Why Do Dogs Tilt Their Heads?
I’ve taken a lot of pictures on dogs over the past decade. I start by rewarding them for sit and quickly progress to giving them treats for looking in the direction of the camera. While I haven’t historically used a ‘pose’ cue I have noticed a pattern develop in many dogs. After they have become versed in sitting and looking in the direction of the camera I’ll whistle. This typically results in perking of their ears and many dogs tilt their heads. Some tilt once, some tilt their heads back and forth. Some don’t tilt their heads at all in response to my whistle. Some become clearly concerned in an attempt to identify the source of the sound. This anecdotal experience may indicate that ‘head-tilting’ serves different functions.
Head Tilting Research
Dog’s have very sensitive hearing and their ears are essentially shaped like funnels. They will generally rotate their ears in an attempt to best identify the source of the sound in questions. A 2014 study demonstrated that dogs consistently turn their heads to the left in response to known cues. Conversely, gibberish cues were met with right oriented head turns. This indicates that dogs likely experience hemispheric specialization like humans do in respect to processing known and unknown stimuli in the brain.
But head tilting is different. Instead of turning their nose toward the right or the left, the dog lowers one ear closer to the ground. Besides the ‘why’ behind the behavior there are other unanswered questions about head tilting in dogs. Why do some dogs head tilt more than others? Does the direction of the head tilt have specific meaning?’
In 2022, Hungarian Ethology researchers at Eötvös Loránd University sought to answer some of these questions. Their study compared typical dogs (those who do not learn the name of an object quickly) to gifted word learner (GWL) dogs. The researches wondered if GWL dogs would head tilt more frequently than typical dogs and if they favored a particular side. And did they?
When the participant dogs were asked for a familiar toy, researchers, DID, in fact, find that the gifted word learning dogs head-tilted more than the typical dogs. All dogs had been familiarized previously with the cues utilized in the study. This indicates that head tilting has some other association besides basic cue familiarity. Perhaps, researchers surmised, head tilting was related to the process of matching the word to a visual image in the dog’s brain.
While a majority of GWL dogs were Border Collies the ‘typical’ population was also comprised primarily of the same breed. So the results can’t be dismissed simply due to breed bias. Nor was head-tilting effected by the position of the owner in relation to the dog. The study also showed that head-tilting side preference was an individual trait.
It’s important to note that the small sample size limits the amount of conclusions that can be drawn from the study. While the information provided by the study do provide some insight, there are still other theories that could explain why dog’s head-tilt.
Other Head-Tilting Theories
Another suggestion is that head tilting may be a way for your dog to indicate curiosity or confusion. Many species tilt their heads seemingly in way to better assess the activities in their environments. Head tilting in association with nose turning could be an attempt to identify the source and location of the sound. In these situations the ears on the dog will often flick backward and forward.
Engagement
A dog that is interested and connected with their owner could head-tilt as sign of confusion. It could be their way of saying, ‘I’m listening, what do you want me to do?’ We humans often confuse our animals through inconsistency or by providing too much information. Maybe this is a way for dogs to seek the message amidst the distractions.
Reinforcement
Of course, when we see cute and adorable expressions of engagement we tend to express joy. Many behaviors begin as reflexive actions and transition into reinforced behaviors. Our dogs know that our pleasure is tied to their satisfaction. When they do something inadvertently that results in an expression of pleasure it’s only natural to repeat that behavior. Perhaps some head-tilting is a result of good old-fashioned rewards.
Visual Motivation
Perhaps head tilting isn’t always related to sound. While it may be a sound that initially catches our dog’s attention, maybe they’re just trying to get a better view of the situation. After all, being alert and aware in their environment could help them find food or avoid injury.
Medical Motivations
It’s important to note that sudden head-tilting could have physiological motivations. If your dog is experiencing pain associated with an ear infection they may hold their ear or head askew. If your dog is suddenly walking around holding one ear lower than the other it’s worth ruling out a medical concern. Additionally, dogs experiences a neurological symptoms could also present with a sudden head tilt or even stumble when they walk. Sudden changes in behavior ALWAYS warrant an examination from a veterinarian.
Does Your Dog Head Tilt?
Have you caught your dog in a perplexing head-tilting moment? Why do you think he or she cocks their head to one side or the other? Share a picture of your furry friend tilting their head in the comments below. Or post on instagram and tag us @caninesolutionskc!
“A dog can snap you out of any kind of bad mood that you’re in faster than you can think of.”
-Jill Abramson
Canine Body Language
Your dog is talking. Are you listening?
More important are you WATCHING? Dogs are attempting to communicate with humans as well as other dogs all the time. It’s up to us to learn how to interpret their native language the language of body movement, facial expression and proximity to things and other beings.
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