Misreading dog body language contributes to unnecessary stress, inappropriate handling, and preventable bites, making canine communication literacy a key welfare skill.
Dogs that cannot communicate discomfort effectively through body language resort to escalating signals, ultimately including biting. Humans who misread these signals inadvertently force dogs into situations that cause fear and stress. The dog suffers the fear; the human suffers the bite. Education in canine body language benefits both species. This is particularly important around children, who interact with dogs in ways that naturally cause stress but are often poorly supervised.