Is Your Dog Dominant or Submissive?

Although who’s in charge isn’t always clear-cut, there is specific body language that can indicate dominance or submission. Individual facets should be assessed as part of an entire display and read in the context of the situation.

Dominance

A dominance display broadcasts, “I am in charge here!” The dog tries to make himself look as big as possible by standing tall, perhaps even being up on his toes. The body is stiff. Hackles may be raised. He may stare. Ears are up and forward. The tail is held high and may be curved over the back. If there is wagging, it is most likely in a stiff, moderate arc, like a flag waving. To make his point, the head or chin may be placed over the shoulder or back of another dog. If the other dog is on his back, the dominant dog might stand over him.

Submission

In direct contrast, submissive body language broadcasts, “Don’t hurt me!” or “I am not a threat!” The dog wants to make himself appear as small as possible. The body may be lowered, even to the ground. Ears are back. Eyes are averted. The tail is held low and possibly even tucked. In an extreme display of submission, the dog might lie on his back, exposing his vulnerable underbelly.

There is a lot more to the dominance-submission paradigm, however, and it can be confusing. A dog who is normally dominant over another, for example, will sometimes allow that other dog primary access to a valued resource; it all depends on how important that resource is to the top dog. During play, dogs use dominant or submissive body language in the context of fun and may trade off roles. So how can we tell? It’s not as though dogs walk around with a scarlet letter “D” or “S” glowing on their furry heads! It takes time and experience to truly understand the fine balance of power between dogs. One thing we do know: dogs don’t consider us to be of their species, which is one reason being heavy-handed in the name of showing dogs “who’s dominant” is folly at best.