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Diggy & Bean | Focus on Bean | Part 3/3 Observation & Interpretation
One of the most important keys to correctly interpreting any social interaction between two dogs is to ask the question: “How did the OTHER dog react?” Because, while we study and observe, and use slow-motion to catch the littlest behaviors, we are not dogs and we will never be able to “speak dog” as fluently as the dogs themselves.
With that in mind, let’s take a closer look at Bean, the little red dog in the bed in this video. (HINT: If you haven’t already, you may want to watch Part 1, which has this interaction in real time and slow motion without labels, to challenge yourself on how many signals you can see, before watching this labeled version.)
After you look closely at all the observations, go ahead with interpretation: What is Bean saying? And how does Diggy react to what Bean says?
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3 Replies
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In my opinion, Bean is “saying” he is uncomfortable with Diggy near by for whatever reason. He says this with blinking eyes, ears back, closed mouth, whale eyes, looking away.
Diggy initially responds with polite language by looking away, sniffing (could be diffusing signal rather than interested in an odor investigating), sitting. He appears to be avoiding confrontation.
As Diggy moves in closer, Bean snaps and likely is warning that now he is too close. Bean immediately turns away which could possible indicate that he is avoiding escalation in doing so. He does continue to lip lick, hold ears back, mouth is closed, eyes are blinking. He is saying he is still uncomfortable. Diggy seems to get stiff and shows some confidence but, I think since Bean does not escalate further or engage in any way, Diggy abandons his intentions; perhaps finally listening to Bean.
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Much like @jenz has said already, Bean is uncomfortable/stressed by Diggy being nearby/in the space and is trying to ask for space/disengagement with all the head turns, lip licks, ears back, blinking. I think Dilly tries to investigate the area and/or interact with Bean anyway, thus the bark/lunge/snap. Bean continues to show signals requesting distance without further escalation, and Diggy eventually heeds his request.
I found this so interesting because my dog, Henry, could easily stand in for Bean in this video! He is also one to lunge/bark/air snap if a dog who he doesn’t know well or is being too persistent comes into his space when he’s resting on the couch. I love how good Bean is about giving many early signals of his discomfort!
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@jenz and @warren – you’ve got it; Bean is sending ALL SORTS of signals to Diggy. And, I think his frequent check ins with the camera person are interesting, too. We can interpret those glances in a couple ways:
- Am I okay? Am I safe, here?
- Is THIS behavior that he’s doing okay?
- Do I have backup? Are you with me, if we make a move?
- Can I get backup? Hey – can you pay closer attention; I need help!
- Are you still there? Are you getting this?
And we can’t really know for sure… but one thing is abundantly clear: Bean is uncomfortable with Diggy so close. The videographer is obviously comfortable letting Bean set the boundaries; I’m sure that they have seen Bean with a number of other dogs as I believe Diggy is a boarding dog while Bean is a resident. I think that’s an important fact in this video, too.
I find it interesting and informative when people tell me what they think their dog is saying, vs. giving observational data about body language, because we can see deeply into the human perspective. People who want to call Bean “controlling/snarky” have a different set of values and expectations than people who tend to see the same behavior as “communication and boundary setting”. Labeling is only helpful if it helps us understand the behavior package and ultimately help the dog.
Whatever the client says though, I try to use objective body language as education points, and as I tell the owners what stress signals look like, and also point out what did NOT happen (Bean did not make contact; he did not get off his bed; he did not chase Diggy away) we can begin to see better that this is actually a simple and really clear communication that began with small signals and advanced to “yelling” when he was not heeded: Give Me Space.
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