Does Your Dog Recognize the Sound of Your Voice?

Many dog owners have experienced their dog wagging her tail when she hears their voice or looking around curiously when she hears you talking at the dog park. Some owners will video chat with the family or friends who are watching their dog so that they can speak with their dog as well, or they have a pet camera with built in speakers so that they can speak with their dog while away from home.

This may leave dog owners wondering if their dog is comforted by the sound of their voice in particular, or is excited just because they can hear a human voice at all.

The Science Behind Dogs Understanding Voices

Dogs are known for their keen ability to hear so it should be no surprise that dogs can discern the differences between the voices of different people. But science now also shows that dogs have a far better understanding of our voices and speech than previously thought.

For instance, scientists have discovered that dogs can recognize different words. Of course your dog knows her training commands, but dogs are also able to recognize a random word not associated with training said by two different people as being the same word.

In addition to word recognition, scientists have also found that dogs have voice recognition and can specifically tell when they are hearing their owner's voice. You can even do one of the experiments that scientists use to prove this with your own dog at home. To see if your dog recognizes your voice for this experiment, you will need to play hide and seek:

Have your dog stay in one room while you go to another room.
Call your dog to you.
Your dog should be able to find you by the sound of your voice and your smell.
If your dog found you, use your phone to record yourself telling your dog to come to you.
Put your dog back in one room while you and a friend hide in two different rooms.
Have your friend play your voice recording.
If your dog goes to your friend, it should be because she recognized your voice on the phone.

Because of your dog's voice recognition, you can be sure that your voice is reassuring and exciting to your pet, even if you are talking over the phone or video chat. This can help you feel closer to your dog or give you a way to calm your dog down just by talking to her, reinforcing the great bond that you and your dog share.

Calvin and Colleen Sheehan (Assoc. Producer - The Oprha Winfrey Show)

Marc Goldberg with Cesar Millan, "The Dog Whisperer"

Our Philosophy & Goals

Our philosophy is simple. Improve the life of both dog and family. All too often, unruly dogs do not fully enjoy life because their families constantly become upset and frustrated with them. This is difficult for both family and dog.

Our mission is simple. Make both dog and family happy.

What does is take to make your dog happy? He will thrive when you give him leadership and attention.

Making the family happy is a bit more complex.

Families typically want their dog to:

Come when called, every time, on or off leash
Walk nicely on a loose leash without pulling
Sit until released
Down until released

Families also want their dogs:

Not to jump on people
Not to charge through doors
Not to dig in the garden
Not to bark and chew inappropriately
Not to climb on furniture you prefer they avoid
Not to sniff and eat off the table and counters.
Not to be wild and uncontrollable
Not to ignore you when you want their attention