It seems that the question of whether dogs can look up? is bringing hundreds of people to dots and spaces. Google lists me as an authority, but I’m afraid I don’t have much to go on. There might be a clue here, but someone pointed out that this might be due to not letting go of the rock. In the meantime, detailed research is being held at bugs, if you want to find a site that has tons of “SOTD” and “Spaced” information, then look no further than Spaced Out. Anyway, a quick straw poll shows that we’re mostly divided on the subject of dogs looking up, please feel free to contribute to the debate.
*After all this time talking about this subject, the first photo has finally arrived…and its not conclusive. Is the dog merely looking forward towards the person with the dodgy camera phone?
Matt explains more: After seeing Shaun of the Dead again, I made an AIM screen name “dogsCANNOTlookup”, after several dog owners argued with me about a dog’s ability to look up, I agreed. Then I wondered: had my dog ever looked up?
I did a www.ask.com search and came across your beautiful debate on the subject. After reading through the many amused comments, I decided to check my old pictures of the Anti-Christ Pomeranians my mom owns, I came across this single photo. I’m not convinced dogs can look straight up though. I will try to get my dogs to look up and send a more convincing picture in time.
– thanks Matt…
I have 2 dogs and they look up quite often (and I can supply pictures if you need proof) but I’ve never seen them walk side ways – So my question to you is can dogs walk side ways?
Hello Mr Floyd,
Yes, absolutely, please supply images – and I will post them. Are you sure your not getting confused with dogs merely looking forward? think on…
i’ve never seen a dog look up or walk sideways but my cat can do both. according to simon pegg dogs can look up, but according to more people they can’t. i personally don’t think they can.
“Due to the construction of a dogs neck and spine, it is physically impossible for them to look upwards. In order for a dog to look up at something high they must assume the sitting position”
Taken from “Dog Training Obedience & Behavior Moddifications”
http://www.about-dogs.com/dog_training_obedience.htm
Thank you for your tip – I will have a look – Floydie says he’s got some photos of his dog looking up, so I might post it. I’m with you, I think his dogs are sitting.
s
I’ve never seen a dog actually looking upwards whilstnot sitting. watching the film “Shaun of the dead” mdae me think about the topic.
they can’t move their eyes to look up, but they move their heads so that they can look up.just like we cnt c behind us, we move our head round
Thanks for all your comments – this entry has been the most popular, every week I get loads of hits just from people typing this into Google.
I still don’t feel any closer to knowing whether Dogs do look up?
If they can look up and people have seen this, then where are the pictures to prove it!!!! This to me proves that they can’t look up. End of story.
My girlfriend’s Mum’s dog walks sideways. It has arthiritis, and walks like a crab.
I’m sure my dog looks up when I dangle a dog chew above it, but thinking about it, I think it is always sitting down, thereby moving it’s whole body to be able to look up.
Were dogs the tallest animals around in their environment at a key point in their evolution, I wonder?
They can’t. Only when a dog sits down thay can look up. Although maybe due to us teaching them to sit to get a treat maybe dogs can look up buyt thay expect a reward for sitting and looking up.God dogs are greedy!
I hope they can’t look up because if they ever turned against us, it would give us the advantage
I have to admit i have never really noticed a dog looking up but if they can they might take over the world! i think, to stop this eventual huminliation of the human race, we should treat dogs with the best steak and walk them twice as much so they dont have to take over the world.
if dogs dont take over the world you can thank me for the great advice, of course that may leave the world open to alien invasion!
I HAVE SEEN DOGS LOOK UP AND THEY CAN ALSO WEAR CLOTHES AND TALK – TWO LEGS BAD FOUR LEGS GOOD! IN CASE YOU ARE ALL IDIOTS THAT IS A QUOTE FROM ANIMAL FARM THE ORACLE OF WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF WE KEEP TREATING ANIMALS BADLY!
Mmmm…all interesting stuff, my husband and I are just about to get a Basenji – an African dog that cannot bark but which communicates with other dogs through a complicated strategy of scratches, whilst walking sideways and looking up. We’re rather concerned about how we’ll take him for a walk, but what the hell, he needs a good home….
“medial levator anguli oculi” is the muscle that canines use to move the eyeball in a vertical pitch….
Sorry my wife says i need to make it clear,
all dogs CAN (and do)look up..
