Is my dog happy?
This is a question that we often get from sitter and owners who work with Rover. Help the community out by answering them in our forum!
3 Answers
You can usually tell if your dog is happy by noticing it's behaviors and activity level. If it is sitting around all the time, wnd not being very active then it is probably not very happy. Dogs like to be active and enjoy lots of attention. Some ways to see if your dog is happy are to notice it's tail and see if it is wagging when you call it's name or speak to it. Also to play with it and notice it's interaction. I've noticed dogs may seem unhappy when they are either tired or need to go to the bathroom. But once those things are fixed with proper attention any dog can show signs of happiness.
Understanding dog body language can certainly help in determining happiness. This quote is from that: "When a dog is happy, his whole body looks soft,” Debra Horwitz, veterinary behaviorist and lead editor of Decoding Your Dog, says. “And when a happy dog wags his tail, the tail wags his whole body. He has relaxed ears, a soft pant, eyes are soft." Here's the link. http://pets.webmd.com/features/what-i...
Happy dogs have relaxed eyes, mouth, and body. Not showing any destruction. Wagging his/her tail. Enjoys play time, Healthy appetite. Happy barks and sleeps well. Rolls around and leans on you. Excited to see you.