Reading a Collie’s Body Language


Trainee Bookends by me'nthedogs on Flickr

A collie uses his body to communicate. Given below are a few examples to help you know what your collie is trying to say.

When your collie wants to tell you that he wants to play, he will stoop down with his front legs elongated, will raise up with his head close to the ground.

If your collie wants to say that the place belongs to him and if he is ready to fight it out, then he will keep his legs stiff and stand in an upright posture.

If he is slightly bending his body with his feet ready, then it mean he accepts the challenge and is ready for the fight.

In case, your collie starts rolling on one side showing you his underside, then he means to say that, he does not wants to argue and accepts that you are the boss. This is a kind of dutiful answer to show that he does want any kind of conflict. You might have noticed this kind of a posture when a collie is among a pack of dogs showing that he obeys his leader. And if he starts rolling onto his back and rubbing it then he means that he accepts you as a leader.

If you find your collie keeping his head or paw on another dog’s shoulder, then it means that he wants to sort out as to who the boss is. These indications are usually found in dogs who are very dominant, who are leaders of the pack or aspirants to become leaders.

Mouthing: This kind of body language is commonly found in collies while they interact with humans. They will mouth your hands, when you walk along with them showing you the lead. Mouthing may be a serious sign of showing how dominant they are, and that they are not happy in accepting a human as their leader.

If he places his mouth on your knee, then he is looking for your attention. However he has many ways to seek attention from you like showing their paws in front of you or slowly sliding their head on your hands.

Bristles of hair on the shoulders and back: It is a signal of foreseen assault. A crease of hair raging down his back means that he is angry and does not want him to be pushed. In case the raging extends to his shoulders he means to say that he has had enough of you and it is an indication of immediate attack.

If your collie is sitting and holding his front paw slightly upwards then he means that, he feels insecure and stressed out. It also means that he is feeling uneasy, agitated and interested.

If he starts rolling onto his back and rubbing his body on the ground or if he is rubbing his nose and eyes with his front paw, he means to say that his master is preparing food for him or he does this sometimes when he looking forward to some pleasing activities.

Many a times the collie will scrape the floor when he has defecated. The glands that are present at the bottom of the collie’s feet have a different scent. In this case he means to say that he is available and is leaving his card.

About the Author: Written by Jeff Nenadic from http://www.my-dogshop.com My Dog Shop - check for current specials on http://www.my-dogshop.com/apparel-accessories_dog-toys.html chew toys online.


2 Responses to “ Reading a Collie’s Body Language ”

  1. We just adopted a beautiful blue merle champion and are happily adjusting to our changed lives!
    A couple of odd traits have us puzzled though.

    Shannon scrunches his face and lovely, small almond eyes and will stare…most of the times its ridiculously playful, sometimes its seems like he’s pissed off! Hard to tell. Any clues?

    Also - do collies have issues with night vision? He is so wonderful with strangers, but the other nite we went for a walk and he barked angrily at a neighbor!!

    Overall: amazing breed!

    Greg

  2. My Collie “Tucker” is about 8 months old. He is probably the best dog I’ve ever had, but Tucker is the most laid-back, loving, coward Collie in Wisconsin.
    He has a lot of weird…mannerisms…such as walking sideways when he is shy/approaching someone. He wiggles his butt when he is very excited and his legs thrash about underneath him to the point that he stumbles (quite funny actually).
    Tucker seems to express a lot more of “emotion” than my previous 2 dogs, but it is well accepted for it is much easier to tell what he wants and how to make him happy.

    He is a great dog and a great breed overall. Tucker loves the Family Farm and is currently chasing cats near the barn.

    I hope someone out their can diagnose some of his mannerisms. He is too weird, yet too cool.

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