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If your dog yawns and then cannot close its mouth, or is yawning constantly while drooling, gulping and refusing food, call your vet today. A mouth stuck open after a yawn is a jaw problem, and constant yawning with gulping and drooling can be nausea or mouth pain rather than behaviour.
The short answer: dogs yawn when they are tired, waking up, excited about what is coming, or catching a yawn from you — and sometimes when they are mildly stressed or unsure. The yawn on its own tells you very little; the context and the rest of the body tell you which one it is. A loose, stretching yawn is ordinary. A yawn that comes with ears pulled back, lip licking, a turned head or a stiff body is a dog saying it is uncomfortable. In a study of dogs filmed during fireworks, yawning did not increase at all, while ears back, moving around and panting did — which is why the table below reads yawns by situation, not by the yawn.
Written by Marc Brannigan, Co-Founder & CEO of HempMy Pet. Last updated 19 October 2026.
Reading the Yawn by Situation
Eight situations owners ask about, from the completely ordinary to the two that need a vet. The third column is the tell.
| When it happens | What it most likely means | What else you see | What to do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waking up, stretching, settling for bed | Tired or changing state | A long, slow yawn with a stretch; relaxed body, soft eyes | Nothing. This is the ordinary yawn. |
| Before a walk, a meal or a game | Anticipation and excitement | Bouncy, tail up, eyes on you or the door | Nothing. It fades once the good thing starts. |
| Right after you yawn | Contagious yawn | Within a minute or so of your yawn, no other change in the dog | Nothing. More common in adult dogs than puppies. |
| Training, when a cue is hard or repeated | Frustration or confusion | Yawns between reps, sniffs the ground, looks away | Make the task easier, shorten the session, end on a win. |
| Hugging, leaning over, kissing the face | Mild discomfort with the contact | Yawn plus turned head, whale eye, lip lick, going stiff | Stop and give space. Pet the chest from the side instead. |
| Vet room, car, groomer, a strange dog | Stress in a situation they cannot leave | Yawn plus ears back, panting, lip licking, pacing, low tail | Lower the pressure: distance, a sniff break, a familiar person nearby. |
| Constant yawning with drooling, swallowing, lip smacking | Possibly nausea or mouth discomfort | Repeated gulping, licking the air, off food | Call your vet if it lasts more than a day or comes with vomiting. |
| Mouth stays open after a yawn and will not close | A jaw problem | Distress, pawing at the face, cannot shut the mouth | Vet the same day. Do not try to force the jaw closed. |
Read the ears before the mouth. When dogs were filmed during New Year fireworks, ears pulled back was the strongest fear signal of all — and yawning did not change.
The Ordinary Yawn: Tired, Waking, Excited
Most yawns mean nothing at all. Dogs yawn waking up and settling down, usually with a full-body stretch, and they yawn when something good is about to happen — lead in your hand, bowl on the counter, ball in the air. Those yawns come with a loose body, a relaxed mouth and a tail that is neutral or wagging. If that is what you are seeing, you can stop reading here.
Researchers have proposed several physical reasons for yawning in mammals generally, including cooling the brain and shifting between states of alertness, but none is settled. What matters for an owner is the pattern, not the mechanism.
The Stress Yawn: What the Studies Actually Show
This is where most articles stop at “yawning can be a calming signal.” The research is more interesting, and more useful, than that.
- Yawning is a weak fear signal on its own. A 2020 study in Scientific Reports coded owner videos of dogs during New Year fireworks and compared them with the same dogs on a quiet evening. Ears pulled back was the strongest sign of fear, followed by moving around and panting. Yawning and lip licking — the two “stress signals” most often quoted — did not increase.
- But it does show up in stressful places. In a randomized study of 32 dogs during routine vet exams (JAVMA, 2020), yawning was one of the fear behaviours recorded. Dogs whose owners stayed in the room yawned more and vocalised less than dogs examined without their owner — a reminder that a yawn can be a dog coping, not a dog panicking.
- Stressed dogs may yawn back at strangers. In a study of 60 shelter dogs, the 12 that yawned in response to a stranger’s yawns kept elevated cortisol afterwards, while the others’ cortisol fell. The authors read it as arousal, not social understanding: in a stressful setting, a human yawn can tip some dogs into yawning.
The practical rule that comes out of this: never read a yawn alone. Look for clusters. A yawn plus a turned head plus a lip lick plus a stiff body, in a situation the dog cannot walk away from, is a dog asking for less pressure. A yawn by itself, on a relaxed dog, is a yawn.
Do Dogs Catch Your Yawns?
Many do. In the first study to test it (Biology Letters, 2008), 21 of 29 dogs yawned after watching a person yawn, and none yawned when the person only opened and closed their mouth. Later work with 35 young dogs found that only dogs older than about seven months showed it, which may be why your puppy ignores your yawns.