We loved doing this experiment with our people. Lots of cookies were used for scientific research and YES we could look up from a standing position as well as a sitting position!
Hi – i’m glad that this is still a hot topic – I think we need to expand it, so I invite you all to email me at dots.spaces@gmail.com and send me photos – this is what we need and I will will post them up on the site once and for all.
I think a more important question is……who really cares? Not me because I have a tasty biscuit and a cup of tea…….BYE!!!!!!!!!!!
My dog looks up from standing – Correct. He can also go sidewards – Correct? Well actually no, as he can only move one end sidewards at a time. But he can go backwards, both ends together.
After seeing the movie “Shaun of the Dead”, i’m going to have to agree with Big Al in the belief that dogs cannot look up!
how in the hell can a dog talk somone tell me that one please
so if dogs can look up walk sidways and talk if that is in any way posibale then why doesnt mine im the only one it barks at does that mean hes talkin to me if so then i need to lay of the drugs lol
I saw ‘Shaun of the Dead’ and that got me wondering wether dogs can look up but most of you people have convinced me that they can!! Anyways if dogs did take over the world then I will fly to the moon and live there!! Anyone with me?? Lets hope so!!!
Well, I think that dogs can look up, and that they will probably take over one day and every one is going to be sorry about neglecting them (if people actualy did neglect them!) So treat your dogs with respect!! And about the dogs walking side ways, if anyone has a problem with that, they will answer to the head dog – you have been warned!!!!
P.s Remember to respect the dog!
After watching “Shaun of the Dead” (which is a hilarious movie if you havent seen it) i almost immediately went to my friend who owns 3 dogs and knows a ton about them and i asked her “Can dogs look up?” she replied with a yes but I’m still not sure so if anyone has a picture of a dog looking up while standing please post it on this site for everyone to see and whoever said that they’ll go to the moon if dogs take over i’ll go with you
Hi, I totally forgot about that part of the film in Shaun of the dead until it was on Sky again just recently. I was watching it at a friend’s house with a bunch of people and as soon as shaun said it it immediately got me thinking and i turned to my friends and said, “actually, can dogs look up?”
To which one of my friends replied: “Ha! dont be stupid.” and another added
“of course they can”
but i still believe that no dogs cannot look up, i was like “no seriously can they? -I have never seen a dog look up. Have you?”
This triggered off an immense argument for us all and resulted in us missing a lot of the film- luckily we had all seen it before.
We hadn’t had such an argument since we watched Matrix 3 and argued whether it would be better to live a lie in the matrix or to know the truth and be in the real world. Both of which are really annoying topics as I cannot understand the other point of view on either!
(i believe it is better to be in the real world obviously)
But to conclude I really dont think dogs can look up without sitting down. if they could surely we would all remember seeing it…
Any comments guys?
My dog can indeed look up and I have sent the pictures to this site, hopefully they will be posted.
Away travelling at the moment, but soon as I get a chance I’ll post up your photos Ace, thanks once again for your input into this important subject.
My dog can also look up, and does on a regula basis. I have also asked all my friends and their dogs can too look up.
i think they can coz my mums small dog does look up but her boxer does not maby size has something to do with it ?
DOGS CANNOT LOOK UP. I am a vet and its clinically imposible due to the spinal cord. END OF STORY!
i need proof that dogs cant look up so i can shut my freind up nd i cant think y a dog would want to look up anyway
I have a 3 year old purebread pitbul. The first thing she does when she gets up from a nap is streatches her head straight back so that she is looking right at the ceiling. sometimes in the summer she likes to catch flies. If she misses them and they land on the ceiling, she will sit directly under them looking straight up and wait until they fly away and chase them again.
My dogs can look up, I had to scrounge around for a pic of them and I came across this one of my Shih-tzu looking up while lying down on her belly. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/yellowhappydog/pups/Kitty08-07-05.jpg
after seeing shuan of the dead i wanted too see if dogs can look up and i asked all my friends if the can and they all said yes but it is inpossible for them too look up after talking to Dr. Hismansmegal hoo said that dogs cant look up
“Due to the construction of a dogs neck and spine, it is physically impossible for them to look upwards. In order for a dog to look up at something high they must assume the sitting position”
Doesn’t this seem to contradict itself?
i have 2 dogs, with both i held their noses at a level position and held a treat above their head, with their eyes they both stared at the treat with their eyes pointed up, so with their eyes they can look up, though im hot shure if there necks can let them look up with their whole head.
