Spotting Stress in Dogs

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What is the Ladder of Stress?
The "stress ladder" is a scale that measures signs or symptoms of a dog's stress or unease in certain situations. Less severe reactions (such as yawning) fall towards the bottom of the ladder, while more severe reactions (such as aggression or biting) rate near the top.
Here are some examples of common signs of stress and where they would typically fall on the stress ladder:
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