News Animals

Some mysteries remain about why dogs wag their tails

Wagging is a form of communication, but scientists know little about its evolution

A yellow lab lies on a sidewalk, its head cocked in a friendly way, and its tail mid wag.

Tail wagging is ubiquitous among dogs. Surprisingly, the behavior is still mysterious in some ways.

RichLegg/E+/Getty Images

By Jude Coleman

When it comes to tail wagging among dogs, some questions still hound researchers.

We know that domesticated dogs (Canis familiaris) use their tails to communicate — with other dogs as well as humans — and even what various types of wags mean, researchers note in a new review of the scientific literature.