Have you ever wondered how smart your pet is? Whether you have a German Shepherd or a little yappy Yorkie, chances are your dog has accumulated a vocabulary far beyond what you could imagine. In fact, in a recent study by Preply, dog owners were surveyed about their communication with their canine pals, and this post explains just how much your dog probably knows!
The Top Words Pets Know
Of course, your dog probably knows the age-old commands of “sit” and “stay” and maybe “roll over” if you’re a go-getter. However, according to the study, dogs know and recognize plenty of words outside of the command vocabulary. Here are some of the common, everyday words that dogs know.
Interestingly, “love” was the top word dogs know. It is a complex emotion, and dogs seem to understand what this means. Of course, other words refer to things that dogs may interact with often, such as “car” (#2) and “cookie” (#3). Unless it’s a visit to the vet, most dogs enjoy a good ride in the car, especially when it ends with a treat!
Like toddlers, dogs can pick up on more complex words, enabling them to understand more of our conversations than we think they do. Although the study revealed that dogs know about 18 everyday words, the APA says that some dogs could know up to 150 words outside of regular commands.
Words that convey relationships like “baby” (#5) and “grandma” (#6) made the list of top 10 words dogs know, in addition to complex emotions like “love” (#1) and “happy” (#8). This may explain why your dog beats you to the baby’s room when you announce, “The baby is up!” or heads for the door if you say Grandma is coming!”
The Funniest Words Pets Know
Every house is different, and every dog will pick up on some unique lingo used in your house. The study surveyed over 1,000 people and found some of the funniest words or phrases that people have purposely (or inadvertently) taught their dogs.
Some interesting ones include “Bro are you kidding me?” which was used whenever one owner found his dog in the trash. Other words include “potato slicer,” “lightning bug,” and “watermelon.” One owner inadvertently taught her dog to run to a trash can in the backyard anytime she said, “Throw the garbage out.”
While some of these words recognized by dogs may seem rather funny, they’re a good sign of a healthy human-dog relationship. Nearly half of the people surveyed have multiple “conversations” with their dogs each day, with more women having those conversations than men do. There’s a generational gap when it comes to being verbal with your dog—Gen Z has the most conversations with their dogs, followed by millennials, boomers, and then Gen X.
Pets Understand Nonverbal Communication Too
Aside from participating in verbal commands, pets can pick up on nonverbal cues as well. Just like some service dogs can sense a change in blood pressure, this study found that 42% of people surveyed say that their pets are better than their significant other when it comes to sensing their mood. One in four people say that their dog emotionally understands them better than their partner!
Now, that’s not to say that all the significant others of those surveyed are horrible partners. It’s probably easier to feel understood when talking to a furry friend who won’t judge you—or try to talk back. You also won’t ever get a negative reaction from your dog, so it could feel easier to vent or rant to them rather than a human face.
Make Your Test Data Management Smarter and Faster(Opens in a new browser tab)
Don’t Underestimate Your Pet’s Intelligence
Pets are far smarter than we believe. It’s important to watch your words around your pets—you never know what they might pick up! Pets are so sensitive, too, so they’ll be able to pick up on something as small as a change in your intonation. Just like little kids, you’ll want to watch what you say around them because you could very well end up with a dog who understands the phrase “bro are you kidding me?”
Discussion about this post