Misty, My Little Misty, aka MistyCuffs (no idea where that came from) was afraid of dogs she’d never met. She was one of those dogs who wanted to be in control all the time, and yet had no self confidence to go along with the power. (I called her the Richard Nixon of dogs.) I’ve used this video for years in seminars and speeches, but thought it would be fun to talk about it this week with the village.
Misty’s signs of discomfort are more than clear, especially the tongue flicks and “whale eyes,” but I’d love to hear what else you see in her expressions that are other signs of distress. (And be patient with me; I had just found a machine on campus–this was in the 80’s–that allowed me to slow-mo the video! Whoo Hoo!) What, for example, do you think of her tooth display? If you saw that, and nothing else, how would you evaluate it? Offense? Defense?
(Note: I recorded this video back in the 80’s, when I was first beginning to give talks and do seminars on dog behavior, and needed an example of “whale eyes.” I have apologized to Misty, being circled by a Great Dane, ever since, but can assure you that we did lots of counter conditioning afterward, and she relaxed beautifully. Misty went on to be comfortable around other dogs. However, she never relaxed enough around heavy sheep, and would fly into them in a panic if they turned to face her. She would leap for their heads and bite down on their left ear (never the right). Needless to say, she was retired from sheep herding at an early age.
And now, for more subtlety, meet Gypsy, the dog in the middle in the photograph below. It was taken by professional photographer Steve Dalgren, of Dog Grin Photography, during a play session with three dogs.
Steve sent me this photo and asked what I thought of the expression of the dog in the middle. I thought it would be fun to put that question to you. What can we, if anything, discern about Gypsy’s internal state or her next action, while not knowing anything else about her? Of course, we know that we are just guessing, and we know that any still photograph conveys very limited information. But still, there’s value in making our guesses, especially in terms of how we would respond if we looked up and saw our dog with the same face as Gypsy’s, in the same context. Of course, we don’t know Gypsy. But what if it was your dog on the right and you saw Gypsy’s face? How would you react?
I’ve made my own guesses, and talked to the owner, Ben, who has kindly agreed to let me use the photo. But I thought this could be a way of starting an interesting conversation, about what we can and can’t know about expressions, internal states, and behavior.
Wanna play? Hope so! I’ll add what I thought, and what I subsequently learned about Gypsy and what happened next, later on in the week, after you’ve chimed in.
MEANWHILE, back on the farm: “Back on the farm” means going back to mud, ice, snow, mud, ice, snow, because that’s what we’ve still got here, and will for a few weeks to come. But there’s been lots of sun, glorious sun and lots of melting and Chickadees singing their plaintive whistle song and Tufted Titmice proclaiming territory and Sandhill cranes flying over head. Truly, truly wonderful.
Nellie thinks the warmth from the sun is heavenly. She’s been sunbathing on the south side of the house every day now, soaking it all up.
Almost all the indoor plants are done blooming, and so I am especially grateful to this orchid, blooming by the kitchen sink and cheering up the room.
Here’s the same orchid after I did some riffs, playing with unnatural intensity and color. Just for fun:
There’s lots of activity outside, teasing us about the flowers to come in April and May. These Daffs are in a south-facing bed against the house. Lots of sun and warmth during the day. It’s been well under freezing at night, however; I keep telling the bulbs to be patient.
Last for this week, here’s a photo of Skip that Steve Dahlgren took a few months ago. We’ve started working sheep again–our main pasture has a hill in the middle and dries out pretty fast–but I’m just not good enough yet to work Skip and take photos at the same time. (Unless he’s lying down, and I need him to be up and keeping the pressure on the sheep, so that’s not a good idea. Stay tuned, perhaps my ability to multi-task will improve age? (Ha!)
LisaW says
You’re the Warner Herzog of dog behavior documentaries. I’d say Misty’s demeanor was more “de” and less “mean” (sorry, couldn’t resist). She has not taken her eyes off the dane, and the lip snarl looks more defensive than offensive (plus, she’s on a leash and is many times smaller, and is probably a sweetheart, so defensive moves are what she has to work with in this context, in my opinion).
