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19th October 2006
DogsRule: Why Do Dogs… Part 2
Q: When dogs yawn, are they sleepy or bored?
A: Neither, really. Think of yawning as a kind of switching gears. A yawn increases the flow of oxygen and boosts the heart rate - actions that give the brain a good goosing. A yawn can prepare the body for action - as in the yawning of a keynote speaker waiting for her introduction or a quarterback waiting to get back onto the field. Yawning can also be a way to relax.
Dogs yawn both to charge themselves up and to calm themselves down. It depends on the situation. If you go to a canine agility competition, you’ll often spot dogs yawning at the starting line while waiting for the signal to explode across the line to the first obstacle. They’re ready to run, and the yawn expresses that stress and excitement. In the waiting room of a veterinary hospital, you’ll often see dogs yawning, too - a sure sign that they’re stressed and trying to calm themselves.
In training classes, dog will often yawn - and owners will often interpret this as a sign that the dog is bored. Not so. The dog who’s yawning in obedience class is more likely stressed than bored, either from nervousness or from wanting to please you but not yet understanding how.
Just as in humans, yawning can be contagious in dogs. If you catch your dog’s attention and yawn, you may well get a yawn back. Some experienced dog handlers actually use this to their advantage, encouraging their dogs to yawn as a way to get them either focused or relaxed.
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Dr. Marty Becker is the resident veterinarian on “Good Morning America.” Gina Spadafori is a syndicated pet columnist.
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© 2006 Dr. Marty Becker and Gina Spadafori
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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