[Cronos]

Some dogs are put off by her over-exuberant displays of affection.

So, rather than have to jump into the middle of a dog fight to save her, I keep her held far enough back until I have the chance to accurately assess the other dog’s body language.

mine isn't over-exuberant except to a couple of big male doggies that she LOVES :)

I'm still learning to asses the other's dog's body language, so my rule is to hold her back (she's highly obedient, so I just say "stay" and she stays back) and I look for the owner of the other dog to be close, see if he/she is ok and then look at the dog if it growling or teeth curled or one of what I call dangerous breeds (note to all -- this is my own personal position -- and I'm sure I'm wrong for many dogs, but hey, I'm just looking out for my dog) and then wait for the tails to wag.

[Salamander]

Gypsy goes whole hog flat out giddy trying to solicit play and affection from every living thing she meets.

She’s just built that way...:)

There are *tons* of good websites on dog body language and you’d be surprised at how many expressions are not what they might seem.

Here’s a couple to get you started

http://www.pawsacrossamerica.com/interpret.html

http://www.diamondsintheruff.com/diagrams.html

I had to learn all this from just watching dogs for decades but thanks to the miracle of the internet, it’s all laid out very nicely for everyone to learn.

[to me, the internet is one HUGE free library]

:)

[Salamander]

And then there's this which is just hilarious.