Learn to Recognize These Dog Bite Warning Signs
While your dog may not be able to verbally explain to you what is going on or how he/she may be feeling at any given time, they use other forms of communication to express their discomfort.
As a responsible pet owner, it is your job to keep your dog safe.
Learn to recognize dog bite warning signs when they happen, allowing you to remove your dog from a dangerous situation before it’s too late.
Why is Bite Safety Important?
The moment that you brought your dog into your family, you accepted a number of responsibilities.
Your dog relies on you to provide him/her with the nutrition necessary to keep them healthy, a safe place to call home and the love and affection that they crave.
It is also your role to keep your dog safe, both shielding them from danger and removing them from a high-risk situation.
Often news reports share stories of dog attacks stating that ‘no one saw it coming’ or that they ‘had no idea he/she was going to bite’.
However, in most cases, the signs were there. Most people just don’t know what to look for.
How does it end? In most cases, for a first offence, your dog will be labelled as ‘aggressive’ which may come with restrictions depending on where you live including a requirement to wear a muzzle when in public.
The worst-case scenario is that your dog will be euthanized. It’s a senseless tragedy that can often be avoided!
Today we’re going to discuss the signs and signals of a dog showing aggression. If you see your dog exhibiting these warning signs, it’s time to get him/her out before the situation escalates.
Don’t be afraid to speak up and advocate for your dog – They can’t speak for themselves!
Advance Dog Bite Warning Signs to Watch Out For:
Facial Expressions
Often overlooked, a dog’s facial expression will tell you a lot about their current mental and emotional state.
This includes not only the obvious signs, such as baring its teeth but also the subtle changes and signs of discomfort.
Early warning signs that your dog is not comfortable with the current situation include licking its lips, yawning or avoiding eye contact.
Your dog’s eyes may widen significantly during times of stress.
Body Language
Don’t underestimate the power of reading your dog’s body language.
If a dog that is usually comfortable in social situations is suddenly cowering or tucking its tail beneath it, this is a sign that your dog is feeling fearful.
When a dog is fearing for their own safety, they are at a far higher risk of responding in an aggressive nature. This may lead to a dog biting that normally wouldn’t show any signs of aggression.
If a dog has been pushed to the point of a potential attack, their demeanour will change. A normally easy-going and laid-back dog may suddenly become stiff or rigid.
Pay careful attention to the hair along the end of your dog’s back and onto the tail. When a dog is becoming aggressive or defensive, that hair will often stand on end.
Your dog may even wag their tail during this stag, but it will be in a stiff manner. Don’t mistake this for a sign of happiness.
Finally, watch the placement of your dog’s ears. If your dog’s ears move into a position tucked flat against their head, it’s time to remove your dog from the situation immediately.
Verbal/Audible Warnings
Warnings that fall into this category are often the most recognized.
Unfortunately, when it reaches the stage of verbal warnings from your dog, it is often the last warning and will allow for very little time for you to react in order to prevent a problem.
This includes deep growling, often accompanied by bared teeth, or barking.
This is your dog’s way of saying that the person or persons making them feel uncomfortable are getting one last warning before they resort to a more physical response.
There is a disturbing and concerning trend seeming social media as of late in which owners record small dogs, like Chihuahuas and Yorkies, growling and snapping.
Due to the fact that the dogs are small in stature, those who are filming see this as entertaining.
However, these situations are highly stressful for the poor dogs. They aren’t growling to be funny; they are warning that they are uncomfortable in the situation and want to be left alone.
Continuing to encourage this behaviour will only lead to bigger behavioural issues down the road.
Signs of Aggressive Dog Behaviour
If the situation has already escalated to this level, consider it to be an emergency.
By this point, your dog has tried to warn those around them to back off both verbally and using a variety of non-verbal cues, but their warnings have been ignored.
A dog that is reacting physically is desperate and the situation needs to be addressed IMMEDIATELY.
This includes actions such as mouthing, striking the offender with their nose, nipping or even lunging. If left to continue, this WILL lead to a dangerous situation for all involved.
It is important to remember throughout this process that even the best behaved and best-trained dogs are, ultimately, still dogs.
Even those that have passed the rigorous training involved in becoming police dogs and rescue dogs may, at some point, find themselves in a less than ideal situation.
Their handlers have been trained to recognize these signs and respond appropriately.
If you do find yourself dealing with signs of aggression, remain calm. Your dog can sense your fear and anxiety, and it may escalate the situation further.
Do NOT grab your dog or try to physically remove them from the situation, especially in the latter stages of the warning process.
Reacting in a physical way may escalate the situation rapidly.
You need to take control of the situation.
If the person or people involved have been handling the dog, put an end to that immediately.
Ask them to remain still and calm, hand down and avoiding eye contact until such time that your dog begins to calm down. At this point, ask them to slowly back away.
My friend had to give her dog away as it bit her kid. This is good info to know
Often dogs with aggressive tendencies need specific training, and may not be suited to certain households.
Yikes, good to keep in mind. I don’t have dogs, but I always watch the dogs that we come across.
It’s always good to know, even as a non-dog owner. You never know when you’ll be in contact with someone else’s dog, and they may not know the signs.
Sad to think why dogs bite. Hopefully everyone’s pup is safe and happy.
In most cases, it’s totally preventable.