SHAUN OF THE DEAD RULES
Dogs can, and will never look up unless they are dun dun dun..
Robot Dogs!!!!
but seriously, they cant look up, and anyone who disagrees is a fool of the highest calibre.
I DON’T REALLY CARE
alright…no need to shout.
Sean of the Dead was on last night…we all had a good laugh, first time I spotted some of the “celebrity” zombies.
If dogs can bring their bodies vertical, they can look up. I believe they do it when the catch frizbees.
I’m writing a persuasive essay on this subject for school. I’m supporting the opinion that dogs can’t look up just because it sounds crazier, but to be honest I have no idea.
There’s no point using science to prove whether or not dogs can look up, it is a philosophical question and can never be definitively answered.
dogs can’t look up they only tilt their heads up and their eyes move with them
interesting comment from the egg, I think there’s a contradiction, if the heads tilt up and the eyes more with them, then they may indeed be looking up.
i have just watched shaun of the dead and it says on that that dogs can’t look up. i text 63336 who can answer any question in the world and they said ‘dogs cannot look upwards from a standing position by moving their eyes. if they want to see anything above them they need to move their head or body’ how funnys that! but the comment said about the celeb zombies who r they? little britons small man is init though x
my dog (a border collie) is more than capable of looking up. he’ll happily move his head up or move his eyes up to see upwards. utter rubbish that dogs can not look up. however, some truth is available. dogs can not look up the yellow pages for the number of my local takeaway.
This page has numerous pictures of dogs looking up while both sitting and standing:
http://www.spaced-out.org.uk/forums/lofiversion/index.php/t11197.html
I have a dog and it absolutly CAN look up, even while standing. She can do so both while arcing her neck upwords and with only her eyes. Interesting topic though I must say.
This conversation isn’t as interesting as some seem to think, and it certainly isn’t a “close call.” After reading this I called all three of my dogs in and held a treat over their head (while they were standing), and you better believe they looked up. Just think about the fact that humans are taller than dogs (most, anyway) and to look at you, they have to LOOK UP. I also work as a vet tech for a low-cost mobile animal clinic and give 100s of dog shots a day. They all look up at me by physically turning their head up. The “vet” who said it was impossible must be a recent graduate and hasn’t actually seen a dog in person.
This conversation isn’t as interesting as some seem to think, and it certainly isn’t a “close call.” After reading this I called all three of my dogs in and held a treat over their head (while they were standing), and you better believe they looked up. Just think about the fact that humans are taller than dogs (most, anyway) and to look at you, they have to LOOK UP. I also work as a vet tech for a low-cost mobile animal clinic and give 100s of dog shots a day. They all look up at me by physically turning their head up. The “vet” who said it was impossible must be a recent graduate and hasn’t actually seen a dog in person.
My dog can look up … to a point. Beyond a certain angle, she just can’t do it and she definitely can’t look directly/straight up. That would require her to break her little neck.
If you think Dogs can’t look up go to http://www.myspace.com/bottled_corn and comment on the first blog about dogs
I have two mini dachshunds who are constantly watching the squirrels in the trees in my backyard. They look up many times a day. They don’t sit to do it or get in weird positions, they just tilt their heads up.
I was curious, and I KNEW I had seen my dog look up at one point in her life… So I grabbed the flashlight (she chases it) and pointed it right above her on the ceiling. The result?
http://i28.tinypic.com/333l9wh.jpg
She looked up.
I have an oppinion about weather dogs can look up or not. I have never seen a dog look up, I have seen a dog raise its head up but its eyes were still pointing out ward and slightly down. So as for me my opinion is dogs can not look up. Will someone test this theory and let me know Please and Thank You Sonja
can dogs look at thier own nose?
There’s no way a dog can look up following this criteria. Sure, a dog can physically look upwards at about a 45 when sitting, and at about a 60-75, 80-85 ish degree when balancing on hind legs and flipping in the air trying to snatch a treat out of your hand, but that requires a lot of effort for the dog to do, it cannot do it from a normal standing position. That is what’s in question. Can a dog, doing it’s normal physical function, look upwards without doing some acrobatic feat or hyperextending it’s neck while sitting?
