Body language explained

PART 3: THE HAIR

When your dog is angry or feeling threatened, you might notice all the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. These hairs form what is known as your dog’s hackles. Each hair has a tiny muscle, and when the dog’s fight or flight response is triggered, chemicals flood the body, causing these muscles to pull tight, lifting the hair up. The hackles form part of an ancient defence mechanism that makes dogs look bigger and more frightening than they really are.

Seeing the hackles go up on your dog is a warning that they are feeling uncomfortable or threatened. It is an automatic response, a lot like when we get goosebumps, so it isn’t something they can control consciously, and they are certainly not ‘trying to be aggressive’. Do not get cross with your dog when their hackles go up, and remember that the bottom line still is that most dogs would rather run away than get into a fight.

The best thing you can do in these instances is to reassure your dog that everything is okay and endeavour to remove them from the situation calmly.