Medical Reasons Why Dogs Look Up
Sensory explanations are the most likely but they aren’t the only reasons that dogs look up and there are a wide range of medical explanations too. While it’s important to not jump to conclusions and assume the worst if you suspect there’s anything medically wrong with your dog it’s always a good idea to consult your veterinarian.
Even if your dog seems fine, any sudden change in behavior is cause for concern and a good reason to see your veterinarian.
Any sort of traumatic injury of the spine or neck could cause dogs to look up. Most owners will be very aware if their dog had any major injury to the spine but a soft tissue strain, knot or another injury could cause dogs to tilt their head upward as well.
Syringomyelia is a condition in which a fluid-filled cyst forms in the spinal cord and slowly grows over time. Depending on the location and the impact of the cyst on the spinal cord, it could cause dogs to start looking up.
However, that’s just one of several conditions that could explain dogs that appear to be “stuck” looking up and it’s always best to turn to your veterinarian.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder can affect dogs but what makes this disorder so confusing is that it can look completely in each individual dog. Some dogs may feel the need to obsessively lick anything from the floor to your legs while others may turn to barking, chasing their tail, or staring upward.
While difficult to treat, Prozac has been found to help many dogs with obsessive compulsive disorders and similar issues. Dogs suffering from this condition will usually be extremely focused and difficult to distract but your veterinarian can help you figure out if this explanation makes sense for your dog.
There are a wide range of neurological issues that cause dogs to look up for long periods of time. Oftentimes, dogs will also snap at the air trying to catch flies that aren’t actually there.
Sometimes called fly biting syndrome or stargazing syndrome, these neurological abnormalities could be caused by tumors, seizure activities, or even age-related cognitive decline. Dogs may feel compelled to look up or they may be hallucinating things that aren’t there.
You can see exactly what this looks like in the video below which shows a dog suffering from fly biting or fly snapping syndrome:
While it might be surprising, one study found that 60% of dogs evaluated for stargazing or fly biting syndrome improved after being treated with a milder diet and antacids to help settle their stomach. Further research suggests that there’s a connection between gastroesophageal reflux disease and dogs looking up.
It seems that dogs try to minimize their stomach discomforts by looking up in order to stretch out their neck. Biting, licking, and snaping also seem to be part of this process and can all easily appear like a neurological issue instead of a gastrointestinal one.
That just goes to show how complex something as simple as looking up can really be when it comes to the medical side of things!
Sensory Reasons Why Dogs Look Up
The most common explanations for why dogs look up, whether that’s the sky, ceiling, or anything else, will usually revolve around your canine companion’s powerful senses.
But it’s not all about what your dog sees and any of their senses can contribute to your dog looking up.
I know, this explanation sounds pretty obvious but exactly what your dog sees could surprise you.
While dogs are known for their superior senses, and that’s mostly true, that’s not exactly the case when it comes to their vision. According to Not A Bully advisor and veterinarian Georgina Ushi Phillips, “Most dogs have 20/75 vision which means that they have to be at 20 feet to see what humans can see at 75 feet.” Additionally, dogs aren’t able to see nearly as many colors as we can and Dr. Sophia Yin has a great example of what this looks like here.
Combined, these differences mean that something on the ceiling that seems completely uninteresting to us could pique our dog’s interest as they try to figure out what it is. Whether it’s a ceiling fan, a bug or just a stain dogs may stare upward as they try to figure out what the heck they’re looking at!
But this doesn’t just apply to dogs that look up indoors and your pup could be trying to figure out what they’re looking at when they see a bird flying or a critter in a tree. While it might seem obvious to our full color and 20/20 eyes, but it isn’t always so clear for our dogs which can lead to some longer looks into the sky.
Your dog might not be looking up at all!
Instead, they could be tilting their head up towards the sky in order to get a better scent. Sure, it might appear as though they’re looking up but they’re really just trying to catch a smell.
Sniffing into the wind is a classic of any nature movie where a wild bear or an experienced human sniffs the air to catch a scent, but you don’t have to go into the wilderness to see this in action. Just think about the last time your dog was on the couch and caught a whiff of something interesting in the kitchen.
They didn’t immediately turn their head to the ground and start tracking but instead they probably tilted their head back to get a better smell before making their way into the kitchen to ask for a taste!
If your dog is looking straight up into the sky, this explanation probably doesn’t make sense. But if you and your dog are anywhere with a lot of interesting scents and your dog seems to be constantly looking slightly up then catching a scent could be why. Paying attention to your dog’s nose will help you figure out if they’re focused on scents or sights.
If I leave my house early enough, there’s a good chance I’ll hear the neighborhood owl hooting away. I can never seem to actually see him but as soon as I hear him, I look up and start trying to track him down.
What does this have to do with your dog?
Your pup may react in a similar way and they may not see anything at all (yet) and instead they’re trying to visually locate something they just heard.
