We were discussing how dogs express their happiness by wagging their tails. I was wondering if this was completely involuntary or they could control it up to a point? My guess is that it is unconscious and they have no control over it, otherwise they could fake it.

Your take...

In order to control it they'd first have to be conscious of it wagging. Since they don't have that level of bodily self-awareness, they're not, so they can't. Whether or not they could control it if they were aware of it is a moot point.

A dog's tail is connected to his tongue. When his tongue hangs out, his tail starts wagging.

Where did you dig that 'fact' up from: Dogz fer Dummies?

Where did you dig that 'fact' up from: Dogz fer Dummies?

empirical observations.:mad:

Dog's tongues are always hanging out.

http://www.thingsthatmakeyougoaahh.com/images/204-yoda_dog.jpg
A dog. Yesterday. Notice
the absence of tongue.

A dog. Yesterday. Notice
the absence of tongue.[/center]

Bet his tails not wagging either.

I win!!!!!!!!:bagpuss:

To be refuted when the evidence becomes available. Watch this space.

In order to control it they'd first have to be conscious of it wagging. Since they don't have that level of bodily self-awareness, they're not, so they can't. Whether or not they could control it if they were aware of it is a moot point.

The Pointer is very conscious of its tail.

Here is a more interesting question:

What happens in dog language when the dog's tail is cut in puppyhood? When the tail is long, because of its weight, it wags slowly. But a cropped tail wags really fast.
So do dogs understand the difference that the shorttail is wagging due to style and not because the owner of the tail wants to express something different then friendliness?

It's a genetic "novelty" character trait of evolution similar to having upright ears, a curly tail or white spots. Tail wagging is associated with the dog's happiness. Why couldn't it be under conscious control? Some dog's are more intelligent then others: some have a higher level of consciousness than others. Do any other animals wag their tails?