# Do dogs even know when their tails are wagging? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 31, 2021, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584 "2021-10-31T21:41:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2021, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/21 "2021-11-02T16:52:30Z")
My full-tail GSP had a great tail! It was a bit of a corkscrew 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2021, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/22 "2021-11-02T17:13:34Z")
The GQ answer to the OP’s question is yes. Dogs have proprioception, knowledge of the relative position of all parts of their body. > **[Proprioception](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proprioception)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Proprioception (/ˌproʊprioʊˈsɛpʃən, -priə-/ PROH-pree-o-SEP-shən), also referred to as kinaesthesia (or kinesthesia), is the sense of self-movement, force, and body position. It is sometimes described as the "sixth sense". > Proprioception is mediated by proprioceptors, mechanosensory neurons located within muscles, tendons, and joints. Most animals possess multiple subtypes of proprioceptors, which detect distinct kinematic parameters, such as joi... ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2021, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/23 "2021-11-02T17:31:18Z")
Those you tube videos show cats carefully winding their way through pencils standing on end, and dogs knocking them over like crazy. Perhaps they just don’t give a darn. ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/24 "2021-11-02T17:38:24Z")
I’ll put the debate to rest. I asked my dog if she was always aware of when her tail was wagging and she responded “no”. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2021, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/25 "2021-11-02T18:12:24Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Perhaps they just don’t give a darn. That sounds more like cats than dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2021, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584/26 "2021-11-03T01:25:23Z")
I have two border collies. One of them wags her tail all over the place, high in the air. The other keeps her tail tucked and only wags it low, but when she’s excited she wags so hard that her entire body moves. The other dog’s wags are mich more subdued. Scottish sheep herders have a saying, “Foolish tail, foolish dog.” They claim that dogs that keep their tails down and in control are better sheepdogs. I have no idea if that’s true, but the saying has been around for decades. The Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever ‘tolls’ ducks by waving its tail around high in the air above the rushes. I suspect wagging in dogs is something like smiling in people - something that happens somewhat automatically based in emotion, but is still controllable by the dog. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-dogs-even-know-when-their-tails-are-wagging/953584.md?page=1)