Then there’s Gypsy. The first thing I thought was try to look past the translucent, blue eyes because they look cold and hard, and that’s due to the eye color more than the emotion (like Tootsie’s eyebrows), I reasoned. Then I looked at the mouth–the commissure (is that the right term?) is pulled back and the lips are slightly apart as if a bark or snarl or sound is about to be emitted. Her ears are back, and she looks tense around her neck and chest, too. (But again, it could be the angle at which we are viewing Gypsy.) My guess is she may be trying to de-escalate tensions between the other two dogs but focusing on the Golden who is taller and closer. If she were my dog, I’d call out a hey, hey or yip, yip in my best sing-song, happy voice; something to interrupt the moment but not a command or bark.
I can’t wait to hear what was really going on.
I love the close-ups of the flowers. The striped orchid reminds me of spring beauties, one of my favorite early woods flowers.
Bruce says
Looks like Gypsy is not a Packers fan. š
Gypsy seems to have mixed feelings. Ears back and eyes bugged out convey unease, but her forward mouth placement and even weigh distribution convey the potential for offense. What happened next probably depends on what the Golden Retriever that Gypsy is staring at does.
The GR looks like it wants to play with the brown dog, but all three dogs have their ears back so they all seem a bit tense and uncertain. Perhaps this is their first time meeting?
My guess is that the GR made a quick movement to induce the brown dog to play, not noticing Gypsy’s expression. If that happened, Gypsy may have given a half-hearted threat display and then backed off. But not knowing the dogs involved, I could be way off.
If the GR was my dog I would probably stop taking pictures and approach slowly with lots of happy talk. The other alternative would be to call my dog over, give a treat, and then see how the other dogs reacted before deciding on the next step.
But I am prepared to be completely wrong. Maybe Gypsy knows the GR and is saying, “Hey, don’t pay attention to that other dog, play with me!”
Trisha says
Love this analysis LisaW, and love Spring Beauties too! Not too long….
Trisha says
Good point Bruce (re the Packers)! I’ll wait to chip in, but I love reading your take on things!
Nannette Morgan says
Great pix and thought provoking questions. 1) Misty – I’d say the teeth display is defensive in a “please keep away from me” type of internal emotion. 2) Gypsy – She clearly looks uncomfortable with what’s going on – I can see the tension in her muzzle. She looks like she’s just about to “split” the dogs from each other. If my dog was the one on the right, I’d break up the interaction and remove him/her from the situation.
Kat says
My guess is the Golden and the brown have just met and are doing the sizing each other up thing. If left to their own devices they’ll probably erupt into play or carefully walk away from each other. Gypsy, on the other hand, doesn’t like the tension of the other two deciding whether to play or disengage. If she were mine I’d be slowly walking between her and the other two. I don’t like her very focused eyes and the tension in her face. She looks like her plan to ‘defuse’ the situation is to attack the other two starting with the Golden.
I often see two friendly dogs meeting for the first time doing the invisible (to us/me anyway) communication thing where they stand poised and rather tense side by side figuring out if they’ll be playmates or choose to not engage. You see a little of it in this video of D’Artagnan and his pal Keeper the first time they met for a playdate. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ewEgDgm9h0 I can see some of what they say to each other but I’ve yet to parse all the nuances enough to accurately tell which way it will go–play or disengage. I can usually tell if it will escalate into conflict but to accurately predict play or disengage not so much. Anyway, I think Gypsy doesn’t like that tension while they decide and plans to make it stop.
Diane Kulak says
I would say Misty’s tooth display was defense as the mouth was drawn more back than forward. Her face looked tense and her eyebrows kept raising. The video was good in that you could actually see her face which is so tough to capture on a black dog! My first reaction when I looked at Gypsy was that she/he sensed oncoming conflict. Her snout looks a little wrinkled, but I also see possible paw raise or a leaning away. I admit I would have no idea what to do if it were my dog on the right, but I would probably try to offer some distraction to break up the face to face between the two dogs and remove my dog from the situation … give them all a little break from each other.
Barbara says
Misty does look nervous. Her teeth display is the canine version of concealed carry, as in – āI have weapons in my mouth and can protect myself. I donāt want to use my teeth but I will if I have to. So back off! A brief warning gesture.
