A tail-wagging discovery
There is a newly discovered, feature of dog body language
that may surprise attentive pet owners and experts in canine behavior.
When dogs feel fundamentally positive about something or someone, their
tails wag more to the right side of their rumps. When they have
negative feelings, their tail wagging is biased to the left.
A study describing the phenomenon, “Asymmetric tail-wagging responses by dogs to different emotive stimuli,” appeared in the March 20 issue of Current Biology. The authors are Giorgio Vallortigara, a neuroscientist at the University of Trieste in Italy, and two veterinarians, Angelo Quaranta and Marcello Siniscalchi, at the University of Bari, also in Italy.
All my dogs swung there tails both ways. I have a springer now and two oes dogs there stubs go back and forth the same, not more to the right.
Joan
Posted by: Joan Racywolski | April 28, 2007 at 10:57 AM
This is really insteresting. I always love to know more about my pets
Posted by: Alice Forbes | April 28, 2007 at 01:47 PM
What happens if the dog hasn't got a tail? I have two Boston Terriers and they wiggle their behinds...but not a tail between the two of them!!!
Posted by: Nancy | April 28, 2007 at 05:04 PM
whatever.
Posted by: marge | April 28, 2007 at 05:57 PM
What if a dog wags his tail in a circle?
Posted by: Robbin | April 28, 2007 at 10:07 PM
I thought my pups was happy when she smiled =^)
Posted by: John | April 29, 2007 at 03:12 PM
What is disturbing is, what about all of the dogs who have their tails docked? This is so common in the US.
Posted by: Small Breed Dogs | April 06, 2009 at 07:04 PM