Thankfully we haven’t encountered too many aggressive dogs since getting our pup last year. Our dog is so friendly and gentle with others that sometimes he just doesn’t get it why we wont let him “go say hi” to other dogs. The worst is when someone brings a dog that doesn’t like other dogs to a dog park, and the barking and snarling ensues, my pup just lookes at them like they have gone crazy.
I am completely anti dog park… I have been debating writing a post to explain why.
How I wish my aunt know how to handle their dog. I’m so scared going to their house these days because of their dog, who become extremely violent when it sees a stranger. I don’t mean ordinary barking.
Some dogs are definitely a bigger risk than others. Neither of ours are out of control with strangers, but we do have one dog that’s fearful with other dogs and we’ve had to take measures to accommodate that.
This is so interesting! As someone who has had my one of my dogs attacked multiple times by other larger dogs, it would have been helpful for me to be able to spot some of these signs, and probably for their owners to be able to spot them too! Thanks for sharing!
Yes! As much as it is our responsible to know the signs in our own dogs, it’s also super helpful to recognize them in others.
This is incredibly helpful information..
Dogs are amazing, but they’re so dangerous when they get aggressive and you’re not prepared with how to handle them… I still remember getting attacked by my neighbors large dog when i was 4, while running around my front yard, playing by myself. My dad came outside right before it happened and was able to deescalate the situation, calmly getting the dog to release it’s grip on my leg. It was terrifying, but i can’t even imagine what would have happened if he didn’t know what to do, or if he had reacted too emotionally.
It is SO important as a responsible dog owner to know the signs, especially those that are more common in YOUR dog (every dog is different) and be prepared to react accordingly.
I grew up with a an aggressive dog – the vet chalked it up to a psychological issue because he wasn’t really like that until he was about 3 or 4. It was super tough to love your pup but not be able to trust them around anybody.
We have one dog right now that isn’t aggressive, but he’s fearful around other dogs and can lash out. It has been a learning process.
I find this helpful as I have developed a phobia with dogs. Maybe that’s also why I don’t have pets. I was bitten by a neighbor’s dog when I was 9 years old.
I can definitely see how that may discourage you from having pets.
Great Britt, the dog lovers should know the Dog bite warning signs before Dog bite. The post is informative.
Thank you!
It is good to be aware of what leads up to a bite. It is better to be proactive than push it too far.
Definitely! More often than not, it can be avoided if you just know what to watch for.
Our family dog was a real biter. He didn’t like anyone but my father. He would give off all these warning signs before finally snapping, and when he snapped it was wicked. He was just very fiesty so we never let kids near him!
The same applies for cats. Our two give off warning signs that they are going to bite or scratch. Luckily when they do bite it’s gentle and followed by a lick.
Yes, all animals give off warning signs when they are getting fed up!
I love dog behavior and have slowly been learning about the different languages they have, especially working in the rescue world and veterinary medicine. Thanks so much for sharing this with all of us!
Isn’t it fascinating how they communicate – they really do say SO much if we learn how to listen!
One should really be careful when handling dog for the very first time. I have dogs at home, and I know if they are attempting to be aggressive or not. 🙂 A good knowledge about this won’t hurt. Thank you for sharing!
I am a firm believer that everyone should have at least a basic understanding – even if they aren’t living with a dog or planning to bring one into the home. What if your neighbour’s dog gets loose and comes on your property? It would be just as important to know in a situation like that to keep everyone safe!
As a dog lover, but not yet owner, I never knew about any of these warning signs. I’ll definitely be prepared for if I ever need this. Thank you!
I hope that you never need them, but knowing them is SO important.
My oldest pup has been the friendliest dog to all people. But now with his older age, he is a little more cranky. He would let my boys crawl all over him but now he isn’t as patient. So, we have had to talk to the boys to give him his space. It is good to teach young kids too about how to approach dogs instead of running up to them.
Yes, this is so important! If a child comes across a random dog at the park or running loose on the street, they often want to react how they have been taught to act around their dog at home, and the result can be tragic!
These are all very good things to look out for if you are a dog owner or around dogs. Its important to understand the dogs feelings in certain situations. Thanks for sharing!
Yes! They are trying to warn us, we just need to know how to hear that warning.
It’s a bit disheartening that many dog owners don’t know the signs to look for, so it’s great that you’ve but this advise out there.
That social media trend of putting small dogs in uncomfortable situations for entertainment is disgusting. How could a loving pet owner even think of doing that? People make me sad sometimes :o(
I can’t wrap my head around the fact it seems to be seen as ‘okay’ if it’s a small dog… How is it any different?
I have been bitten by a dog when I was younger so I know we have to bee very careful when handling a dog.
It can happen so quickly, especially if you aren’t aware of the warning signs.
I am so scared of dog bites. I grew up in Mumbai where there are a lot of vicious street dogs who bite without reason. This is one of the reasons I have never really liked dogs. I will keep your post in mind when I got to Mumbai next and have to encounter with the street dogs again.
That’s a reality that I think a lot of us in other areas don’t consider. Here, there is only going to be a stray dog if it’s escaped from someone’s home… We don’t see them just around like we do stray cats.
A helpful post. Dogs make great pets but they, like everyone, have a breaking point and it is good to be able to recognise the signs
It is SO important to know! They are, at the root of it, still dogs – regardless of how well trained they may be.
I do not own a dog but these are helpful information. I will be more aware and observant.
You never know when you may come in touch with someone else’s dog. It’s always better to be prepared to keep yourself and your family/friends safe!