My first impression of Gypsy was that she was ready to go for the Goldenās neck! Maybe itās just those icy blue eyes.
Sarah Patzer says
Itās so hard to tell what Gypsy is feeling without seeing her ears and tail. I donāt think her expression is all that threatening. It almost looks like she is looking at a fly or something on the top of the GRās head. I wouldnāt be surprised if all three played together after this instant.
Robin says
As someone with no formal training, here are my two cents:
Misty showing her teeth would be out of fear, either way, no? It may result differently, as depending on her self-assuredness (and feelings of safety with you behind her) she may lunge to drive the scary thing away or just cower defensively. But since it’s fear, it would get treated as such with counter-conditioning and making room to disengage. The dogs I’ve met who are being more assertive (or what the outdated folks call ‘dominant’) are still fearful of loss of resources or similar and tend to invoke the forward lean, piloerection, hard stare, even rear lip lift before the front teeth reveal.
As for Gypsy, it’s hard to not overread the intensity of those blue eyes. As was said above, she seems to be focused on the golden’s collar, shoulder or ear – I would almost wonder if there was a bug there out of view. If any of these were mine and they weren’t frequent playmates, I would want to be standing close enough to read the rest of her body language around her haunches and shoulders, and tail if she’s got one.
Megan Landauer says
If that was my Golden I would call him to me with a treat.
Jen Gibson says
Re: Gypsy, Iād say sheās about to snap or bark. Iāve had a few cattle dogs and they all leaned towards being the fun police. Too much play! Settle it down! I want some control! But alas, I suppose thatās breed profiling, isnāt it? I agree with the comment regarding the eyes – they look hard but isnāt that the colour? Looking forward to the rest of the story! š
Jan says
Misty: all the signs of discomfort and the teeth display, pure defense – stay away!.
The golden seems to be a bit more confident and pushy, but testing the waters (ears partially back) with the brown dog who seems unsure (ears pulled totally back, corner of lips pulled back tight. Gypsy makes my hair raise. I wish there were vocals. But with ears tightly back, lips/muzzle tight and pursed, I’d expect to hear a growl or bark. Eyes are intent with some white showing. I’d fully expect an intent ‘attack’ from Gypsy onto the golden, whether in an uncomfortable splitting type action, or pushy aggression is hard to be sure, but the shoulders appear to have a slight crouch. I would also break up the interaction as it appears more likely to go bad than to work out into play. From this still, I wouldn’t expect a fight to ensue, more a lot of noisy, pushy action but I wouldn’t allow it to continue just to be safe. Interrupt Gypsy, or get the golden out of the situation or both.
Ironically, I don’t like either the Golden or Gypsy’s body language. The Golden may just want to play, but it’s a real pushy type of ‘ask’, the brown dog is just so unsure, and Gypsy is going to intervene with action.
Jacqui Nichols says
Poor Misty, I’ve seen that body language before in my own dog, I see all defense there.
If the GR and brown dog were alone I would cautiously allow the meet, but Gypsy worries me – she looks wayy too tense. At this point I would redirect everyone for a bit and try to sort out intentions.
I find it very very interesting how we all see this second in time with different perspectives!
Can’t wait to hear what happened in the next frame, so to speak!
Beautiful photos too! That border collie crouch never ceases to entrance me and calicos are amazing!
I’ve never been able to keep an orchid alive, kuddos!
Stacey Gehrman says
Misty is clearly warning another dog who has shown interest in her to stay away by displaying her teeth. In other parts of the video her facial muscles are tense and at one point she is again on the verge of showing teeth with the muscles in the whisker area “bunched”. Gypsy on the other hand is watching the other 2 intently appearing to expect some action. My guess without knowing her is that she might bite the aggressor if the dog starts a fight. Even if boisterous play begins Gypsy may put a stop to it. Some dogs won’t let other dogs play.
Great photos.
BARB STANEK says
I agree with Bruce’s analysis. Gypsy has mixed feelings. Are the dogs at a dog park or playing by themselves? My guess is dog park. In any case, I look forward to more info from Trish and the owner.
