Why Do Dogs Cock Their Heads
I am sure if you ask a veterinarian or someone that specializes in animal behavior they will tell you that we do it so that we can hear you better. Most of the time when you humans talk, it’s just a bunch of sounds to us. But when you mention our names, say something that we like such as dinner or walk or open a bag of potato chips, our ears perk up and we know to pay attention. This happens most often when the sound is directly in front of us. When the sounds come from our side - our ears are already on alert.
We also will pay more attention if you speak in a higher pitched tone. Think about it. When you ask us if we want dinner or to go for a walk, you never ask it in a quiet low tone. So we make the assumption that anything said in that voice is something that we want to do.
Now puppies will cock their heads a lot more than adults because they have not learned to distinguish what sounds are really important yet. The whole world is exciting to them and they want to hear every bit of it! If you feel a word is important for them to learn, repeat it to them numerous times in your high voice.
But do you want to know the real reason we do it? It’s because we look so cute doing it that we get treats, extra pets and lots of attention.