Whether it means your dog feels your feelings is genuinely disputed. A 2013 study found dogs caught yawns more readily from their owners than from strangers, with no change in heart rate, and read that as a sign of empathy. But a 2020 reanalysis of six dog studies found no familiarity effect overall and no link to prosocial behaviour, and concluded that contagious yawning in dogs is real but probably not driven by empathy. The honest answer: your dog may well catch your yawn; what it says about their inner life is still open.
Yawning When You Hug, Pet or Train
These are the three moments owners notice most, and they have something in common: the dog cannot easily leave.
Hugs and face kisses are the contact many dogs tolerate rather than enjoy. A yawn, a turned head and the whites of the eyes showing (“whale eye”) together mean the dog would like you to stop. Petting that triggers yawning is usually too much, too fast or on the top of the head; try slow strokes on the chest or shoulder from the side, and pause every few seconds to let the dog lean back in. Training yawns cluster around cues the dog finds hard; shorten the session, make the step easier and finish on a win.
If the yawning shows up across many situations — visitors, being left alone, the car — it is worth looking at the bigger picture. Our guides to separation anxiety and what you can give a dog for anxiety cover it in full, and panting and shaking together covers the stronger stress signs.
When Yawning Is a Medical Question
- Constant yawning with drooling, gulping, lip smacking or licking the air can be nausea. Watch for vomiting and food refusal; call your vet if it lasts more than a day.
- Yawning with pawing at the mouth, bad breath or chewing on one side can be dental or mouth pain.
- A mouth that stays open after a yawn and will not close is a jaw problem. Same-day vet; do not force it.
- Yawning that appears with new restlessness, panting or pacing at night in an older dog is worth raising at the next visit alongside the other changes; see why dogs pant.
How to Help a Dog Who Stress-Yawns
- Identify the trigger. Write down the last five times you saw yawning with other stress signs. A pattern — the car, the vet, visitors, hugs — usually appears quickly.
- Take the pressure off in the moment. Step back, turn sideways, stop the hug, give the dog a way out. Do not punish the yawn; it is information.
- Make the trigger predictable and small. Short car rides that end somewhere fun, practice visits to the vet just for treats, visitors who ignore the dog at first.
- Stay with your dog at the vet where the clinic allows it. In the JAVMA study, dogs with their owners present vocalised less.
- For a known, predictable event — fireworks night, a long drive, a grooming appointment — plan ahead rather than reacting during it.
- Get help if it is spreading. Stress signs that appear in more and more situations are a conversation for your vet or a qualified behaviourist.
Where Hemp Actually Fits — and Where It Doesn't
Hemp has no role in an ordinary yawn, and it is not an answer to nausea, mouth pain or a jaw that will not close. Those need a vet.
Where some owners use it is the predictable stressful event: the vet visit, the long car ride, the fireworks you can see on the calendar. We are straight about the evidence here. Hemp’s strongest canine research is for joint comfort — five published osteoarthritis studies, four positive, one of them ours. For stress the evidence is thinner and more mixed; we go through the individual studies in hemp and car-travel calm and hemp for dog anxiety. If you try it, give it ahead of the trigger rather than during it, pair it with the steps above, and tell your vet if your dog takes any medication.
For the vet visit, the car ride or the fireworks you can see coming
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If your dog takes any prescription medication, talk to your vet before adding hemp. We cover the canine interaction research in hemp and your dog's medications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do dogs yawn?
Mostly for the same reasons people do: tiredness, waking up, settling down and anticipation. Dogs also yawn when they are mildly stressed or unsure, during training, at the vet or when hugged, and they can catch a yawn from a person. The context and the rest of the body tell you which one it is: a relaxed stretching yawn is ordinary, while a yawn with ears back, lip licking and a turned head is a sign the dog is uncomfortable.
Do dogs yawn when they are happy?
Yes. Dogs often yawn in anticipation of something good, like a walk, a meal or a game, and when they settle down contentedly. A happy yawn comes with a loose body, a relaxed mouth and a wagging or neutral tail. It is the yawn that comes with stiffness, ears pinned back or looking away that points at stress instead.
Should I stop petting my dog if he yawns?
Pause and look at the rest of him. If he yawns, then leans in, stays loose or nudges your hand for more, he is fine. If he yawns while turning his head away, licking his lips, going still or showing the whites of his eyes, he is telling you the contact is too much: stop, give him space, and let him come back to you. Many dogs prefer a scratch on the chest or side to a hug or a pat on the head.
Do dogs recognize when you yawn?
Many do. In the first study to test it, 21 of 29 dogs yawned after watching a person yawn, and none yawned when the person only opened and closed their mouth. Later work found that dogs younger than about seven months rarely catch yawns. Whether this means dogs feel empathy is disputed: one study found dogs caught yawns more from their owners, but a reanalysis of six studies found no familiarity effect overall.
How do dogs say I love you?
