Dog calming signals: the full list and how to respond

Where the concept comes from

In the 1990s, Turid Rugaas observed that dogs use a repertoire of gestures with each other to defuse tension, very close to what wolves do in a pack. She listed about thirty and called them calming signals. Since then, research has confirmed the essentials: these gestures appear more often in tense interactions and reduce the likelihood of escalation.

They are not empty reflexes. A dog addresses them to someone: another dog, a child, you. And he expects an answer.

The list of the most frequent signals

In the order you are most likely to see them:

• Nose licking outside meals: a quick flick of the tongue over the nose when stared at or leaned over.
• Yawning without tiredness: at the vet, during a cuddle that lasts too long, before an exciting walk.
• Turning the head or the eyes away: he refuses the face-to-face, the politest form of “no thanks”.
• The curved approach: he goes around instead of straight toward a dog or a person. Direct head-on approach is rude among dogs.
• Suddenly sniffing the ground when someone approaches: he keeps busy and says he is not a threat.
• Slowing down, sitting, lying down: lowering the intensity of movement to calm the other.
• Slow blinking and squinted eyes: softening the gaze.
• Shaking off as if wet: closing a tense sequence, resetting the counters.
• The brief freeze: a one-second stop to let the situation come down. Careful, a long, stiff freeze is no longer appeasement, it is tension.
• The raised paw, the play bow, the submissive “grin”: rarer, but from the same family.

What they mean

Three messages, depending on context. “I am not looking for conflict”: addressed to a dog or person approaching too fast. “This is a bit much for me”: when the pressure rises, cuddling, staring, noise, restraint. “Let’s calm down”: addressed to an over-excited playmate or a household where people shout.

In every case, a mild negative emotion is being expressed: discomfort, worry, not yet fear. That is precisely why it is the right moment to listen.

How to respond

The response fits in three gestures, in order: step back, turn slightly away, lower your voice. Often the signal stops at once and the dog comes back on his own. If you were stroking him, photographing him, scolding him: stop.

You can also speak his language. Facing a worried dog, yawn, look away, approach in a curve, stand sideways. Many dogs visibly relax when a human finally sends a signal they understand.

When it is no longer appeasement

Calming signals are the first floor. If ignored, the dog goes up: open avoidance, long freeze, whale eye, growl, air snap, bite. A yawn followed by a stiff freeze is no longer politeness, it is a dog who has warned and is getting ready.

The line is simple: as long as the body stays loose and he can turn away, it is appeasement. As soon as the body stiffens and the gaze fixes, it is tension. In both cases the response is the same, but in the second it is urgent.

The mistakes that switch the signals off

The first is punishing them. A dog scolded when he licks his nose or yawns learns these signals are useless, and skips them. He will go straight to the growl, then the bite, and people will say he bit “without warning”. He had warned; he had been silenced.

The second is ignoring them around children. A child squeezing a dog who turns his head away and licks his nose is receiving two warnings. Teach children to spot these three signals and to let go of the dog when they see them. It is the best bite prevention at home.