Can a dog understand your language, or what does it hear when I speak specific words?

Answer 1

Dogs can "recognize" words and signs.

Answer 2

It is not so much they know what you are saying as much as it is association. They know sit because you have gone over it with them so much. This is why any dog can learn any command in any language. They read your body language more than the words coming out of your mouth. you can actually tell your dog how stupid he is in the nicest way and he does not care.
Look at it this way. When people are mad they say really bad things to each other they do not mean. Maybe dogs not understanding all of our words is why they love us unconditionally.

Answer 3

a dog in its life time is able to "understand" around 90 human words. dogs associate your command with an action. It would be wrong to say that your dog doesnt understand your command, because he/she clearly does. i.e. you say sit - the dog sits. It only knows this because its owner taught it to. Nonetheless, it still understands what to do when it hears the word.

If you say "sit" to your dog, it will hear it exactly as you can - only a little louder, but the actual sound of the word will be exactly the same.

Dogs only understand what they have been taught - hence the dog knows when you say "walk" its going to be taken for a walk, or "dinner" it is going to be fed. This is because your dog had destinguished this word from the many they hear you speak every day, and in turn, it recognises it and associates it with an action.

I hope this answers your question!! =)

Answer 4

Depending upon the intelligence level of a dog and just like people ... dogs are all different. The average dog can understand between 200-300 words and some sentences. If you spell enough they will start to learn that T-R-E-A-T spells treat..

Some dogs even try to "talk" to us by making sounds that certainly are not barks or whines... LOL... If they just had voice boxes.

GOOD LUCK

Answer 5

Dogs learn to associate your words with actions, or your tone of voice. If you say, "Oh Rover! You are a very ugly dog, and very ugly dog indeed!" in a excited voice, it will think that you are saying the best things ever! On the flip side, if you say, "Oh Rover! You're such a good dog!" in a tone that is deep and angry sounding, it will think that you are giving them heck for something.
Words mean things...Sit, it sits, you praise them (excited voice), happy dog! Sit..it doesn't sit, you force them (stern voice), unhappy dog!

Some will argue that they do undertsand certain words that are not commands, but I think it boils down to what actions are used while the words are spoken.

When I get ready to leave the house without my dog, he knows I'm not taking him when I'm not touching his stuff, or when a certain person shows up at the door, he knows I'm leaving. I say suppertime, he comes running (he can smell the food). I say bathtime, he goes running...etc. Associaton works for dogs.

Answer 6

yes, and the longer they live with you they will understand you more, i know because i have 2 dogs and they understand a lot of words i say, but i'v had these dogs for a long long time. they can be taught certain words to mean certain things, it just takes time to train them and as time passes you will learn how they are trying to communicate with you also good luck

Answer 7

My dog understands Spanish because I trained her in Spanish. My boyfriend's family can talk to her without problems, but my mother cannot; She will respond to "Sientate" but not "Sit." A dog reads the tone of your voice, not necessarily the words, but mine understands both "parque" and "park" from across the room and leaps for joy if she thinks she's going there. If you are talking happily with your dog but you are not feeling happy, it will sense that. But I have spoken to my dog in Spanish since she was a baby, and she is more responsive in Spanish. Whenever I leave she sits at the door and tilts her head and makes whimpering sounds. My mom will tell her to calm down, but she doesn't. This summer when my boyfriend told her "Por favor que te cayes! Tu mami viene ahorita!" (Please shut up! Your mommy is coming right back!" my dog looked at him and left the door to happily play with her toys. I'm not saying she understood it, but if someone says that to her in English, she still whines.

Answer 8

All of these sounds humans make have little or no meaning to a dog until the human teaches the dog. As dogs live with humans and learn to association certain sounds we make with particular actions, they learn a rudimentary vocabulary.

Answer 9

Both. I didn't believe this until I got this Pomeranian that I have now. She knows when we are talking about her she will get out of her box and come get in our laps. First her head will stick out of box and then her ears prick up and she looks at us and here she comes. If she hears me say the word "her" she thinks we are talking about her. I will say where is Joey? She runs and looks out the window. That's my husband and I taught her that when he drives up. I'll ask her where Danielle is and she goes to my daughters bedroom door. I go to put my shoes on and she goes and sits by the door. It is amazing at how much they learn when you give them alot of attention. I have been waiting on her to speak next. Also another thing she does is when sirens go by she would listen to the outside dogs howl. Well I started howling when they do trying to teach her. She learned but now every time she hears one she runs to me and waits on me to howl with her. She thinks everybody is supposed to do it!

Answer 10

I think the dog cannot understand our language, but it can understand our body language..