Dogs seem to tilt their heads when they hear something that matters to them. That is the best answer science has so far, and it comes from a 2021 study of dogs that know the names of their toys.
A study that started by accident
Plenty of dog owners have seen the tilt, but the researchers behind this study say the behavior had never been studied before. The team, from the Family Dog Project at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, Hungary, was not looking for it at first. They were studying how dogs learn the names of objects.
That earlier work involved 40 dogs and their owners going through three months of training to teach the dogs the names of toys. Most dogs could not manage it. The researchers found that 33 typical dogs were not able to learn the names of even two toys. But seven dogs, which the team called Gifted Word Learners, learned many more. Researcher Andrea Sommese told BBC Science Focus that these dogs did not just learn two toys but went on to learn 10, 20 or 30. According to Discover, all seven gifted dogs were border collies.
While running those tests, the team noticed that the gifted dogs often tilted their heads when their owners asked for a toy by name.
What the tilt seemed to mean
The scientists then looked closely at both groups. The gifted dogs very often tilted their heads when they heard a request for a named toy, while the typical dogs rarely did. Discover reports that the gifted dogs tilted their heads 43 percent of the time, compared with just 2 percent for the typical dogs. The dogs and the toys were in different rooms, so the dogs had only the spoken words to go on.
The team published its findings in the journal Animal Cognition in 2021. Based on the results, the researchers suggest a link between the head tilt and processing information that is relevant and meaningful to the dog. In the words of BBC Science Focus, dogs may tilt their heads when they process something meaningful or when they expect to be told something important.
Sommese described it as if the dog was saying it was now focused and concentrating on the task.
Left or right
Another surprise was that each dog seemed to have a favorite side. The team first thought the tilt might have to do with the dogs’ hearing, but they soon noticed that the dogs preferred one side over the other. Across experiments that spanned 24 months, the direction each dog tilted stayed the same.
Does tilting mean a smarter dog?
Not necessarily. Sommese pointed out that some dogs are particularly skilled at learning words, but that does not mean they are smarter. Sommese also stressed that typical dogs do tilt their heads too. It is just that researchers do not yet know what is meaningful to them and why.
Other experts have offered further ideas. Monique Udell, an animal behaviorist at Oregon State University, told Discover that a tilt might help a dog see or hear better and get a different perspective. She also suggested dogs might tilt in response to sounds that grab their attention, such as another dog howling or, for a hunting dog, the sound of prey.
When a tilt is not just curiosity
Sommese calls head tilting a very common behavior in dogs. A sudden tilt that comes with other changes is a different matter. VCA Animal Hospitals lists a head tilt among the signs of vestibular disease, a problem with the system that helps a dog keep its balance and move normally. Other signs include a sudden loss of balance and coordination and quick, darting eye movements. These signs usually come on suddenly, often in less than an hour, and middle- and inner-ear infections are among the common causes.
A dog that suddenly loses its balance along with a tilt needs a veterinarian. For most dogs, though, the familiar head tilt seems to be a sign of something much happier: a dog paying close attention to what you are saying.
