Why is My Husky Showing their Teeth? The Answer May Surprise You!
If you notice your Husky is showing teeth when interacting with you or other animals you might be wondering what this means. It doesn’t always mean aggression. Read our guide to find out all of the meanings.
When you own a dog you need to understand your dog’s body language so you can see what they are trying to communicate.
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When Huskies show their teeth, it can be confusing to discern the reason and meaning of this. This is because there are many reasons why your Husky may decide to show its teeth.
Generally speaking, when a Husky shows its teeth, it could mean a sign of submission, showing friendliness, dislike for the restriction of the leash, aggression towards other dogs in the home, response to pain, or guarding something.
Meanwhile, some Huskies are trained to bare their teeth and growl, while others do so when they are fearful of a threat.
Let’s look at these reasons one after the other to see how they apply to your dog’s situation.
Why do Huskies show their teeth?
Huskies show their teeth primarily as a mode of expression or communication. Given that they can’t talk as we do, expressions like the baring of teeth, posturing, and other body language substitutes.
Dogs showing their teeth is a normal thing, including pulling back their lips to further display their teeth. This is one way they can communicate their feelings to people around them.
In other words, you will be able to better respond to your Husky’s needs the more you learn to understand the meaning behind the showing of their teeth.
5 Meanings behind Huskies showing their teeth
1. To express submission
When Huskies want to express submission to you as their leader, they bare their teeth. However, a way you can differentiate this from aggression is by studying their posture which is often relaxed in this scenario
2. Reaction to pain
Generally, dogs tend to show their teeth when they are in pain and Huskies are no different. Showing teeth, in this situation, is deployed as a coping mechanism for Huskies to protect themselves.
3. Sign of friendliness
Just as how Huskies are known for making their displeasure and aggression known, they can also let you know they are ready to play and get friendly with you. The obvious expression for this is through the showing of teeth. What we observe is that the pouncing of the dog in this notion is rather playful than attacking.
4. Dislike the restriction of a leash
Showing of teeth is also a behavioral reaction by dogs, particularly Huskies when they are aggressive about being on a leash. This can accompany growling and lunging. I noticed that my dog demonstrates more body language when on the leash than when freed.
5. Hostility towards other dogs around
When your Husky is around other dogs they show their teeth to show hierarchy. Huskies also love to guard things so they show their teeth to other dogs to tell them it’s mine.
What do I do when my Husky shows teeth?
It depends on the situation at that time. If the situation is about expressing playfulness or friendliness, there is no issue, only that you have to grant them the attention they are craving.
However, situations of aggression against going out on a leash require the response of ensuring the dog is kept away from other dogs so that they don’t erroneously see other dogs as negative or dangerous.
When the showing of teeth appears aggressive and persistent, it means the dogs view some elements in the environment as a threat and so you want to either adjust their environment or identify the cause of the reaction.
From my experience with Huskies, I can clearly say that most of the dogs who bear teeth are doing so from the position of fear, which leads to anxiety that causes them to react in a pretty aggressive manner.
