Well-trained dogs oblige their masters. They sit, stay, and come when asked. Our faithful companions respond when we speak directly to them. Do they also understand when we talk to other people? Do they grasp our private telephone conversations? Do they comprehend our dinner table discussions? How much do dogs really understand?
How do dogs perceive language?
Most dog owners would agree that their dogs understand familiar words. Say, “sit” and your dog will sit. Say “let’s go for a walk”, and he’ll run to the door and grab his leash. Say “it’s time to eat”, and he’ll head for the food bowl. It appears that dogs learn to associate specific words with specific actions or objects.
Dogs arguably get more from our tone and body language than our actual words. They observe our physical clues to determine what we want them to do or not do. They watch our facial expressions, posture, and body movements. They listen to the tone of our voice. They combine all these observations to determine our meaning.
If you smile and excitedly say “let’s go for a walk!”, your dog will likely wag his tail and prance around enthusiastically. If you utter those very same words in a gruff voice with a scowl on your face, he may cower and whine.
Scientists have observed that dogs respond much like human infants in understanding language. In fact, dogs may have roughly the same cognitive ability as a 6- to 12-month-old human infant. Both a dog and a human baby quickly grasp the meaning of “no”, when they grab a crumb from the floor and try to pop it into their mouths. Do they really know the difference between “yes” and “no”, or do they respond to our commanding tone of voice and anxious body language?
"Scientists have observed that dogs respond much like human infants in understanding language."
It could be a combination of learned vocabulary, observed body language, and tone. Through repetition, both dogs and babies associate certain words with certain objects or actions. That’s why we say “sit”, over and over, while prompting the dog to sit. Eventually, he associates the word with the action. It’s also why we say “dog” to our baby while pointing to the dog. Eventually, the little human understands that this furry creature is called a “dog”.
Although many scientists agree that dogs understand specific words, some don’t believe they comprehend full sentences. They argue that saying “trees, birds, grass, walk” invokes the same meaning as “let’s go for a walk”: the dog may not understand every word in the sentence, he gets “walk”. And if you say those words with enthusiasm, your dog will bolt for the front door! Body language, tone, and words are all involved in effective canine communication.
Despite a limited vocabulary, dogs and babies communicate with us. They may not be verbal creatures, but they manage to “speak” back. Even without an extensive vocabulary, they make us understand their whines, cries, and coos, especially when combined with their own special body language.
Do dogs understand what we say?
Some scientists believe that dogs understand the actual meaning of many words unrelated to the tone in which they are delivered. To test the theory, researchers trained dogs to lie down in an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machine. The scientists monitored the dogs’ brain activity while speaking to them. They learned that dogs process language much like humans do. The left side of the brain processes word meaning while the right side interprets intonation. Dogs, like humans, integrate both sides of the brain to arrive at a clearer meaning.
Some dogs fully activate the brain’s left side, learning words regardless of how they are spoken. For example, a border collie named Rico was featured in a 2004 article in Science Magazine because he could “fast map” new words. Rico learned the names of over 200 different items. He could grasp a word’s meaning after hearing it only once, much like young children during their years of language development. Rico also retained the meaning of the words four weeks after learning them. This illustrates the dog’s uncanny ability to learn words independent of intonation.
"Another study suggested that dogs read our body language and listen to our tone, as well as our words."
Another study suggested that dogs read our body language and listen to our tone, as well as our words. Dogs combine all this data to understand us. The study again used MRI to screen dogs; when the researcher said “good boy” in a praising tone, both the left and right sides of the dog’s brain were activated. When they spoke the same words in a neutral tone, only the left side of the brain was activated, and the dog didn’t always grasp what was said. Furthermore, when study dogs heard random words like “however” in a sweet tone, the right side of the brain was active, while the left was not. This led scientists to believe that dogs understand better when both sides of the brain are in play, simultaneously. In other words, what we say and how we say it are both critical to understanding.
The study also showed that the reward center of the brain, which responds to pleasurable sensations like affection, playing, or eating, was only activated when the dogs heard words they understood in a tone they liked. So, praising your dog is nice, but it’s nicer if you say it sweetly!
What does this mean for me and my dog?
All this research is a good first step in understanding how our dogs interpret our speech. It’s interesting to learn how the canine brain works, but we don’t need scientific studies to know that our dogs understand us. Humans and dogs have lived side by side for generations. The survival of our canine companions is due, in part, to their ability to communicate with their protectors and providers (us).
With that in mind, research may help us have more respect for our dog’s ability to understand not just our words, but also how we say them. The canine ability to comprehend human body language and intonation is amazing. Our dogs know more than just “sit” or “stay” or “walk”. They can learn the meaning of many words and can grasp that meaning even better when we say those words in an appropriate tone. We can talk to our dogs and feel gratified that they “get” us.
