Dogs Getting Embarrassed: Is It for Real?

Dogs, like dolphins and elephants, can express a plethora of emotions such as joy, anger, sadness, frustration, and even embarrassment.

Dogs are sensitive and self-conscious and demonstrate embarrassed-like propensities. Dogs, in general, feel shy and emotional, but their feelings are much more complicated than an average human’s reaction.

Here is a quick guide to help you identify if your dog is embarrassed and how to deal with it.

Dog Embarrassment: Who do Experts Say?

Emotions drive most of our actions. Our anger, sadness, frustration, and other emotions facilitate the decisions we make daily. Animals, however, cannot leverage their feelings that well. Scientists suggest that dogs display instantaneous reactions to situations.

However, very little evidence indicates the presence of such emotions in dogs because of their complicated and “hard to pin down” brains.

But many studies have speculated that dogs indeed demonstrate feelings of discomfort and shyness; however, the purpose and impact of these feelings differ from humans.

Although no solid research on dogs exhibiting embarrassment is available, you should not ignore if your dog shows specific changes in his behavior.

Signs of Dog Embarrassment

Dogs are expressive, and it will not be a hassle to identify doggy humiliation or embarrassment. As a dog owner, you can look at some signs to know if your dog is feeling embarrassed or not. Here are a few visible signs dogs exhibit when they are feeling sheepish or ashamed.

• One of the first changes you will notice is the way your dog carries yourself. If he has become more submissive or is avoiding eye contact, maybe he has done something goofy. Embarrassed dogs, in most cases, can act very shy.
• Some physical symptoms can also appear as a sign of abashment in dogs. These signs include walking funny, cringing a little, tucking their tails, pinning their ears down, and furrowing their bows. Some of you might be relating to these symptoms as well, as they are quite similar to how we behave.

How to enable your dog to deal with embarrassment?

All dogs are different, and that’s what makes them unique and special to their owners. With such differences, the chances are that your dog might feel more or less embarrassed than others.

This trait is entirely typical. Some breeds get particularly aggressive when they feel ashamed, and an aggressive dog can be dangerous, especially if he is not socialized.

Therefore, the best way to deal with such behaviors is by training your dog out of his negative behavior. The best way to do so is by teaching them to find a safe space until the depression is gone.

Your dog might undertake different methods while searching for the safe crate as the first reaction of dogs to embarrassment is to hide.

With proper training, you can encourage your Fido to get into his secure container instead of hiding at places challenging to search. If your dog gets angry when embarrassed, you can employ words like ‘stop’ or ‘no.’

We all know how embarrassment can affect our lives, confidence, and performance; the same happens with dogs as well.

If you don’t look into such emotions on time, your dog might lose his confidence and joyous nature, and become violent or aggressive. Therefore, it is essential to train your pets properly and ensure such feelings are adequately addressed.