How Animals Perceive Your Body Language

Forbes Innovation Consumer Tech How Animals Perceive Your Body Language Quora Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Following Jun 22, 2023, 06:00pm EDT | Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Portrait: young woman with corgi puppy, nature background getty Does my body language impact how animals perceive me? originally appeared on Quora : the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. Answer by Dr.

Abbie Maroño, PhD in Behavior Analysis and Psychology, on Quora : I love this question, because people often underestimate the ability of animals to attend to the nonverbal cues of human beings. So, to put it simply, yes. Animals are often highly attuned to human body language and nonverbal cues, and your body language can indeed impact how animals perceive and respond to you.

Let’s dive into some specifics. If you are familiar with my work and research, you will know that I often talk about the importance of open body language when trying to display confidence, attentiveness, and trustworthiness. Interestingly, displaying open body language can also help animals feel more comfortable around you.

This includes facing them directly, avoiding crossing your arms or legs, and maintaining an open and relaxed posture. Much Like humans, animals may interpret closed-off body language as a sign of aggression or defensiveness. Likewise, animals can sense your level of calmness and confidence through your body language.

If you approach an animal with relaxed posture, steady movements, and a calm demeanor, they are more likely to perceive you as non-threatening and be more at ease in your presence. Sudden or erratic movements, on the other hand, can startle or intimidate animals. This makes a lot of sense when we recognize that animals are always on the look at for potentials threats and are extremely sensitive to anything that might signal an attack.

MORE FOR YOU ‘A New Wave’—Major Bank Reveals A $15 Trillion Earthquake Could Be Headed For The Bitcoin, Ethereum, BNB, XRP, Cardano, Dogecoin, Tron, Solana And Polygon Price Elon Musk And Mark Zuckerberg Vow To Fight In Cage Match (Seriously) Today’s ‘Quordle’ Answers And Clues For Thursday, June 22 Additionally, anyone who owns a cat or has ever owned a cat will understand animals absolutely have an awareness of proxemics and have individual personal space preferences. Indeed, just as humans have personal space preferences, animals also have their own comfort zones. For example, one of my cats refuses to leave my side and likes to be within a few meters of me, whilst the other is more comfortable on the other side of my apartment provided he stops by occasionally to check on me.

With any animal, but particularly with cats, it is important to respect their boundaries and give them space, allowing them to approach or retreat as they feel comfortable. The examples above are just a select few, I could go on all day. If you are looking to dive deeper into this topic, then a book I would strongly recommend reading is “Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?” by Frans de Waal.

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