Talking with your dog may not be so far-fetched.
New research has revealed that man’s best friend can actually comprehend human words like “play” and “outside” when communicated through a soundboard with pressable buttons.
“This study addresses public skepticism about whether dogs truly understand what the buttons mean,” said lead researcher Federico Rossano of the University of California San Diego.
“Our findings are important because they show that words matter to dogs, and that they respond to the words themselves, not just to associated cues.”
The cost-efficient interactive floor mats, which sell for around $40, commonly include prompts for food, water, going out and going to bed, along with both discipline and love.
Canines showed their most “contextually appropriate” responses related to playtime and going outdoors, according to the study.
Researchers went to 30 homes with dogs to observe their interactions with the boards and had another 29 owners do a remotely guided experiment.
“We’re just scratching the surface in this study,” said Rosano. “Future studies explore how dogs actively use these buttons, including the meaning and systematicity behind sequences of button presses.”
Dr. Mélissa Berthet of the University of Zürich also sees the potential that dogs were attuned to audio prompts.
“They really needed to show this,” she told The Guardian. “And now I think the community of scientists is waiting for the rest that’s going to be exciting.”
However, the study, now in the journal Plos One, got a ruff response from other academics.
It was described as “nothing burger” by Clive Wynne, director of the Canine Science Collaboratory at Arizona State University, who urged that the tests simply show how dogs interact with verbal cues.
“There is nothing remarkable about that,” he told the outlet.
The report comes shortly after unrelated research studied whether two chimpanzees, caught on video, appeared to be capable of human speech.