Pro-Social Behavior
How can you tell if a dog wants to get close to you or another animal? Look for what’s called pro-social (A.K.A. “friendly”) behavior:
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The dog approaches with a combination of these:
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The absence of these friendly signals should be seen as a red flag. The dog might be trying to figure out if he feels comfortable around you; he might be okay around you, but only from a certain distance away; or he might simply prefer to be left to his own business.
Bottom line, just like the pup in this video, dogs that don’t come to you are staying away for a reason. |
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Armed now with this knowledge, can you answer the question “When is it safe to approach a dog?”
The answer is... Never! Let dogs come to you.
The answer is... Never! Let dogs come to you.
Jumping on People
Notice that “jumps up to lick face” is included in the above list. This behavior — which some people find cute in tiny dogs but annoying in big dogs (or little dogs covered in mud!) — is said to trace back to dog’s ancestor, the gray wolf.
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When the adult wolves come back to the den from a hunt, the puppies mob them and lick their faces, triggering a (yuck!) regurgitation reflex to give them food. As adults, wolves continue to lick faces to greet one another. That trait has been passed down to dogs, who still do it to say hello too.
If jumping up on guests is something you’d like your dog to stop doing, check out this video on how to teach your dog to sit when people come through the door. |
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