Calming Signals: How Dogs Ask to Keep Things Calm

Dog calming signals are small, often fleeting behaviors, such as turning the head away, licking the lips, sniffing the ground, slowing down or curving around another dog, that dogs show when a social situation feels tense. They act like polite requests to lower the pressure, and they usually appear well before growling or snapping.

Because these signals are quick and subtle, most owners miss them entirely. Some also have ordinary meanings (dogs sniff to smell, yawn when tired), so the skill is reading them in context. They are one of the most useful layers of dog body language to learn, because spotting them early lets you step in long before your dog feels she has to shout.

What are calming signals? Turid Rugaas's work

The term "calming signals" comes from Turid Rugaas, a Norwegian dog trainer who spent years observing how dogs defuse tension with each other. In her book On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals, she described around 30 behaviors that dogs appear to use to calm themselves, avoid conflict and signal peaceful intent.

Rugaas's central idea is simple and practical. Dogs have a rich vocabulary for avoiding fights, and they use it constantly with other dogs and with people. If we learn that vocabulary, we can respect it, avoid putting dogs under pressure, and even "speak" some of it back.

Her work became hugely influential among trainers and shelter staff, and the phrase "calming signals" is now standard in pet-dog training. Veterinary behaviorists and ethologists often use related terms instead, such as appeasement behaviors, cut-off signals or displacement behaviors.

Calming signals list: the signals you will see most

Here are the calming signals owners encounter most often, with what they typically look like and when they tend to appear.

The play bow deserves a note: it is mostly an invitation to play, explained fully in our guide to the play bow, but dogs also use it to reset tension mid-play. Yawning and lip licking have their own breakdown in why dogs yawn and lick their lips.

Dog turning head away

A dog turning her head away is one of the clearest and earliest calming signals. Picture a child bending over your dog to hug her: she turns her head to the side, maybe licks her lips, and her eyes slide away. She is saying, "I am not a threat, and I would like this to stop."

Head turning also matters because a direct stare between dogs can feel confrontational. Looking away is a polite way of declining that confrontation. Our guide to dog eye signals explains how gaze avoidance differs from whale eye, where the dog keeps her head turned but her eyes fixed on the worry.

When you see a head turn, take the hint. Pause, straighten up, give her a little more room and let her choose whether to re-engage.

Dog sniffing the ground when stressed

Sudden sniffing is one of the most misread calming signals. You are walking your dog, another dog appears ahead, and your dog's nose drops to a patch of grass she ignored a moment ago. That abrupt interest is often a way of lowering social pressure: she avoids staring, slows the approach and signals she is not looking for trouble.

How to tell stress sniffing from ordinary sniffing:

• Timing: It starts the moment something socially tense appears.
• Intensity: The sniffing looks a bit fixed or distracted rather than eager and investigative.
• Ending: It stops once the other dog passes or the pressure eases.
• Company: It comes with other signals, such as a slower pace, a lowered tail or a lip lick.

Do not drag your dog away from stress sniffing or hurry her toward the other dog. Let her take her time. On walks, sniffing is also a genuine stress reliever, so a slow, sniffy route is one of the kindest things you can give an anxious dog.

Dog splitting behavior

Splitting is when a dog physically moves between two other individuals: two dogs playing too roughly, two people hugging, or a child and another dog. Some dogs nose in between; others simply walk through the gap and stand there.

Rugaas interpreted splitting as an attempt to prevent conflict by breaking up tension. Owners sometimes read it as jealousy or "dominance," but in most cases the splitter is a dog who finds the closeness or excitement uncomfortable. Herding breeds often seem especially prone to it.

If your dog repeatedly splits dogs at play, it is usually a sign the play has become too intense for her taste. Call everyone for a short break. If she splits people who are hugging, she may be unsettled by the sudden closeness rather than possessive.

Myth: "A dog who walks between you and your partner is being dominant or jealous." Splitting is better understood as a dog trying to defuse a situation that looks tense to her. The outdated dominance model misreads many behaviors like this one.

What the science says (and what it does not)

Rugaas's work came from careful field observation rather than controlled experiments, and some scientists question whether dogs deliberately use these behaviors to calm others. An alternative explanation is that many of them are displacement behaviors, ordinary actions that pop up out of context when a dog feels conflicted.

Research is starting to fill in the picture. A pilot study by Mariti and colleagues in 2017 found that dogs frequently showed calming signals during interactions with unfamiliar dogs, and that aggressive behavior from the other dog often subsided after a calming signal was shown. Firnkes and colleagues (2017) found that dogs showed more appeasement-type behaviors, such as lip licking and looking away, when people behaved in a threatening way toward them.

For owners, the debate about intent matters less than the practical takeaway. Whether a dog is "trying" to calm you or is simply stressed, these behaviors reliably tell you that she is uncomfortable. That is reason enough to respond.

Pro tip: Look for clusters rather than single behaviors. One yawn means little. A head turn, a lip lick and a sudden sniff within ten seconds of a stranger approaching means a lot.

How to use calming signals yourself

Dogs read our bodies all the time, and many everyday human habits, such as walking straight at a dog, leaning over her, staring and reaching for her head, look rude or threatening in dog terms. You can soften all of this by borrowing from the calming signal vocabulary:

1. Curve your approach. Walk in a gentle arc rather than heading straight for a dog.
2. Turn sideways. Present your side rather than your front, especially with nervous dogs.
3. Look away. Use soft, brief glances and avoid a fixed stare.
4. Slow down. Move slowly and smoothly; avoid sudden grabs.
5. Crouch side-on at a distance. Let the dog come to you rather than bending over her.
6. Yawn or blink. Some owners find a slow yawn or soft blink helps a worried dog settle, and it costs nothing to try.

These ideas form the basis of polite greetings; our guide on how to greet a dog puts them into a step-by-step routine. They are also invaluable when introducing two dogs, where curved, parallel walking lets both dogs use their own signals.

When calming signals are ignored

Calming signals sit at the bottom of a ladder of communication. If a dog's quiet requests are repeatedly ignored, she may escalate to stiffening, staring, growling, lip lifting and eventually snapping or biting. Some dogs learn that their subtle signals never work and begin skipping straight to louder ones.

This is why calming signals are so important for families. Children often hug, chase and lean over dogs, all of which trigger head turns and lip licks that adults miss. Our guide to dogs and kids explains how to supervise so those early signals are noticed and respected.

Safety note: If your dog shows lots of calming signals in a particular situation, such as being handled at the vet, meeting other dogs on leash or being approached by children, treat that as an early warning. Reduce the pressure now and work on the situation gradually rather than waiting for a growl.

Frequent calming signals are also a window into your dog's overall stress load. If you see them many times a day, look at our guide to signs of stress in dogs and consider what could be lightened in her routine. Dogs who show calming signals on leash and then explode at other dogs often fit the picture described in our leash reactivity guide.

What to do next

Spend a week simply watching. Notice when your dog turns her head, licks her lips, slows down or suddenly sniffs, and jot down what was happening. Patterns will appear fast, and they will show you exactly where your dog needs a little more space.

When you see a signal, respond: pause, back off slightly, turn sideways, or give her a way to leave. Keep a copy of our printable dog body language chart on the fridge so everyone in the household learns the same vocabulary.