Why does my dog wink at me? The most likely reason why your dog winks at you is that it is being submissive. If your dog has been doing it excessively, the cause could be due to medical issues with its eye.
There are actually a number of possible reasons why your dog winks at you and it might be due to a combination of them. However, there are some things you can consider to help figure out the main cause and there are some things you can do about it.
Why does my dog wink at me?
Below are a number of possible reasons why your dog winks at you and what would make each of them more likely.
Your dog is being submissive
Staring is usually considered an act of aggression by dogs. If your dog maintains eye contact with you, your dog might feel like it is being threatening or that you are being threatening. By blinking and looking away, your dog will be able to show that it does not want to be aggressive and that it is being submissive.
Your dog is playing
Another possible cause is that your dog is actually playing since dogs will often play when they are being submissive. This would be more likely if your dog also does things such as roll around and wag its tail.
Your dog is mimicking your own body language
Dogs will also often mimic the actions of their owners. A less likely but possible reason why your dog winks might be that it is mimicking your own body language. This would be more likely if your dog tends to blink right after you blink at it yourself.
Your dog is just blinking
Dogs also naturally blink in order to cleanse and moisten their eyes. The reason why your dog has been doing it could be that it is blinking naturally which would be more likely if your dog continues to blink as when it is not looking at you as well.
Medical causes
Another possible cause is that there are medical issues with your dog’s eye. More likely if your dog has been blinking one eye in particular, there has been discharge from the eye or it has been rubbing that eye a lot. In this case, the best option would be to take your dog to a vet.
It has learned that the behavior is rewarded
Dogs can quickly learn if a behavior results in you giving it rewards and will continue to display that behavior in order to get more rewards. If you tend to give your dog things such as toys, treats, or extra attention, when it winks at you, it will likely do it more in order to get more rewards.
Things to consider
Below are some things to consider to help figure out the main cause.
If your dog has always winked at you
If your dog did not always wink at you, it would help to consider what else happened when your dog first started doing it. If your dog started doing it suddenly, it could be because you started showing intimidating body language towards it yourself, it learned that the behavior is rewarded or that it developed a problem with its eye.
What is different when your dog does not wink at you
If your dog seems to wink at you more at a certain time, it would also help to consider the timing. If your dog winks at you when you stare at it, the cause is likely to be that it is being submissive. Whereas, if your dog has been winking randomly, it would be more likely that your dog has been doing it due to medical issues.
What to do about my dog winking at me?
Below are some options you have when dealing with the behavior.
Let it do it
If your dog does not seem to be doing it due to medical issues and it wants to play when it winks at you, the easiest option would be to just allow your dog to continue doing it.
Avoid intimidating it
As mentioned above, it could be the case that your dog does it because it is being submissive. If your dog also does things such as hide, it is likely that it is doing it due to being intimidated. In this case, it would help to try to avoid intimidating it by not staring at it for too long. If it has been being very timid, it would help to talk to a vet.
Get help
If your dog seems to have been doing it due to medical causes or it has been doing it excessively, the best option would be to take it to a vet. By doing so, you should be able to get expert advice tailored towards your particular dog and to deal with medical causes.
Why does my dog wink at me with one eye?
The reason why your dog winks at you with one eye is likely to be that it is being submissive. However, if it has been winking that eye excessively, it has been rubbing the eye, it has been winking the eye a lot even when it is not looking at you or there is discharge, then it would be likely to be due to medical causes.
Why does my dog wink at me all the time?
If your dog winks at you all the time, it would make it more likely that your dog has learned that the behavior results in you giving it extra attention.
Why does my dog blink back at me?
If your dog blinks back at you, it is likely that your dog has learned to mimic your own behavior in order to get rewards and to get you to be more accepting of it.
Why does my dog stare and wink at me?
If your dog stares and winks at you, it is likely that it is winking in order to break eye contact and to avoid appearing threatening.