Our dogs are a beloved member of our family. We always want to make sure we’re feeding them the best food, buying them the best treats and making sure we understand their behavior so we can tell if they are happy.
One of the number one questions people have about their pets is regarding them on a walk. “Why does my dog look back at me when we walk?” You may have noticed your pup doing this in the past, walking a few feet in front of you, then looking back, as if checking to make sure you were still there.
Before we dive into exactly why our four-legged friends do that, let’s explore the history of a dog to get a better idea of why they may do this.
History of Dogs
Dogs are commonly referred to as the first tamed animal. They weren’t always the fuzzy tail-wagging fetching friends we know today though. Dogs are a direct descendent of wolves (grey wolves to be exact), which according to Robert Wayne at University of California, have been around since one million years ago, originating in Eurasia. Before that, there were wolflike creatures as long as two to three million years ago. Grey wolves probably first entered North America approximately 750,000 years ago, which is the wolf we are most familiar with today.
The Dire Wolf likely existed even before the grey wolf. This wolf was all around larger than the grey wolf and evolved earlier. The two likely cohabitated in North America for nearly half a million years before they went extinct. It’s believed dogs are a closer descendent to grey wolves, but it’s still good to know more about all of their possible ancestors.
Exactly when dogs became domesticated is still a mystery. In the past, it was believed that wolves were tamed from two populations of wolves thousands of miles apart. Recently though, researchers discovered DNA from three dogs found at archaeological dig sites in Ireland Germany, dated between 4,000 and 7,000 years old. By comparing the rate of the changes seen in the DNA from other bones, experts now believe the domestication of dogs may have been one single population approximately 20,000 to 40,000 years ago.
There is no 100% correct answer here, as some studies suggest dogs were domesticated more than once. Researchers studied DNA sequences from remains of 59 European dogs aged 3,000 to 14,000 years and compared them to modern wolves and dog breeds. Their findings suggested that dogs may have been domesticated in Asia about 14,000 years ago, but older buried fossils exist, researchers think dogs may have been domesticated twice.
What does that mean?
The reason this matters is a dog’s ancestry can give us clues as to why they behave in certain ways and how human’s relationships with these canines evolved. In most of recorded history, humans hunted wolves. Two natural predators didn’t coexist well, so it’s interesting to think the two came together eventually and why that happened.
There is much folklore about how wolves and humans came to coexist peacefully. Some tell the story of a lost hunter who befriended a wolf, though there is no proof of that, but it is a nice story. The more common and likely story is that wolves lived on the outskirts of hunter’s camps and scavenged off of their leftovers. Since they were competing with hunters for food, they probably began to follow them for easy food and eventually grew friendly toward those who they considered their feeders.
This is when the change began with wolves turning more into the dogs we know today. Their tails began to wag over time, their coats grew silky and fluffy, their size gradually grew smaller. Soon, they were the historic dogs we know, such as the Egyptian dogs buried with their owners, household protectors and livestock guards.
This is all important because it shows why dogs are pack animals. Wolves are obviously pack animals, as we know they hunt in groups and even order themselves in a certain way when they travel to protect their young and elderly. Even our domesticated pets today will still have some of the same tendencies as their wild ancestors.
Modern Day Packs
Dogs nowadays see their owners and fellow pets as their pack, much like they used to see their fellow wolves and even those hunters they eventually befriended. Dogs are not foolish, they do not see us as fellow dogs. We don’t smell, nor look like, dogs and they know this. It is more of a social hierarchy that they respect and view us as their leader.
In the wild, a pack consists of one or two alphas, typically a male and female, who lead the pack. Their role is to protect and provide and other wolves (or wild dogs) look to this wolf as their leader. Betas are the second in command, usually still fierce, but obedient to the alpha. They are the mediator and know their spot. Omegas are the bottom of the pack hierarchy. These are the most submissive dogs in the pack, typically the ones who alert the others of dangers. These dogs are usually found belly up and displaying submissive behavior.
In domestic homes, many people have heard of letting your dog know your alpha. It’s a controversial training technique that many see as encouraging them to yell at their dog or hit them, which is never acceptable. Alphas are not always violent or aggressive, they simply are the ones that the others tend to listen to and follow. It is possible to accidentally become alpha, which is usually what happens with humans and dogs in household situations.
What are Examples of Pack Mentality?
Your dog may still show signs of pack mentality. When they are young and first taken from their siblings, you’ll notice them whining and struggling to sleep, missing their siblings they’ve grown up with. This is from that pack mentality they originally had in the wild, rooted in the concept of safety in numbers.
If you’ve ever been walking your dog and noticed them pulling ahead on the leash, then suddenly turning to look back at you, you have experienced this pack mentality finding its way through your dog. As we mentioned earlier, wolves walk in a certain order to protect their weakest members. While you are walking your dog, your dog may often look back to check if you are still there because they want to protect you.
They may also want to be protected. Having their person, or their alpha, nearby is a soothing feeling for them. You may have noticed your dog follows you around most of the day, even if it’s just to move one room over. They enjoy their pack being close and in constant eyeline. All of the different sounds, sights and smells on a walk may overwhelm them. Think of all the chaos they see and hear with their heightened senses: smells of animals, other dogs, other people, cars, planes, unfamiliar noises, etc. Having you nearby can help them feel less afraid.
You may notice that when your dog uses the restroom, they may want you nearby. This is because it is a vulnerable time for them and in the wild, leaves them exposed to predators. They trust you will protect them. It may also be why they follow you into the bathroom or other rooms of the house, to protect you. They may see you as part of their pack and want to keep you safe.
This is a callback to some of dogs’ original purposes: guard dogs. For centuries, dogs were used as protection for both people and flock animals. Their loyalty makes them great candidates for this, and while guard dogs are not the main use of dogs today, they still exist and some of those genetics still are prevalent in our dogs. You may notice your dog try to protect a human baby, or a smaller puppy, which is a clear sign of this mentality.
They could also be seeking approval from you to continue on their walk and fun. Normally, this will occur when they are at the end of their leash or a decent distance from you. They see you as their leader and want your approval to push those boundaries. After all, you are their alpha and you call the shots.
No Exact Science
Unfortunately, none of this is a proven science. No valid studies have been done to see why dogs may look back at us on walks, but there are many theories.
Some of the most popular are the ones we mentioned above: checking to make sure you’re still there and enjoying it also. Other ideas could simply be that your dog thinks you are walking too slow, or they get distracted by a sound you make, or any other variety of reasons.
Your dog seeing you as a pack member is a disputed topic among dog experts and trainers, but is a lovely thought. Your dog cares about you enough to make sure you are still next to them and still having as much fun as them. Maybe in the future more research will be done on this and an exact answer can be given.