Not usually with a yawn. The signs of a relaxed, attached dog are leaning on you, following you from room to room, a soft-eyed gaze, greeting you with a loose wiggling body, bringing you toys and sleeping near you. A yawn can be part of settling down next to you, which is a good sign, but on its own it is not a message of affection.
Why does my dog yawn so much when I pet him?
Usually because the petting is a little more than he wants. Hugging, leaning over a dog and petting the top of the head are the forms of contact dogs tolerate least. If the yawning comes with a turned head, lip licking or stiffening, switch to slow strokes on the chest or shoulder, keep sessions short, and let him ask for more.
Why does my dog yawn when we train?
Training yawns usually mean the dog is finding the task hard, confusing or long. They tend to cluster around a cue the dog is not sure of, and often come with sniffing the floor or looking away. Make the step easier, reward more often, keep sessions to a few minutes and finish on something the dog does well.
Is yawning always a sign of stress?
No. Most yawns are ordinary, and yawning on its own is a weak signal. In a study of dogs filmed during New Year fireworks, fear showed up as ears pulled back, moving around and panting, while yawning and lip licking did not increase at all. Read a yawn alongside the ears, eyes, mouth, tail and posture rather than on its own.
When should I worry about my dog yawning?
When the yawning is constant and comes with drooling, swallowing, lip smacking or going off food, which can point to nausea or mouth pain, or when your dog cannot close its mouth after a yawn, which is a jaw problem and a same-day vet visit. Yawning that only happens in one stressful situation is a behaviour question worth working on, not an emergency.
Why does my dog yawn and stretch?
Because he has just woken up or is changing from rest to activity. The yawn and stretch together, often with a play bow on the front legs, is a classic waking-up sequence and a sign of a comfortable dog. Some dogs also do it as a greeting when you come home.
The Short Version
Most dog yawns are tiredness, waking up or excitement. Some are contagious — most adult dogs will catch a human yawn. A few are mild stress, and those come in clusters: ears back, lip licking, head turned, body stiff, in a situation the dog cannot leave. Read the whole dog, not the mouth. Constant yawning with drooling or gulping, or a mouth that will not close, is a vet visit.
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Marc co-founded HempMy Pet in 2016 with his business partner Natalie Mondine, the company's COO. HempMy Pet breeds its own hemp genetics, grows them on its certified-organic Colorado farm, and formulates every batch in-house under human-grade standards — seed to sale, nothing sourced overseas. Every batch is third-party tested and the certificates of analysis are published. More about us.
HempMy Pet ran its own 90-day study of 37 dogs with chronic joint discomfort. Of the 32 that completed it, 30 (93%) showed a benefit, and 94% of owners reported their dog's quality of life had improved. It was overseen by Dr. Robin Downing, DVM, MS of the Downing Center for Animal Pain Management, with Lori Kogan, Ph.D. and Peter W. Hellyer, DVM of Colorado State University's College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and published in the Journal of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association. Read the methodology.
Why Dr. Downing: in 2005 she became only the third veterinarian in the world credentialed as a Diplomate of the American Academy of Pain Management. She founded the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management, is a Diplomate of the ACVSMR, a Certified Veterinary Pain Practitioner and a Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner, and was the AVMA's 2020 Bustad Companion Animal Veterinarian of the Year. Chronic joint pain is her life's work. Read the published paper (PDF).
This article is general information for dog owners, not veterinary advice. It is reviewed and updated as new peer-reviewed evidence is published, and where the evidence is thin or negative we say so.
Sources
- Joly-Mascheroni RM, Senju A, Shepherd AJ. Dogs catch human yawns. Biol Lett. 2008;4(5):446–448. PubMed.
- Madsen EA, Persson T. Contagious yawning in domestic dog puppies. Anim Cogn. 2013;16(2):233–240. PubMed.
- Romero T, Konno A, Hasegawa T. Familiarity bias and physiological responses in contagious yawning by dogs support link to empathy. PLoS One. 2013;8(8):e71365. PubMed.
- Neilands P, Claessens S, Ren I, Hassall R. Contagious yawning is not a signal of empathy. Proc Biol Sci. 2020;287(1920):20192236. PubMed.
- Buttner AP, Strasser R. Contagious yawning, social cognition, and arousal in shelter dogs. Anim Cogn. 2014;17(1):95–104. PubMed.
- Stellato AC, Dewey CE, Widowski TM, Niel L. Owner presence and indicators of fear in dogs during routine veterinary examinations. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2020;257(10):1031–1040. PubMed.
- Gähwiler S, Bremhorst A, Tóth K, Riemer S. Fear expressions of dogs during New Year fireworks: a video analysis. Sci Rep. 2020;10(1):16035. PubMed.
HempMy Pet had no involvement in any of these studies.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This article is general information, not veterinary advice. If your dog is unwell, contact your veterinarian.
