Tail Wagging Nutrition Why River Run Pet Food Is a Top Choice for Pet Owners

By Isabella Storyclaire

last updated November 18, 2024

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Dog Tail Signs: What That Wagging Means

You can understand a lot about your canine companion from his dog tail signs. That wagging or thumping on the carpet? You know your pup is feeling great. That feeling of dread when you walk through the front door and that same tail is tucked low? That tail tells you something has been destroyed by a bored pup while you were away. Whether you consider yourself fluent in wag or you're still learning how to decode dog tail language, read on to learn more about how your pet communicates.

Spotting the Signs: A Guide to Dog Tail Language

A dog's tail originally evolved to help him stay balanced, like a tightrope walker's pole. It serves as a counterweight to the front part of his body when he's making a high-speed turn while hunting and helps keep him from falling off narrow walkways.

Now that a dog hunt generally involves finding the last piece of kibble that fell behind the bowl, that wagging tail is largely thought of as a communication device. Here are five key things the placement of a dog's tail can tell you, according to the Center for Shelter Dogs at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.

Circular swish: A dog whose tail is swishing back and forth or in a circular motion is one happy and relaxed pup.
Lowered or tucked tail: A dog who is frightened or feeling submissive will often lower or tuck his tail between his hind legs.
Tail wagging stiffly: A dog who is excited may wag his tail stiffly while jumping, spinning or sticking his rump in the air. His excitement may be from a positive source like an upcoming walk or a negative source like an intimidating stranger.
Tail held horizontally: A tail held straight out indicates a dog who is attentive and alert or perhaps curious about something nearby. Traditional hunting dog breeds like pointers or setters also hold their tails out straight when they point at an animal or object.
Sudden tail raise: When a dog moves his tail from a down position to a vertical or raised position, it could indicate he is feeling aggressive.

Reading Wag Speed

The speed of a dog's wagging tail might also give you an indication of his mood, Psychology Today reports.

Quick wag: A short wag usually happens during greetings when a dog is feeling tentative.
Big, broad wag: This indicates a friendly dog who is not threatening anyone.
Slow, reluctant wag: This might indicate a dog who is feeling anxious. Other signs of anxiety include avoiding eye contact, refusing food or ignoring what's happening around him.
Tiny, high-speed wag: A tail that moves in short, vibrating bursts can be a sign a dog is about to run or fight. Be careful!

Dog Tail Language Barriers

Some dogs wag with long, expressive tails, but what about dogs with small, stumpy tails or no tails at all? A truncated tail may make it more difficult for dogs to communicate with their pet parents and with other dogs, writes Psychology Today. An observational study of more than 400 dogs greeting each other off-leash in a dog park showed a higher number of aggressive incidents involving dogs with short tails. This doesn't mean that your corgi will inherently pick more fights than your shepherd mix, but it could be something to watch out for. Overall, the study found that only 12 percent of dog park incidents resulted in any kind of aggression. That's a sign that dog communication has a pretty high success rate.

The tale of the tail? Dog tail signs help pups communicate not only with us, but also with other dogs. Knowing the meaning of how a dog is using his tail can go a long way to showing you how your pet is feeling.

Contributor Bio

Kara Murphy

Kara Murphy is a freelance writer and pet parent who lives in Erie, Pa. She has a goldendoodle named Maddie.

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Tail-wagging trends: whats next for the pet food industry

If youve ever come home to a chewed up leather shoe, you already know that some dogs will eat anything.

Their owners, however, are pickier, and are increasingly focused on what theyre putting into their pets bowl each day.

Market research company Mintel has found some clear trends emerging in the pet food space, per Pet Food Processing:

Personalized offerings: Whether targeting weight loss, increased protein, or added fiber, personalized pet foods are becoming more popular, to the point where its overwhelming 54% of US consumers say there are too many options in the pet food aisle.
Natural ingredients: An increasing number of US pet owners (38%) want all-natural pet foods, with 23% specifically looking for limited ingredient lists.
Sustainable practices: In the US,61% of pet food buyers want brands to limit environmental impacts and 74% believe companies should be more transparent about farming practices.

As it turns out, priorities in the pet food industry closely mirror those in human food with even more innovation happening in the pet product space.

Of new product launches between 2019 and 2023, a third came from entirely new brands and companies, a significantly higher rate than in human food.

Pawsitive outlook

Owners are increasingly willing to splurge on food for their pets as they would for a family member.

Over the past decade, US owners increased the amount of money spent annually on their pets by 54%, up from $631 in 2011 to $969 in 2021.

Plus, global pet food sales hit ~$134B in 2023 and 66% of US households own at least one pet thats ~86.9m households.

And pet parents might have even more options soon to spoil their cats and dogs: Pet DNA testing is gaining steam with 45% of French owners ages 16 to 34 willing to pay for testing to find the healthiest diet for their pet.

Dog Tail Signs: What That Wagging Means

You can understand a lot about your canine companion from their dog tail signs. That wagging or thumping on the carpet? You know your pup is feeling great. That feeling of dread when you walk through the front door and that same tail is tucked low? That tail tells you something has been destroyed by a bored pup while you were away. Whether you consider yourself fluent in wag or you're still learning how to decode dog tail language, read on to learn more about how your pet communicates.

Spotting the Signs: A Guide to Dog Tail Language

A dog's tail originally evolved to help with balance, like a tightrope walker's pole. It serves as a counterweight to the front part of the body when making a high-speed turn while hunting and helps keep them from falling off narrow walkways.

Circular swish:A dog whose tail is swishing back and forth or in a circular motion is one happy and relaxed pup.
Lowered or tucked tail: A dog who is frightened or feeling submissive will often lower or tuck their tail between the hind legs.
Tail wagging stiffly: A dog who is excited may wag their tail stiffly while jumping, spinning or sticking their rump in the air. Their excitement may be from a positive source like an upcoming walk or a negative source like an intimidating stranger.
Tail held horizontally: A tail held straight out indicates a dog who is attentive and alert or perhaps curious about something nearby. Traditional hunting dog breeds like pointers or setters also hold their tails out straight when they point at an animal or object.
Sudden tail raise: When a dog moves their tail from a down position to a vertical or raised position, it could indicate a feeling of aggression.

Reading Wag Speed

The speed of a dog's wagging tail might also give you an indication of their mood, Psychology Today reports.

Quick wag: A short wag usually happens during greetings when a dog is feeling tentative.
Big, broad wag: This indicates a friendly dog who is not threatening anyone.
Slow, reluctant wag:This might indicate a dog who is feeling anxious. Other signs of anxiety include avoiding eye contact, refusing food or ignoring what's happening around them.
Tiny, high-speed wag: A tail that moves in short, vibrating bursts can be a sign a dog is about to run or fight. Be careful!

Dog Tail Language Barriers

Some dogs wag with long, expressive tails, but what about dogs with small, stumpy tails? A truncated tail may make it more difficult for dogs to communicate with their pet parents and with other dogs, writes Psychology Today. An observational study of more than 400 dogs greeting each other off-leash in a dog park showed a higher number of aggressive incidents involving dogs with short tails. This doesn't mean that your corgi will inherently pick more fights than your shepherd mix, but it could be something to watch out for. Overall, the study found that only 12 percent of dog park incidents resulted in any kind of aggression. That's a sign that dog communication has a pretty high success rate.

The tale of the tail? Dog tail signs help pups communicate not only with us, but also with other dogs. Knowing the meaning of how a dog is using their tail can go a long way to showing you how your pet is feeling.