Dogs wag their tails as humans like rhythms!
A new study in Biology Letters reveals that dogs use tail wagging to express more than just happiness, suggesting a range of complex emotions. Researchers from the University of Rome and the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in the Netherlands examined a large body of previous research on tail wagging and discovered that dogs, unlike wolves, wag their tails frequently and from an early age, implying that this behavior developed after humans started domesticating them.
Two major hypothesis have been derived
Two primary theories on the evolution of tail wagging in dogs have emerged from the study. "During the domestication process, enhanced rhythmic tail wagging behaviour could have arisen as a by-product of selection for other traits, such as docility and tameness, or been directly selected by humans, due to our proclivity for rhythmic stimuli," the research states. The study's authors believe there may be a connection between wagging and arousal-related hormones or neurotransmitters in dogs.
Tail wagging indicates emotions
The research discovered that dogs wag their tails to the right when feeling positive emotions and to the left when experiencing negative emotions. However, this behavior's evolution might not be intentional. As per the study, this could be a consequence of other traits like tameness or friendliness. Humans either consciously or unconsciously made dogs this way because of how our brains are wired when it comes to appreciating rhythms, the study suggests.
Domestication might have altered their tail wagging behaviors
The authors bred silver foxes for over 40 generations for the research, selecting for tamability and docility, and noticed dog-like tail-wagging behavior. Silvia Leonetti, the lead author, stated, "Many animals have tails and use those tails for moving, balance, and removing pests. But domestic dogs use their tails primarily for communication." Based on this, the authors hypothesised that the domestication process may have led to changes at the behavioral and anatomical level which may have altered their tail wagging patterns.
More research is needed
Although these theories provide insight into the evolution of tail wagging, many questions remain. It is still uncertain how dogs control their tail wagging and how well they understand other dogs' tail wagging. "We are just scratching the surface," Andrea Ravignani, the study's senior author, said. The researchers recommend further studies using advanced, non-invasive technologies to examine dog-dog and dog-human interactions.