Tails Around the Ranch says
Love seeing the spring flowers and so enjoy seeing spring bulbs poke their heads up (though we’re expecting a nice spring snow storm this weekend-they held up with the last one a couple weeks ago). Spring aside, all 3 of those dogs seem tense. A sudden move and all heck might break out. But I’m no dog whisperer by any stretch. It will be interesting to see what the reality is later this week.
BARB STANEK says
About Misty. (Forgot you asked!) Any time I see a tooth display like that, I take time to evaluate the rest of the dog. Meaning, I interrupt what’s going on and allow whatever was happening to be recreated more slowly with me as the in-control manager. I think Misty is being defensive, but I would like to see more of the interaction and her body to be sure.
That being said my two dogs are different in age — almost 2 years female and 10 years male. The older dog frequently does a similar tooth display to the younger. I’ve pondered this.
I think male’s display started out as defensive. He didn’t know how to play when I got the female. Now I think the tooth display is part habit and part Lets’s-Play.
I can tell you that his display will not stop the female, but will slower her down. She’ll pick at him like a gnat until he changes mood, and then the playing starts.
Because of the age difference, I’ve wondered if I should take the tooth display as a signal that the male doesn’t want to play at all. I was concerned that he didn’t know how to stop the female. So I have inturrupted the interaction when I see his tooth display. He willingly comes with me and returns to the play within thirty seconds. I don’t thank that he’s worried.
One last observation. My dogs can play roughly together. And when they do, the male can really get rough with the girl. True she doesn’t quit and comes back for more ALL the time. But when they get to this level, there are no tooth displays. It’s all out roughness. This is when I stop all interaction and let the players take a break.
Of course, these are my two dogs whom I know so well. I would not let either of them play with a strange dog in the manner that they play with each other. Too much opportunity for dog-to-dog misunderstanding and escalation. Thanks for letting me give my two cents!
M.H. says
Gypsy’s considering how to remove the Golden’s collar because Gypsy is for da Bears.
Kay East says
Love the photos (as always) and enjoying the responses and various analyses! My fearful girlie, Miss Simba Sue, Border-Aussie mix, has been a piece of work for most of her 11 fearful years. More than anything else, her behavior has rewarded me with lessons in patience and unconditional love.
Pray you have more Spring and less Winter soon!
Trisha says
MH: You nailed it!
Margaret says
I am buffaloed by the blue eyes–makes it much harder for me to figure out what’s happening. If I were there I would try a fast redirection, because it looks to me like Miss Blue Eyes is scheduling an intervention. I could easily be wrong.
I find humans with lighter eyes harder to read also.
JMM says
Cover Gypsy’s eyes with your finger and see if that changes your thoughts. It’s so hard to get past that icy blue, they never look soft like brown eyes. I think what a lot of people are seeing as pursed lips and wrinkled snoot are just her conformation/coloration.
Heidi says
I learned from you about one on leash and one off – the one on has only fight or freeze available while the one off has fight flight and freeze available. Best case scenario Misty’s fight signals cause Dane to choose flight. Worst case scenario Dane chooses fight or freeze and you have a chance to diffuse situation.
The still pic I have no clue but look forward to your explanation LOL!
Terrie says
I can tell Misty is tensing up along with the teeth, and while it’s hard to tell when I can’t see her whole body, I’m seeing more a stiff tension than a immediate predicator of motion, forward or back, so I’d say she’s hoping for the other dog to back up and leave her to her spot. I see that in my own dog with some of my more obnoxious fosters. He goes tense and snarly, and then, only if they don’t back off, does he go to move.
Teresa says
Gypsy seems to be ready for the play to begin. Sheās waiting politely, if impatiently, for the other two dogs to meet. Once thatās settled, I see a game of chase ensuing.
I am probably 100% wrong, but thought I would put it out there.
Teresa says
Misty is offensive and very concerned, if she could run away, she would, but sheās stuck there. Those eyes! Talk about obvious āwhale eyeā, holy cow! I can only imagine that her tail was down, if not tucked and she was leaning back in her haunches. Iām glad it turned out well!
