Why Dogs Tilt Their Heads When We Speak

There's nothing cuter than when you're talking to your dog and he tilts his head every so slightly. It's as if he's trying his hardest to understand the words coming out of your mouth. Adorable!

But what are dogs really trying to achieve with that oh-so-charming head tilt? Here are a few possibilities:

1. They want to see our faces better

Our furry friends are constantly scanning our faces to understand our emotional state and gain information. Unfortunately, their muzzles can get in the way of that! Psychology Today surveyed pet parents and found the following:

71% of the owners of the dogs with the larger muzzles report that their dogs often tilt their heads when spoken to. On the other hand only 52% of the owners of the flatter faced, brachycephalic dogs reported that their dogs often tilted their heads when spoken to. This is a statistically significant difference that clearly suggests that head shape, and size of the muzzle does influence head tilting in dogs.

2. They want to hear us better

Pups can move their ear flaps to determine the source of a sound. They also can use their heads to figure out time differences between the noise arriving at each ear. Even just a modest tilt of the head might provide a dog with the information needed to accurately judge a sound's location.

3. They want us to know they care

Any pet parent will tell you that their canine is very in tune with their emotions. It should come as no surprise, then, that dogs may tilt their heads to show empathy. Could it be that our furry friends just want to show how much they care?

No matter how you look at it, dogs are simply delightful -- head tilt and all. For more tips and tidbits on all things pets, connect with Berkeley Heights Animal Hospital on Facebook and Twitter!