I leave the final factor in helping you decide this situation… dogs shoulders are narrower, yet similar to people’s in how the neck branches from the shoulders/spine, so get on all fours, in a frog-like stance, but lift your butt up so you are like a walking dog, then look straight up… you can’t, can you? While sitting like a dog, I found I could nearly look straight up, but only because the human spine allows you to bend in really weird ways, the dog’s does not.
Can dogs look directly up without tilting their heads? Can giraffe’s jump? Can crocidiles stick their tongues out? Can goldfish turn white after a few days in darkness? Can wolve—-I love you. 😐
I think we need to establish what we mean by “look up.” Do we mean simply move their eyes, or actually crane their neck upwards? I know I’ve seen the first… and I can picture my dog craning his neck when he’s laying on his side on the couch…
Here’s a pic of a dog with its eyes in the “up” position.
http://www.geocities.com/thepuppourri/images/budpup1.jpg
And here’s one of a dog definitely craning its neck:
http://queenacresboers.com/images/07-14-05/Looking-up-spike.jpg
I guess the argument can be made that they can’t look *straight* up unless they’re sitting down, but apparently some dogs can get quite far. (Also, they don’t move their eyes as much because they have a wider field of view, supposedly)
Nice post…
I think dogs can look upto some extent.. Im not sure about that…
A dog can look up to a certain extent, though the bone and spinal structure and eye movement of a dog are extraordinarily differential from a human ie you and me, where as we are built straight standing with bones higher in the skull, a human can look directly up at any time they wish.
Beside the exception of a dog laying on it’s back, a dog cannot look directly up.
I have a 7 year old Border Collie that can look straight up from a standing position.
When she is sitting she can look over her shoulders backwards. I play with her every day and night, she follows laser and flash light beams with her eyes in every direction possible standing or sitting.
She also can walk sideways, and so can horses.
The commenter above said if Dogs take over the world, they are moving to the moon?
Why?
If dogs take over the world there would be no wars, just days at the park with the balls and Frisbees, lots of wagging and feasts every night. Unconditional love would rule the world… I’d kinda like to stay around. If dog is man’s best fried, man is dogs best friend as well…they wont forget that.
Of course they can look up, its an old saying.
They can also walk sideways, they just never feel the need to. My dog can look up as much as she wants, and walks sideways on a treadmill 🙂
my dog looks up all the time and watches the birds and for his treats when i’m standing above him.
my dog walks sideways all the time and gets stuff in his claws and blows bubbles through his mouth and he’s a crab you iddiot.
I have a pomeranian, Ratchet, (who is NOT an antichrist, he’s wonderful!) and he usually sits down when he has to look up.
If they can look up and people have seen this, then where are the pictures to prove it!!!! This to me proves that they can’t look up. End of story.
I have a puppy mill mom five years old and outof the mill for one year. She is Welch Pembrook Corgy(no tail)big ears. She nventration looks up all the time and I mean all the time, she keeps track of ceiling fans lights and is very afraid of sky lights. Is there anything I can do to break this always looking up. I saw a picture of a group of puppy mill dogs and they all were looking up.
Paul pvadney@charter.net
My dog can look up. I was just watching “Shaun of the Dead” and was wondering where that idea came up from. Here is a link to a picture of my Boston Terrier named Dogbert looking up.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=41924&l=3a4f422189&id=100000855964140
Colour the dog lantern black. the dog is smart
er dogs can look up? is bringing hundreds of people to dots and spaces. Google lists me as an authority, but I’m afraid I don’t have much to go on. There might be a clue here, but someone pointed out that this might be due to not letting go of the ro
Dogs can’t physically bend their necks straight back to look up while standing. However, I just tested my dog and she very comfortably twists her neck slightly and turns her head sideways to look straight up, proving that not only can she look straight up while standing, but that this position is more comfortable than sitting down first to look up.
i believe that a dog needs to move it’s back or turn it’s head sideways to look up, i have never seen a dog move it’s head straight up, probably because of the bone structure just like humans can’t bend their head to face behind them
Technically, they can look ‘up’, but because of their spine and neck structure, they have to tilt their head up, and they can tilt their eyes up even less than that. They must be lying down or standing upright to see high, and can only look straight up if they’re on their back. So, the answer is yes, but they are very inefficient and handicapped at doing it.