Linda says
To me, Misty looks nervous and on the defensive. I would be cautious around her because it looks like a scared face with teeth bared. Iāve read they can be the most unpredictable of dogs. That being said, for some reason, she also looks like you could work with her and she would eventually come around.
As for the Golden, he looks like he wants to play but seems to taking an aggressive stance. IMO, this is making Gypsy nervous and she wants to control or get involved. She looks like a herding dog. My herding dogs always seem to want toāget involvedā when there is a tenser play or bark session going on. When that happens I usually yell, āOk (dog name), letās go. You donāt need to get involvedā. š I think I would want to distract Gypsy and the Golden to break it up a little. Then Iāll bet they would all play nicely.
Beth says
I may be totally off but Gypsy looks like an Australian Cattle Dog about to go on offense. I canāt see enough of her to be sure and the blue eyes are misleading. But she has a bit of an offensive pucker. And the ears arenāt as visible as Iād like but seem tight.
Iād say she is no longer engaging with the Golden as another dog, but now sees it as misbehaving stock and is seriously considering taking charge of the situation. Corgis do this. Cattle dogs do this. When I had my two Corgis, whenever their eyes changed in a certain way it told me the switch had flipped from āmy playmate is a dogā to āyou are a cowā and I would call them off.
If Iām right, then if any of the dog people here clapped and made happy noises and got the dogs back in calm motion, it would hopefully de-escalate quickly. But Iād break this up.
Jane Gray says
Great questions. Misty certainly seems stressed by the situation and I would say the teeth display is “I’m not comfortable, don’t come any closer”. The picture with Gypsy – hard to say because it is a moment in time and there may have been something immediately before this was snapped that would give more information. But there does seem to be a certain rigidity in Gypsy and a strong focus on the GR. I think Nanette might be right – looks as if 3 might be a crowd. But I could be so wrong – just took another look and while I think the dog on the left looks a little unsure – maybe doesn’t know the GR, they could just as easily all suddenly relax, bow and be off and running.
Lisa says
If that golden was my dog with the same demeanor as my current dog, Iād give quick chirp on my whistle to get his eyes on me and say good bye Keller. His instant reaction is to follow. He hates to lose track of me.
As for the blue eyed dog it looks to be taking cues from the golden as to what social skills itās going to use. The brown dog looks senior in years…maybe the middle dog is hoping the golden wonāt be to brash and disrespectful or annoying in its approach of the brown dog.
Marilyn Marks says
Call me crazy but I say Misty is being offensively defensive š. Hard eye.
Gypsy: hard to tell whether there is real tension that she is aware of and trying to defuse or whether she is being over-reactive to normal tension, or at least not aware of how the other two are really feeling. Because they look to me like they are doing a brief test and then will do some test okay and re-posture. If theyāre ready to play, why is gyspsy ready to tell the golden off? If theyāre making a testy posture that is going to lead to no good, why is gypsy looking like she wants to escalate with so much energy into it? If I knew gypsy Iād either be trusting her and this help the golden make friends better or Iād be telling her to mind her own business.
Cynthia says
Would I be wrong if I guess Misty’s tooth display is more defense than offense? I once had one of my dogs do this to me when I was apparently invading his space when he wanted no parts of my grotesque human need to cuddle š He was laying on his side and each time I moved toward him, he peeled his lips back. Never made a sound. Never moved his head. I felt like he was saying “not now dear, I have a headache.”
And then I witnessed this in manners class this weekend with someone else’s dog. After a group recall, this dog was clearly not happy with either my dog or another one close by and had no problem showing teeth to let everyone know he wasn’t having any shenanigans. Sadly, I don’t think the handler ever noticed until about a half-hour later when the dog started adding a growl to the display and a few minutes later, barking.
Gypsy tho? Looks like a typical cattle dog about to go in a delicious Golden ear or neck.
Bev says
I am so bad at deciphering dogs! I have a 2.5yo GSD, who from the day I got her at 8 weeks, wanted nothing to do with other people, young kids, or other dogs. She is so unsure of herself, but barks aggressively when she sees or hears other dogs. I have tried everything I can think of. We are constantly training, and I try to give her guidance in appropriate behavior, and try to always know I have her back. I am at a loss of why she is like this or how to give her the confidence to properly meet others. Consequently, I am extremely cautious with her.
