Do Maltese dogs like hugs

Should You Give Your Dog Hugs?

Its completely natural for humans to hug somebody to express affection. Just as natural as dogs sniffing rear ends to say hello. Of course, people dont share dogs love of sniffing behinds or human crotches. And to the same degree, dogs dont share our love of hugs.

We speak different languages and use different behaviors to communicate. In fact, misreading your dog and subjecting them to hugs can stress them and even result in a bite. So, although its instinctive to hug and squeeze what you adore, particularly for children, its important to find other more dog-appropriate ways to show your dog you care.

Dogs Dont Like Hugs

If you watch dogs interact, youll notice they dont embrace each other. They might pin each other to the ground, but its in only one of two contexts: play fighting or real fighting. So, when you hug a dog, they dont understand what youre trying to say.

In fact, youre essentially trapping them. They cant get away from anything that scares them or makes them uncomfortable while in your arms. And as hugging is often accompanied by direct staring and putting your face next to the dogs, they might also interpret your actions as aggressive or threatening. Its no wonder they dont enjoy the squeezing sensation of a hug.

You might believe your dog adores your hugs. After all, you do it all the time and your dog doesnt complain. But its far more likely your dog is simply tolerating your behavior. Although the odd dog doesnt seem to mind, most dogs display stress signals when hugged, and their owners are oblivious. Dr. Stanley Coren did a research study where he looked at 250 photographs of people hugging their dogs. Although the people were smiling and happy, 81 percent of the dogs showed body language signs of stress.

If the dogs stress level from a hug is high enough, the dog can bite. And the huggers face is right next to the dogs face and therefore their teeth. That puts whoever is hugging the dog at risk of serious injury. Even if your dog tolerates hugs from you, they might not be okay with one coming from a stranger or young child. Its essential to teach children safe ways to interact with dogs, especially dogs they dont already know, other than hugging.

How to Know When Your Dog Is Uncomfortable

How do you know if your dog is genuinely enjoying your hugs? They wont show any signs of stress or discomfort. Learn to read dog body language so you can recognize your dogs emotional state and understand what they are trying to tell you.

Some signs of stress in dogs, like growling or baring of the teeth, are obvious. But others are more subtle and require paying attention to every aspect of your dog. Understanding the following behaviors will help you see when your dog is feeling uncomfortable.

Stiffness

If your dog stiffens or becomes still when you hug them, they are not enjoying the experience. A happy dog is loose and relaxed.

Head Turned Away

Dogs will not make eye contact when they are uncomfortable, so they might turn their head away from you, sometimes also closing their eyes.

Whale Eye

Also called half-moon eye, this is where you can see the white of your dogs eyes.

Lowered Ears

A stressed dog will lower their ears or lay them back against the side of their head.

Tucked Tail

An unhappy dog will lower their tail or even tuck it under their belly.

Yawns

This is not a sign of exhaustion but rather an indication your dog is stressed.

Nose Licks

This can be a very quick flick of the tongue, and it shows your dog is uncomfortable.

Raised Paw

When a dog is uncertain about something, they will often lift one front paw off the ground.

Teach Your Dog to Tolerate Hugs

For safety and to help prepare your dog for unexpected hugs from well-meaning strangers or children, teach your dog to tolerate hugs. This is critical if you want your dog to be a therapy dog. With desensitization and counterconditioning, you can change your dogs negative associations with restraint to something more accepting.

Start by pairing touch with treats or another reward, then slowly increase the invasiveness until you are gently restraining your dog. Finally, increase the firmness of your embrace, all while continuing to reward your dog after each hug. In time, your dog will put up with even the most awkward embrace for the chance to earn a reward.

Canine-Friendly Ways to Express Your Affection

Even if youve taught your dog to tolerate hugs, it wont be their preferred way to accept affection. Find other more dog-friendly ways to say, I love you. Try giving your dog a belly rub for example. Or scratch their back, behind their ears, or whichever spot they like the best.

Pats are great too; just avoid the top of your dogs head. Dogs dont like head pats any more than they like hugs. You can also play games with your dog, like fetch, tug-of-war, or hide-and-seek. And if you use positive reinforcement training, time spent learning a new behavior is fun and mentally stimulating for your dog. If you learn to speak your dogs language, you will see that any kind of positive attention shows your dog how much you care.

Do Dogs Like Hugs? Is It OK to Kiss Your Dog? Get the Facts.

Nobody wants to get bitten by a dog.

