to your own needs.
By pointing or gesturing to him, you can teach him what you want him to do.
In future, he'll know what that signal means and you will not have to tell him verbally.
This is how you can use dog language to your benefit.
It can be fun going through this training exercise because you will both learn from it.
You will discover exactly how to modify your posture to get the result you want.
This is an entirely different aspect of training that is not often mentioned.
Yet it is very important because you could be sending the wrong message with your body, a message that is contradicted by how you stand.
By standing tall and staring down your dog, you'll give him the impression that you are challenging him.
If this is not your intention, you can confuse him - at least until he learns your expressions and habits.
Even your facial expression will tell him something, so make sure that it does not conflict with your verbal commands.
You can let your dog know you are the boss by standing proud and confident.
That's something he would expect from a pack leader.
As you can see, you can make dog communication work for you once you understand his language and teach him yours.
While it is true that you can manage if you teach your dog the basic commands such as sit, stay, down, come, and heel, you will be missing a lot if you do not take it to the next level.
It depends on what you want to accomplish and what kind of relationship you want to establish with your dog.
You have to keep in mind that dogs speak a totally different language from humans.
Dog communication relies a great deal on body language.
You will see this when dogs meet or pass each other on the street.
A simple look can tell the other dog a lot.
It can indicate dominance and therefore a challenge to the other dog.
Or it can simply mean that the male is interested in the female.
How one dog looks at another is just one part of dog language.
How dogs face one another, how they stand, how they all hold their heads, how they tilt the ears, and even how they wrinkle their brows will indicate exactly what message is being transmitted.
It will help if you understand how dog language works so that you can make it work for you.
In time, your dog will learn your body language even though it is different from his.
Dogs do not tolerate being stared at but they soon discover that with humans, the same rules do not apply.
By adding several dog communication methods to your own, you can teach him a new language that you both can understand.
Take some examples from what your dog is trying to say when he stands still with his tail level and taut.
He will do this when he confronts another dog that has "told" him that he is challenging his authority.
By lowering his head, however, he is submitting to the other dog.
The amazing thing about dog communication methods is that you can adapt them to your own needs.
By pointing or gesturing to him, you can teach him what you want him to do.
In future, he'll know what that signal means and you will not have to tell him verbally.
This is how you can use dog language to your benefit.
It can be fun going through this training exercise because you will both learn from it.
You will discover exactly how to modify your posture to get the result you want.
This is an entirely different aspect of training that is not often mentioned.
Yet it is very important because you could be sending the wrong message with your body, a message that is contradicted by how you stand.
By standing tall and staring down your dog, you'll give him the impression that you are challenging him.
If this is not your intention, you can confuse him - at least until he learns your expressions and habits.
Even your facial expression will tell him something, so make sure that it does not conflict with your verbal commands.
You can let your dog know you are the boss by standing proud and confident.
That's something he would expect from a pack leader.
As you can see, you can make dog communication work for you once you understand his language and teach him yours.