I wish I could find professional help!
Lynn Ungar says
My guess is that Gypsy is an officer in the Fun Police, and that the golden has either engaged or is about to engage in Unacceptable Behavior. A citation might very well be issued.
Shivani says
Misty – is that a submissive grin? “I’m just over here wishing I was invisible. Pleeeeaaassse ignore me.”
Tressie Dutchyn says
Misty, nervous, uncomfortable, defensive teeth baring “stay away” perhaps in response to Great Dane glancing at her; seems quite anxious and frightened at the end – huge whale eyes.
Gypsy is doing exactly what my rescued street dog from Greece would do if my other two dogs were engaging in play. He’d growl at them when they came together. And once playing he’d chase after them all the while barking frantically, approaching and retreating until my Maremma would lie down, then he’d stop and dash around anxiously. He was quite agitated when they were playing but never joined in the play activity. He also had extreme fears and had spent time in a shelter just before being shipped off to Canada where the other dogs regularly got into dog fights. As for Gypsy, she appears tense, worried and uncomfortable with the interaction of the bigger dogs. Could go either way – depending on what the other dogs do. But that conclusion may be informed by own experience with my dog.
Sherri says
I would say that misty was being totally defensive and very uncomfortable that the other dog was walking around her. She looks like this was the last place that she wanted to be but was not on the attack.
Gypsy looks more fierce than i believe she is being because of her eye color as someone also said. If you zoom in you can see that she doesn’t look all that upset but she is definitely locked in on the golden which is a bit unnerving. She may feel like the golden needs a manners lesson which is how I would take it. If the golden was my dog I would probably intervene and give him a manner refresher or time out. He may be a big dufus which needs to be reminded now and again which looks like what gypsy was planning on doing.
Jen says
I feel like the way Gypsyās head is tipped, nose up indicates that she is uncertain. Maybe it is reading your Misty story first, but I am feeling like she is saying to the Golden, Iām not sure about you. If you lean over that other dog any more, Iām going to bite you.
Stacie says
I’ve had a blue-eyed dog, and yes, it makes them look intense, but Gypsy looks like she’s ready to manage the situation. the Golden looks pushy and the brown dog looks uncertain about where this is going and Gypsy looks like she’s ready to make sure everyone minds their manners.
Poor Misty. She looks just like my Thyme, who is afraid of dogs she doesn’t know and ready to be proactive to make sure she doesn’t get hurt. Very clear on her signals to stay away.
Can’t wait to hear the rest of the story!
Beth says
I just showed my husband the picture of Gypsy and he said āPaddington gave Mr Brown a hard stare.ā lol
My own experience is that cattle dogs are quicker than other herding dogs to switch into treating people, other dogs, cats, etc as creatures to be herded and they are pretty forceful herding dogs.
Diane says
I have to agree with Jan about the Golden. I guess when asked “what would you do if it was your dog on the right” made me think of my dog and that will bias my interpretation of the situation. My dog is bold, not necessarily aggressive, but can be pushy in greetings and in play. I did read that in the still pic and thought the middle dog may be sensing an issue and/or responding with some fear. My dog seems to instill that reaction in other dogs… and the outcome could be lots of loud bravado which could escalate to a fight or play. I believe he would prefer play because as bold as he seems, he still backs off initially if there is some type of confrontation. I never let it go too far to see if a fight would break out – that’s not to my credit…more than likely a fight would not break out or it would have happened already.
Mary says
Misty looks like she is trying to keep it together, she is defensive, living on the edge! Gypsy, looks like she is ready to police the situation in front of her, I am actually more nervous about the GR and the BC, the ears back and the head to to head, yikes..
Jenny Haskins says
Poor Misty looks frightened out of her skin. Tooth display = defence.
Gypsy āI wanna play , too!!ā
Sarah says
I’m less concerned about Gypsy than the GR – her body language is very similar to other cattle dogs I know who are about to launch into really rough playing (as cattle dogs do). My own cattle dog (who recently died at a very old age) taught me quickly that if her nose was in the air, all was fine – but I should be on high alert if her head went down and she had a fixed stare at whatever she was irritated with.
