Clever dogs can learn the names of hundreds of toys simply by listening to their owners talk – and even understand a toy’s name when it’s hidden from view. A new study by cognitive scientists at Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary confirms that some canines learn language through passive observation, mirroring how human toddlers acquire vocabulary.
Canine Eavesdropping: How It Works
Researchers led by Shany Dror found that “Gifted Word Learner” dogs can pick up new toy names just by overhearing conversations. The experiment mimicked studies used on 18-month-old human children, who learn words by listening to adults even when not directly addressed.
The team asked owners of ten gifted dogs to let their pets observe while discussing new toys with another person. Over four days, dogs heard the names repeated for just two minutes daily, then were tested on their ability to retrieve the correct toy from a pile of familiar ones. Seven out of ten dogs succeeded at a rate beyond random chance, performing as well as if directly taught the names.
Learning From Hidden Objects
The study went further: could dogs learn a toy’s name without seeing it? Researchers had owners place a new toy in a bucket while the dog watched. The owner then concealed the bucket and asked the dog for the toy by name. Five out of eight dogs correctly identified the hidden toy, even after two weeks, proving they retained the new vocabulary.
This ability suggests that dogs can associate sounds with objects even when visual cues are absent, a skill previously thought to be uniquely human.
The Gifted Few
These “Gifted Word Learner” dogs are rare. One famous example, a border collie named Chaser, knows over 1,022 toy names. While the breed (typically border collies) may play a role, not all dogs possess this ability. Typical family dogs did not perform as well in the tests.
“Our findings show that the socio-cognitive processes enabling word learning from overheard speech are not uniquely human,” Dror explains. “Under the right conditions, some dogs present behaviors strikingly similar to those of young children.”
The study provides further evidence that animal intelligence is more complex than previously understood. Understanding how dogs learn through observation could unlock new insights into canine cognition and the evolution of language itself.
