Have you ever wondered what your dog is thinking or saying when you are not around? Your dog is probably using postures, facial expressions, tail wagging, and other changes in behavior to communicate with you. We all know that dogs have amazing communication skills, but what about their ears?
Give your dog’s ears a once over, and you’ll notice that most of them are not just protruding but also have a noticeable curvature. These protrusions are called “ears,” and they are functional. They can help your dog sense movement, noises, and even threats.
The idea of what dogs hear and how they process sound has been the subject of much debate, with some scientists suggesting dogs can hear a range of frequencies beyond what humans can hear.
Study after study has shown that dogs can detect sounds as low as 20Hz, and might be capable of hearing sounds as low as 13Hz. So, what your dog’s ears can tell you?
1. The Alert or pricked ears
We often hear of our dog’s ears that are wide open when they are alert or are pricked. This is a feeling you can read in your dog’s ears. If you notice your dog’s ears are alert or pricked, this may mean something is about to happen.
Specialized muscles near the dog’s ears help it detect subtle changes in sound. When a dog is alert, these muscles become more active, so the ear is more sensitive than when the dog is relaxed. When an unfamiliar sound approaches, the dog’s ears will prick up, and its ears will point forward.
Your dog’s ears will tell you a lot about your dog. If you know how to listen, you can learn a lot about your dog. If you can pay attention to what your dog is saying to you, you will have a better understanding of your dog.
Ear pricking is a method dogs use to communicate their feelings. It’s a technique that involves the dog’s ears being pulled back and wrinkling up, resulting in a distinctive curved look. Ear pricking often occurs when a dog is excited or worried.
2. The pinned Ears
Dogs have a sense of hearing that is undeniably more sensitive than humans, making them capable of “hearing” sounds that we can’t hear. Take the scenario where you are at home and hear your dog barking from the other side of the street.
Is your dog barking at the noise, or is it your perception that the dog is barking? The answer is both. Once you have a dog, you realize that the noises your dog is making are, in fact, noise, but your dog’s ears can hear the noises that you cannot.
Every dog has different ways of showing who’s in charge based on how they sit, stand, walk, and move. There are a few things you can do to tell how your dog is feeling in the moment.
For example, if your dog’s ears are pinned back and dropped low, it can mean two things, and it’s easy to tell the difference. Your dog is submissive if the ears are loosely pinned back and down.
You’ve probably seen your dog do this when you find your trash bin spread all over the kitchen, and he knows he has been naughty. So, the next time your dog’s ears are pinned back like they were yesterday, you shouldn’t be alarmed.
The reason your dog’s ears are pinned back is that that position is a “signal” to him, asking for help. If you look at your dog’s ears, you’ll see that he has a “frowning” or “swinging” appearance to them. The movement of your dog’s ears tells a story that you can’t possibly understand without the context of the body language.
3. The Cropped ears
Dogs are known to have a language all of their own, but many of us don’t know how to decipher it. Crop ears are a breed-specific trait that can help you make sense of your pet’s body language.
By understanding your dog’s ears, you’ll gain a deeper insight into their personality, which can help you better understand how they think and behave. The dog ear is a very important part of your dog’s body.
Not only do they provide us with our senses, but they are also very useful in communicating what your dog is trying to say. Dogs can make sounds that can be understood in various ways. Your dog can either be saying they are happy, frustrated, hungry, scared, angry, saying they want to play, saying they want to be petted and so much more.
The changing ear position
There’s a lot of information about ear movements in dog language, but the more dog owners I talk to, the more I hear the same one repeated over and over again: “dog’s not happy.” Before you head to the vet to get your furry friend checked out, take a look at these ear movements to help you understand what might be going on.
What’s up with your dog’s ears? They’re not just for show. They’re a window into his emotional state, too. If they’re up, he’s alert and ready. But if they’re down, he’s feeling vulnerable and on edge. He feels uncertain and unsure. He’s curious, but he’s also a little bit afraid.
