You might have noticed that whenever dogs meet; they seem to study each other gestures, signs or body language before doing any action. If you observe, you might be able to recognize and distinguish the friendly and hostile meetings. Their body language speaks a lot and is their way of communicating their feelings or social standing. In fact, it shall be seen that these behavioral patterns have passed on through generations and have helped in avoiding a lot of unpleasant situations. They have learnt the art of communication through heir bodies. It seems that they exhibit similar actions to human beings, as they growl or bare teeth if they don't know someone, while they shall jump and lick all over, wag their tail furiously if they like someone.



Among the wolf subspecies, is the dog. Through out the history of humans, to be more precise on the basis of scientific evidence and DNA, since 15,000 years, dogs have been a popular, common domesticated pet and companion. Around 400 million dogs of varying breeds (can be hundreds) are present today. The dogs and wolves bark to warn others of any danger or intruders. They also have similar behavioral characteristics. They display various emotions using their bodies like anger (baring their teeth), superiority (walking erect), or fear (whining), or surrender (pawning).

Over the time, dogs/wolves learnt by experience that visual signals or actions could convey a lot such as baring teeth and fangs can avoid a fight if the other dog/wolf does not wish to. They can avoid the stronger ones and seek out the weaker ones for fighting as the meek ones cringe and avoid direct gaze in their presence. Earlier, these signs were accidental and were slowly used to communicate effectively. Gradually, they become a part and parcel of the communication through the evolutionary process. These gestures have been picked up, polished and passed on through generations (including dogs) unlike other animals which lacked the intellectual to improve their communication skills.

If the dog/wolf stares at another and bares its teeth, it is ready to bite or attack. If it is scared or wishes to avoid any confrontation, it will walk along the side or even crawl along, with ears down and tail between the legs. It will pawn, whine or exhibit puppy behavior. Thus a dominant dog/wolf would stand tall with its tail erect; its hairs of stiff and legs placed on both sides of the dog/wolf they wish to dominate or impress. Hence, unconsciously the dominant try to look big while the meek try to look small by crouching, pawning or whining. This is a part of the evolutionary process among the vertebrate.

It shall be observed that gestures are often for dominance (superiority or threat) or submission (meekness or surrender) purpose. The dominant gestures include the baring of teeth or fangs, direct gaze, pricking of ears, and hairs and confident posture. The submissive gestures include pawning, lying on its back with their stomach upwards (passive surrender). They also avoid direct gaze, approach sideways with bent ears, and keep their tail tightly tucked between the legs.