While some people wish for two way communication with their companion animals others may veer toward anthropomorphizing.  What’s the middle ground?

The truth is, our furry friends are communicating with us all the time.  The question is whether or not we know what they’re saying.  Learning to recognize even a few simple postures and vocalizations can help you become a better friend to your companion animal.

Here we’re going to check out a few handy tools and offer some practical wisdom about signs, consistent gestures, and the basic means your cats and dogs may be using to express themselves. Gestures, tail positions, and related behaviors are the keys to feline and canine body language, and it turns out that quite often they mean pretty much what we’d expect.  Listen up!

Feline 

 Tail

Straight Up: This greeting roughly translates, “Happy to see you!”

Straight, with a Quiver: “Really happy to see you!“

Puffed: Upset, angry, or afraid

Gestures

Thwacking Tail: Thrashing like a dragon generally means, “Warning. About to pounce,” depending on the activity involved, it may mean something like, “Withdraw!” or “Continue, if you dare!”

Arched Back: The tell tale Halloween position means, “seriously terrified!” or “seriously angry!”

Rolling on Back, Purring: “Relaxed and loving life!”

Kneading: This kitten-like behavior is a sign of contentment and happiness

Vocals

Like people, cats can be quiet or more vocal with some cats behaving in a quite chatty fashion.  Sound levels, of course, vary with personality types, but in general the high noises are positive, and the lower ones are more annoyed or defensive communications.

Trills and Chirps: this noise is always positive (sounds like prrrt),

Purring: usually quite positive – though sometimes intended to help as a self-soothing or persuasive suggestion along the lines of “keep doing this” or “I’d like to settle down with this for a while.”

Yowly-Growly : This is an angry or distressed cat.  Low growls, hisses, and yowls indicate aggression, fear, or annoyance – “Leave me alone!”

Canine

Tail

Wag, Wag: “I’m happy!” (obviously)

Between the Legs: Intimidated, or afraid

Stiff: Afraid, defensive, uncertain- the closer to the belly, the more pronounced the concern.

Gestures

Butt in the Air: “Let’s play!”

Tense Body: Aggressive or afraid

Backing Up: Afraid, defensive “Leave me alone”

Bristle: If a dog raises its hackles, around the shoulders or along the spine, it’s a sign of excitation, which can also include fear or aggression, so pay attention to all cues

Excessive Shedding: Extra shedding – like at the vet’s office- indicates nervousness

Ears Back:  This intimidation posture generally means “Back off or else!” The transition heightens in intensity as the brows furrow and lips snarl (teeth visible = direct threat).  “Leave this dog alone!”

Vocals

Bark: Barking is standard fare in the dog world.  Decoding the bark is beyond us here, but it can be briefly considered as adding emphasis to a dog’s overall mood, like an underline or an exclamation point.  Pay attention to all the signals your dog is giving to conclude if a dog is feeling friendly, frisky, angry, etc.  If it’s playtime, barking expresses enthusiasm.  If the body language otherwise expresses fear or aggression, barking adds a verbal warning that the dog is prepared to defend whomever s/he is protecting.  Check out “Why Dogs Bark” for more details on vocalizations.  Tips on reading dog body language can also help you understand warnings and avoid dog bites!