He may be worried about something he already knows, or he might be trying to figure out something new. Dog ear language is like the human voice, but for dogs. Interestingly, the way dogs use their ears to communicate with humans is how some animals communicate with each other.
The Slightly back ears
Dogs are master communicators, and their ears are often the most reliable signifier of their moods. And when it comes to dogs, deafness isn’t a barrier to understanding their complex signs.
If your dog’s ears are just slightly positioned back, it probably means your pup is in a friendly mood. This is usually the position of your dog’s ears when he approaches you to rest his head on your knee and look up at you while you’re sitting on the couch.
- Ear-Raising and Tail-Wagging are two of the most common dog behaviors. If you can identify a dog wagging its tail and raising its ears, it probably means the dog is happy and is trying to communicate information to you. Ear-raises and tail-wagging are indicators that your dog is either happy and excited or unhappy and unsure of what is going on.
- The neutral ears
Dogs are such a fun species to have around. They are full of character, they have a unique way of thinking, and they have the potential to become an emotional connection that you can share with your family.
When you start focusing on your dog’s ears, you may also realize how much insight you gain from this. How can you tell if your dog’s ears are normal? It may seem simple, but subtle clues help you make the right diagnosis.
Ear redness may indicate an infection, while the dog’s ears standing straight up or pointing backward may point to an ear infection, while a wet, crusty discharge may be a sign of an ear infection. The dog-ear language is a lot more complicated than you might think.
It’s not just dogs that can communicate with each other. Dogs communicate with other animals and us, mainly through gestures and actions. It’s a two-way street, with humans and dogs contributing to the conversation.
Dog ears are often misunderstood and/or misguided, as breeders and owners tend to focus on the outward appearance of a dog’s ears. However, it’s important to remember that the average dog has a much more complex set of ear movements than is usually noticed.
A dog’s ears can be used as a form of communication among other dogs and humans. If a dog is listening, it will typically tilt its ears forward (although there are exceptions to this). If a dog is focused on something, it will use its ears to follow the line of sight or the direction of interest. If a dog wants to point to someone, it will often lean its ears toward that direction.
Importance of knowing the Dog Ear Language
Thanks to thorough training and lots of treats, your dog knows when it’s time to sit, stay, come, and lay down. But what about when they communicate with you in their language? Dog’s ears are one of the most important accessories for them, i.e., they are the essential tool of communication.
If you’re wondering what your dog’s ears mean and why they do it, there is a list of commonly used terms that you can use to know what they are thinking or what they are trying to tell you as well.
Dogs are not human, and dogs have different likes and dislikes. The following are some of their communication cues. What is an ear wag? A quick headshake accompanies ear wags. What does the upward or downward motion of the tail mean? It usually means the dog is either upset or happy. Why does the dog bark or howl? It usually means the dog needs to be let out.
If you have a dog, then you have probably heard the expression “everything is better with a bone.” You can imagine this expression applies to more than just your pet’s chew toys.
Many dog owners don’t know that we can learn a lot about our dogs by examining their ears. Dog ears are an amazing sensory mechanism, and they can tell us a lot about our dogs, including how much training they have received, their general health, and even their mindset.
What can you do with knowledge of your dog’s ear language? First, it will help you understand what your dog is saying, and then you can use that understanding to understand your dog better.
You will learn about the importance of listening to your dog’s requests, and you will learn how to read your dog using her ears, as well as how to communicate with other canines and humans. If you want to know what your dog is thinking or feeling, you should learn what he or she is saying with his or her ears.
If you haven’t heard the expression “dog ear” before, you might want to learn what it means. The term refers to the distinctive way a dog’s ears look, which is different from that of other animals.
Dogs have some of our animal kingdom’s most expressive and intelligent ears. There are different types of ears in dogs, with each type having a different meaning from the others. The use of different ears in dogs can help us understand them better.