Worse still, no one wants their dog to be the biter especially where kids are involved.

But say a child hugs a fluffy dog they know. If the dog isnt happy, then disaster can strike.

Think of it this way: Consider how dogs like to sniff rears and yet we humans would be unhappy if forced to butt-sniff. So why do we assume dogs like the human behavior of hugs?

Do Dogs Like Hugs? The Science Says Not Really.

As it happens, basic dog psychology easily explains why some dogs dislike hugs.

Its called the fight-or-flight reflex.

A stressed, surprised or frightened dog experiences a massive shot of adrenaline and cortisol fight-or-flight hormones in the bloodstream. They put the dog into survival mode to either flee from the threat or fight back.

What if a dog feels threatened by a child hugging them but is held so tight they cant wriggle free? What happens next?

• If the dog is good-natured, then nothing may happen except the dog feels miserable.
• However, theres a chance instinct takes over: The dog, unable to escape, turns to fight and bites the child to make the hugging stop.

Why Children Shouldnt Hug Dogs

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) as a sponsor of Dog Bite Prevention Week advises against children hugging dogs.

Because children are small, hugging puts them close to the dogs mouth. Therefore, hug-related bites are often to the childs face.

Whats more, hugging an unwilling dog stresses them out which may lead them to bite.

For more, see our related article Teach Your Kids How to Greet a Strange Dog.

In the Wild, Dogs Huddle When Theres Danger

Another argument against hugging is what happens in a pack situation.

Take a pack of wild dogs, for example:

• Danger threatens, and they huddle together. Shoulder to shoulder, safety in numbers.
• The pressure of another dog pressed into against their flanks (a hug) is a signal theres danger around.
• This gets the fight-or-flight reflex kicking in, placing the dogs on high alert.

So when we hug a dog and hold them tight, the pressure against their body can send the wrong message. Instead of reassuring the dog, its like hanging out a flashing neon light that screams DANGER!

This presses a lot of buttons for me as a veterinarian.

Its common to have a small dog clutched tight to the bosom of a comforting client. That little dog then snarls and snaps because the little dog has picked up on the persons anxiety, and the hug sends a DANGER! message. Of course the dog is going to be wary.

Instead, reassure your dog by doing the following:

In 81% of Photos of People Hugging Dogs, the Dogs Look Distressed

In 2016, dog-psychology supremo Professor Stanley Coren,PhD, DSc, FRSC,did his own back-of-the-envelope investigation.

He wanted to know if dogs loved or hated hugs.

Dr. Coren looked at 250 images of people hugging dogs. He then analyzed the dogs body language for signs of stress.

The results were surprising and even alarming:

• 81% of the photos showed dogs giving off at least 1 distress sign.
• 11% showed dogs who seemed to neither like nor dislike the hugs.
• 8% of the dogs seemed to enjoy the cuddle.

Dr. Coren looked for classic dog body language that signal emotional discomfort or inner conflict.

• Avoiding eye contact
• Turning the head away
• Showing the whites of the eyes
• Lowered or flattened ears
• Lip licking
• Yawning
• Submissive eye closing
• Stiffness and lack of relaxation

Now, take a look at the images below:

This is just a snapshot of a Google image search for the phrase people hugging dogs.

What do you see in most of these pictures above: love, dislike or ambivalence?

6 Tips for Hugging Your Dog the Right Way

Make sure your dog is happy by following these 6 tips:

1. Get the dog used to being touched.

Touch a part of their body thats not controversial, such as stroking along their back.

Then praise them for being so brave, and reward them with a treat. This helps the dog associate touch with nice things.

2. Now, gradually extend the areas you touch.

Slide your hand down a leg slightly, then praise and reward. This is also a great technique for teaching foot-phobic dogs to have their paws touched.

3. Avoid forcing the dog into a situation theyre unhappy with.

Take things slow and steady so you dont overwhelm the dog with affection.

4. Keep hugs short.

Less is more. Give the dog the option to leave while theyre still happy.

5. Be aware that dogs are individuals.

Some dogs may enjoy a hug and a snuggle. Others? Not so much.

Try to give them a choice of whether they walk away or participate.

6. Reading the individual dog is key to happy hugs.

Dont overlook the context of the cuddle.

For example, your dog may be happy to snuggle while watching TV in the evening, but they wriggle and squirm when its time for supper. Dont force the dog to stay still, or this could backfire with a bite.

