If humans yawn, is it to oxygenate their body, cool their brain, relax, stimulate their vigilance or even to clear their ears? If there is no shortage of theories to explain the origins of yawning, they have not yet been scientifically demonstrated.
Anyway, yawning in dogs doesn't seem to have quite the same causes as it does in humans, though. This is believed to be a form of dog body language.
Thus, yawning in dogs would be part of its panoply of calming signals, signals that would allow it to express stress, discomfort and/or the desire to extricate itself peacefully from a situation. uncomfortable situation.There are other signals of the same ilk and well known to specialists in dog behavior such as repeatedly licking the nose, turning the head away or even freezing.
A dog yawns to express his stress
When a dog starts to yawn, it can be to express stress, anxiety or discomfort.
For example, during a visit to the veterinarian, you can observe your dog yawning several times in the waiting room while he waits for the consultation by your side. The smells, the moans of other animals and the memory of his last visit certainly make him very nervous so much that he expresses his stress by yawning.
Similarly, if you're out for a walk and stop on your way out to talk to a neighbor, you might notice your dog yawning repeatedly.This could be because your dog isn't comfortable around this person, or just can't wait to get away. After all, a dog that is excited to walk certainly doesn't want to stop and sit for 20 minutes!
or his indifference
Yawning, as an expression of indifference, has been observed in both domestic dogs and wild canines. When a dog is confronted with a fellow dog showing aggression, he may respond with a yawn.
It just means that he is not interested in conflict and wants to get out of this mess peacefully.
Yawning can also be observed in a dog confronted with a fearful congener. He then yawns to show that they don't care about him and that he has nothing to fear from him. His yawn often seems to have a calming effect on the anxious dog.
Yawning in dogs might just have the same effect as waving a white flag.
He yawns because another yawns
In dogs as in humans, yawning is contagious. Your dog can therefore yawn simply because he has been "contaminated" by the yawn of another dog or a human being.
As to why. Many people think this is a sign that dogs are empathetic towards their peers and humans.