Katie says
Misty’s teeth display is a warn-off. It’s defensive, but she’ll do what she feels she needs to do. The Dane has the size, but she has the speed, so it’s not a meaningless threat.
Gypsy is a cattle dog, at least in the main. I don’t have enough data from the front view, because it doesn’t show her hackles or tail. My guess would be she’s waiting for more data too. She’s done a preliminary risk assessment and lasered in on the GR. The chocolate dog looks like it may have some ACD in it too, and may be Gypsy’s buddy. All the owners in this situation need to be aware of their own dog’s likely reaction. If the GR escalates, there will be trouble.
My ACD and I typically hike at least weekly with one friend or another and their dogs. Usually it’s a friend with two ACDs and a houndXsporting dog. Occasionally it’s one with two Aussie shepherds. Situational awareness is critical when they meet unfamiliar dogs. For that matter, it’s critical when they first jump out of the vehicle and greet their buddies.
Katie says
I should clarify from my previous comment – if the GR’s next move is a play bow, everything may be fine. My ACD is ready to meet dogs in the moment. But if they try to dominate her, all bets are off.
Stephanie says
What stands out to me in the video of Misty is the leash. It’s not loose, she must feel at least a bit restrained and so her signals are quite defensive. Excellent canine communication from her, frankly. The still photo with Gypsy? It looks like dogs meeting each other for the first time trying to get a read on each other…I’d have no issue with Gypsy (if the GR was mine) unless there was a sudden change of behavior.
David E. says
Misty looks troubled and nervous. Whale eyes is a great description and the teeth display would make me very nervous if I were with her. Misty mental moment: “Big other dog, I’m on a leash and I’m unsure of the approach and action I should be showing or using!”
To my untrained eye it looks like danger in the Gypsy response; big eyes, clamped jaw and intense “looking”!
What do I know; not much.
David Egger says
PS. Brad and Carol’s new doglet (tiny, cute, fluff ball w/loving licks and excitement) is named Nellie, too. Don’t tell your cat, TMI for her!
Mary says
Iām curious about barring the teeth. I take that as a āstay away, keep your distanceā. Interestingly my dog did it recently when I was drying him off after a walk in the rain. He was on his side. I keep trying to get something similar to work through it with him but itās hard to detect what elicits the response because there are times when heās just fine and enjoying the belly rub. With Misty was it the length of time or the nearness of the other dog or both?
Suzanne says
Poor Misty. All leashed up and nowhere to run. Mistycuffs/fisticuffs. Love it.
As for Gypsy, my guess is that she already knows the Setter, but not the Golden, since he’s the object of her laser-like focus. To me, the whale eyes, dilated pupils, tense posture and flattened ears suggest that she’s not at all sure which way the Setter-Golden meet-up is going to go; whether she’s about to find herself in the middle of a newly expanded play group or a wicked dog fight that she wants no part of.
My anxious, conflict-averse Mini American Shepherd would probably behave like Gypsy in this situation.
My other, totally self-assured Mini would have already cowabunga’d the scene demanding to ruffhouse (sorry). Probably the only thing he’d have in common with Gypsy is those ice-blue eyes that can be so hard to read:
Does that look mean, “I adore you with all my innocent heart and I am so sorry I ate your new reading glasses. Now may I have a treat?” or “One false move, sister, and you’re going to be missing an ankle. Now give with the treats.”
Suzanne says
P.S. In the Gypsy scenario, I might call Anxious Mini to me. Or I might wait a beat to see how the Setter and Golden behave. I think he’d be out of there if hostilities broke out. If not, he’d be all in to play.
Cowabunga Mini probably would do a bump and run on the dog he knows, wanting him to come play. If nobody followed, he’d go and find somebody else to pester. He’s two, and possibly the most oblivious dog ever, except when there’s food. Then he becomes a very wary resource guarder.