But your dog’s upward gaze could also just be a coincidence and your pup may be trying to concentrate on locating the source of a sound with only their ears. In other words, dogs may not be looking at anything but instead staring upward at nothing as they focus on the sound.
It’s something that humans do too and it’s similar to the idea behind turning down the radio when you’re lost. You’re trying to reduce sensory information as much as possible and your dog could be doing the same thing by looking at nothing.
Finally, your dog could be moving their gaze upward as a way to put their eyes in a better position for hearing the sound. Just as dogs tilt their head to one side in order to better locate the source of a sound, they may tilt their head up.
To figure out if this explanation makes sense for your dog, pay close attention to your dog’s ears as they look up. Dogs have 18 muscles that control the ear (compared to just six in humans) and you should expect to see them all working to perfectly position the ear if your dog is trying to locate a sound.
How to Figure Out Why a Dog Is Staring at You
You don’t need some kind of Dog-to-English dictionary for this: You just need to use some context clues. By considering what you’re doing and when you’re doing it, you can probably figure out what your dog is trying to communicate with their big brown eyes.
Take this scenario from Cerone as an example: You’re working at your computer only to look up and find your dog staring at you while panting and wagging their tail. You wonder what they want when you happen to glance at the clock and notice that it’s past their dinner time. You jump up from your computer, apologize, and then you both run to the kitchen so you can prepare their dinner. Their tactic of staring worked and prompted the desired outcome: food. The next time you work past your dog’s dinner hour, what do you think they might do?
Although you might be able to decipher your own dog’s behaviors, it can sometimes be trickier to understand what an unfamiliar dog is trying to communicate. In those times, it may be best to avoid returning their eye contact and to assess what their body language—below their eyeballs—is saying. Are they showing signs of fear or aggression? Brush up on dog body language here.
Why Is My DOG STARING at Me? (4 Common Reasons)
Q:Sometimes I can sense that my dog is just, like, looking at me, really intensely. Why does my dog stare at me? Is that normal?
A: Yes, they probably just want something from you—a meal, a walk, or maybe a scratch behind the ears—and is waiting for you to notice.
You seem to always feel it. You’ll be half-watching some Netflix series, or writing a semi-polite email to your least-favorite coworker when you have the unshakeable sensation that you’re being watched. And, sure enough, you look over and your dog is sitting there, focusing their attention— and both of their eyeballs—right on you. So what gives?
In short, dogs stare for a number of reasons, but mainly, it’s a way for them to communicate with you.
Dogs use their behavior, like staring, to get the things they want, says dog trainer and animal behaviorist Melanie Cerone, Ph.D., BCBA, CPDT-KA. Things like:
“Dogs stare at us because we, their caregivers, reinforce them for doing so in a variety of ways,” says Cerone.
Basically, our dogs know that if they just look at us, we’ll give them whatever they want. For example, if dogs watch us while we’re eating, we might give them a bite of whatever we’re having. Or if they look at us while we’re working or watching TV, we might be prompted to pet them, talk to them, or take them out for a walk.
“If you think about it, we are the source of all good things for our dogs,” Cerones explains. “They depend on us for all of their food; daily enrichment, such as walks, play, and training; attention, including petting and praise; and comfort when they are fearful or anxious. Staring can serve a communication function for dogs. It’s a way for them to let us know that they need or want one of these good things.”
“Sometimes when our dogs stare at us, it encourages us to provide them with attention, which is also a major reward,” says Aubrey Sperry, CDBC, CPDT-KA, owner and head trainer at Sit Pretty Dog Training in Massachussetts.
That act helps to promote social bonding. “Research has been done that indicates both humans and dogs experience an increase in [the ‘feel good’ hormone] oxytocin after staring into each other’s eyes,” Sperry says.
So it goes something like this: the dog stares, we look back, reward them with our love and affection, the bond between dog and human grows. Rinse and repeat. How sweet?
While dog stares are often loving or solicitous, they can sometimes signify more negative emotions. Staring or holding eye contact may indicate that a dog is fearful, anxious or uncomfortable in some way, Cerone explains.
If a dog is staring at you while guarding their food bowl or a favorite toy, then both Cerone and Sperry say that can be a signal to back off. (This behavior is known as “resource guarding.”)
The same goes for a “hard stare” that accompanies a rigid posture or stiffened tail. “This behavior precedes more intense behaviors such as growling, lunging, and biting,” Sperry adds.
This may be more common with houseguests than the pet parents themselves, since some dogs are wary of strangers. “Typically, I see this with strangers approaching dogs more than with pet dogs at home interacting with their owners,” Sperry says.
Note to self: It’s also not a good idea for us to stare at dogs we don’t know.
“Dogs can perceive direct eye contact from unfamiliar people as a threatening gesture,” Cerone says. “So when meeting a dog for the first time, it’s typically best to avoid making direct eye contact with, staring at, or leaning over the dog, particularly if the dog is fearful or anxious of new people.”