Although our dogs cannot communicate with us through language, they can still give us a powerful range of signs and signals to let us know how they are feeling.
Dogs learn this body language at an early age so that they can send a message that another dog will be able to read.
Dogs use a variety of tools to deliver their messages.
Just observe a dog that is frightened and you will clearly see the laid back ears, anxiety in the eyes, tension in the mouth and the body in a defensive position with the tail between the legs.
Conversely, a dog that is relaxed and happy will be standing upright with ears erect, no body tension and wagging his tail.
In between these are a range of subtleties that dog owners need to be able to recognise.
You need to understand how your dog uses each part of his body to communicate.
Ears In the wild a wolf would use its ears to signal its feelings to the rest of the pack.
Domesticated dogs use their ears in the same way.
Ears pricked forward illustrate interest and alertness, whilst ears that are pricked but turned slightly to the side demonstrates a relaxed state.
Ears that are held back show respect, whilst if they are pinned right back this shows fear and submission.
Eyes You can see a whole range of emotions by looking into your dog's eyes.
From confidence and happiness to fear and pain.
You can be certain that what you see is what the dog is feeling.
Dogs do not lie.
It is difficult to describe something so complex as the feeling within the eyes.
However, wide bulbous eyes generally convey distress or fear; a fixed stare is usually a challenge or show of confidence; soft eyes show a relaxed state or happiness.
Teeth Teeth are the ultimate weapon of the dog in the wild, and so they are used as a strong signal.
The amount of teeth shown varies according to the level of information the dog wants to give.
A gentle warning will be shown by just a small fraction of teeth, increasing if the message is not read.
Finally the lips will be fully turned back to reveal the full set of teeth and gums.
Together with glaring eyes this is a message that no one can fail to understand! However, teeth can often be used to express contentment and a dog can almost 'smile' to show happiness.
Body The dog uses various parts of its body to reinforce the signals of ears, eyes and teeth.
The jaw will be used to emphasise the signal of the show of teeth by being pushed forward.
The further forward it is the greater the aggression.
It will be pulled back when the dog is defensive.
The stance of the dog is used for subtle messages pushing it forward to show potential aggression and pulling back to show submission, particularly towards the pack leader.
The hackles can be raised and held erect as a mechanism to make the dog look bigger.
It is often used as a way of avoiding confrontation.
However, rather confusingly raised hackles may also denote joy and excitement.
Tail The tail is the ultimate method of communication for a dog and one that is unique.
The tail can tell you a great deal about the dog's personality, its confidence and mood.
When a dog is relaxed and happy the tail should hang at a downward angle, without any obvious tension.
If it is tucked in to the tummy this is a sure sign that the dog is, or has been, frightened.
Level carriage is usually adopted when the dog is out for a walk and feeling alert and interested.
The higher a dogs tail is held the higher the dog's confidence and perceived status.
A tail held high and rigid often signals aggression.
Breeding Difficulties into Communication Of course the selective breeding that has resulted in the huge diversification of dog breeds today causes many problems with canine body language.
This makes it difficult for us, and also other dogs, to interpret the signals.
Some dogs have problems sending the right signals because they physically cannot do so.
Ears which should be dropped to show submission cannot in many modern breeds; long hair cover the eyes so the emotions cannot be seen; the tail may be docked or always held erect giving out misleading signals to other dogs; dogs bred with powerful chests look as though they are always taking a forward and aggressive stance.
These are just a few of the communication difficulties that we have bred into the modern dog.
One of the most 'misunderstood' modern dog breeds is the Old English Sheepdog.
When seen by other dogs he has no ears, no eyes, no tail and no foreface.
No wonder they are all confused! All they see is a broad-chested creature covered in fur!