Alex says
Oh Iām probably so wrong on this but here goes: when my border collie makes the face that Gypsy is making and her tail is up (who knows in this picture), she is in a state of high arousal and intensity and REALLY wants be chased. She might even add in a little āwoo woo mwrrrā through pursed lips to really taunt the potential playmate. The interaction of the golden and the brown dog is stressing me out. Iād call the golden away right away, or rain some treats on his backend, or hope he decides to play bow with Gypsy instead of putting more pressure on brown dog.
Suzanne says
Cripes. That’s not a Setter at all. As I was writing my comment I remembered reddish-brown dog and my mostly absent mind said, “Oh, Irish Setter!”
Judy Rivard says
Misty’s display of teeth is a warning to not get any closer. I have a similar picture of an amorous GSD receiving a negative response from his wished-for paramour – she gave him a very clear tooth display.
Does Gypsy know the dog on the right? The dog on the right has ears far back and looks uncomfortable. Perhaps Gypsy is defending her friend? Just a guess… But irregardless, I would try to distract Gypsy with happy high voice and noises to avert any escalation.
Jen says
I think the Golden is thinking about trying to put her neck over the brown dog’s neck, who is not really in the mood for a wrestle, and will then try to get the Golden to instead chase him. And Gypsy is somehow connected to the brown dog (“hey Kevin, what’s happening here? Is this packers fan bothering you?”) and is about to bark because she wants everyone to go into a play bow chase scene and stop all this standing around.
Deb Carr says
What an interesting discussion. I must say I really enjoyed the film of Misty: watching her notice the big dog and handler come her way and react with some lip licks, big eyes and a brief head turn. Her big whale eyes looked to me as though she was just checking to see if the big dog was looking at her. I’d guess it was, and she gave such a show of teeth, just as a warning, followed by another head turn, lip lick (as if to say, “I’m sorry, I just had to say something”) and a weight shift/lean away from the other dog. She may be a tich shy of strangers, but she certainly has good communication skills!
The still photo was much harder to interpret. Gipsy’s eyes were riveted on the Golden, she looked as though she was seriously into its personal space, and it looked as though her weight was shifted to the right a bit. Such a situation would make me nervous, and I probably would have spoken to my Golden, just to get an attention shift.
Mary says
I see Misty looking away from the Dane, then sneaking a look back. Unless the Dane is circling her? Submission followed by a defensive showing of her teeth.
Gypsy looks tense all over- I would call my dog away from that situation with a ālook at the wonderful thing over hereā sound to my voice to diffuse the situation.
Trisha says
Wonderful comments! I had planned to add my take to the expressions today, Thursday the 11th, but I’m afraid I’ve been under the weather for the last few days. I’ll jump in on next Monday’s post, along with some more resources for reading expressions. (That said, I’m impressed–but not surprised–at many of the comments. You all rock!
jen says
Two of my dogs didn’t have tails and the current one doesn’t have eyes, but you really can still give a good guess what’s going on without those body parts!Look at the rest of the dog! The front pair are tense but they may work it out, I think. Gypsy’s ears are back, mouth puckered, tense, and staring- she’s not happy about the Golden, his sports team, or something! She looks like she’s going to go on offense to me, whereas Misty was all defense- please just go away, I don’t want to hurt you! Time to call out, Free Cookies!!!
Donna in VA says
Misty’s pupils dilated when she bared her teeth. Overall I think she handled herself well.
Gypsy’s stance just looks tense to me.
Lindsey says
Dr. Trish,
Are “whale eyes”- the off in the distance, type of staring, as if she was seeing visions?
I learn from you so this is the first time I have EVER suggested to ya’ll but I would suspect Gypsy isn’t so down with the dynamics of the 3 of them, or isn’t comfortable playing or being around other dogs and is definitely, (as a growler and teeth bearer), is probably misunderstood and feared.
I cant wait top find out what happens!!
Your super fan, dog walker, rescue parent, and constant learner,
Lindsey
Gayla says
It’s Monday… aren’t you feeling better?
Hope you know there are LOTS of people who care and worry about you!
Trisha says
All better Gayla, thanks for asking! Check out todayās post , I spent most of the day on it.
Louise says
Misty says “I do not like this.” and instinctively shows her teeth.
Gypsy says “Are you (Golden) going to hurt my friend (brown dog)?”