Dont Send the Wrong Message by Hugging Your Dog

Also, be mindful of the dogs state of mind when you move in for a hug.

The dog with a fireworks phobia may be more stressed rather than comforted by a cuddle. If the dog genuinely takes comfort in an embrace, then fine, but let them hide away if they want to until the noise goes away.

If you persist in hugging during a fireworks display, you might accidentally teach the wrong lesson: Even if a dog likes hugs, they may look on this as a reward for fearful behavior.

This accidentally reinforces the wrong message that theyre right to be afraid.

Hugging and a Dogs Heart Rate

In a neat study from the 1970s, Erik Zimen, a wolf behavior expert, scored the physical appearance of dogs (such as ear position, tail and lips) when the dogs were being hugged. He also measured their respiratory and heart rates.

What happens when were fearful? Our heart rate shoots up. Anxious? We breathe more quickly in preparation to run away.

So if dogs dont like being hugged, those dropped ears and whites of the eyes should be backed up by a racing heart rate and fast respiration.

Zimen found what we instinctively knew all along:

• When you know the dog and the dog knows you, their heart and respiratory rate go down as they relax into your embrace.
• As for a hug from a stranger: The dog initially shows a stress heart rate, but they soon start to relax and the heart and respiratory rate fall down.

Likewise, it can be the same for a dog when an unfamiliar child cuddles them too tight.

Here are some more tips for children to stay safe around dogs:

Hugging Your Dog? Use Common Sense.

In short, judge hugs on an individual basis.

When you know the dog and they know you, especially when theyre pleasantly tired, then a hug can be a lovely thing.

However, if you dont know the dog or your pet is focused on food or wanting a walk rather than love, then think twice before trying to hug the dog or cuddle them.

Does Your Dog Kiss You?

With hugs out of the way, lets talk about canine kisses.

Is it OK for a dog to lick your mouth, or will it make you ill?

Hound Hygiene

Theres an urban myth that a dogs mouth is cleaner than our own.

And this is where the first problem with kisses comes in. That doggy breath your pooch has? Its caused by a mixture of bacteria, plaque and inflammation. When dogs lick you, theyre transferring those doggy bugs onto your skin or into your mouth.

Astudy by Japanese scientists found that dog saliva contained bacterial pathogens that could cause periodontal disease in humans. That meansgum inflammation thatcan potentially lead to the loosening and loss of teeth.

Worse still, if those bugs get into the bloodstream, they can cause infection in the heart or kidney.

Antiseptic Saliva?

But doesnt dog saliva have disinfectant properties, you might ask?

This is something I come across regularly as a veterinarian, when peoplelet their dog lick a wound or a surgical incision. They believe that licking is OK because of salivas natural disinfectant properties.

Scientists looked into this and came up with a yes but no answer. It turns out dog saliva is weakly antiseptic toward E. coli and streptococci, but little else. Because the most common skin pathogens are staphylococci, licking is a bad choice it makes the area moist and therefore a better environment in which bugs may breed.

Those weak antiseptic properties certainly are not enough to protect your health if the dog kisses you.

Bug Breath

A dogs mouth and lips can be contaminated with some pretty unpleasant things (think eating poop and scavenging trash). These can include infectious agents such as:

• Salmonella
• Campylobacter
• Giardia
• Toxocara

The negative effects of that slurpy kiss could persist long after the saliva has dried. And thats without taking the behavioral side into account.

Lick That Behavior

A mother licks her newborn puppies to stimulate them to pass urine and feces. A dog licks their paw to comfort themselves.

But if your dog licks you, it could be prompted by anxiety the dog is worried and is giving you an appeasement signal. Rather than saying, I love you, theyre saying, Im a bit scared of you.

Licking is habit-forming, so when you giggle and fuss with the dog, theyll likely repeat the action to get attention. This can lead to unwelcome, intrusive and downright soggy licking.

To break this habit, say, No in a firm voice, get up and walk away. Denying the dog attention when helicks sends out a strong message that it displeases you.

Alternatively, you can put the behavior on cue and teach the dog a lick command. This then gives you the means to teach a No kiss command when you want licking to stop.

Canine kisses may be cute, but theyre not without hazard. You do risk picking up infections. So why not teach your doga healthy high-five greeting instead?

References

This pet health content was written by a veterinarian,

Dr. Pippa Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS

. It was last reviewed Sept. 14, 2020.

If you have questions or concerns, call your vet, who is best equipped to ensure the health and well-being of your pet. This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See

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