Dogs are great communicators. No, our pups can’t use language in the same way as humans, but we can read a lot from their body language and the sounds they make.
And over the last few years, many pet parents have been using talking buttons with dogs and cats alike. These buttons are based on devices that help non-verbal people to communicate, but are modified for pets. The buttons have words on them, and each has been pre-recorded to say the word when they’re pressed – so your dog might be able to indicate that they want some of the best dog treats, for example.
While it takes training for an animal to use them, the idea is that, if your dog wants to go for a walk, they can press the button for ‘Walk’ with their nose or paw. It comes easily to many dogs, with our canines blessed with an impressive ability to understand plenty of words.
But now, in a recent study, dogs have been observed using two-word button combinations to communicate, going beyond random behavior or simply imitating their parents.
The study from UC San Diego’s Comparative Cognition Lab analyzed data from 152 dogs over the course of 21 months, taking in over 260,000 button presses, of which 195,000 were made by the clever pups themselves.
Federico Rossano, lead researcher and associate professor of cognitive science at UC San Diego and director of the Comparative Cognition Lab, said, “This is the first scientific study to analyze how dogs actually use soundboards. The findings reveal that dogs are pressing buttons purposefully to express their desires and needs, not just imitating their owners. When dogs combine two buttons, these sequences are not random but instead seem to reflect specific requests."
In the study, it was found that the most common buttons used related to essential needs, with words like ‘outside’, ‘potty’ or ‘water’ among those most used. But the dogs taking part also used combinations like ‘outside’ with ‘potty’ and ‘food’ with ‘water.’ These occurred more frequently than expected, indicating that it was unlikely to be by chance.
"While dogs already communicate some of these needs," Rossano explained, "Soundboards could allow for more precise communication. Instead of barking or scratching at the door, a dog may be able to tell you exactly what it wants, even combining concepts like 'outside' and 'park' or 'beach.' This could improve companionship and strengthen the bond between dogs and their owners."
Meanwhile, the researchers compared and contrasted the dogs’ button presses to those of their humans, and the difference showed evidence that the dogs were not simply copying their owners – buttons like ‘I love you’ were pressed much less often by dogs than by people.
While this study offers valuable insights into how dogs can communicate with us, the hope is that future studies will look at whether dogs can use these buttons to refer to the past or future, or combine buttons to communicate across concepts when they don’t have the specific word.
Rossano said, "We want to know if dogs can use these soundboards to express ideas beyond their immediate needs, like absent objects, past experiences, or future events. If they can, it would drastically change how we think about animal intelligence and communication."
For more dog communication information, here’s how to read dog body language, and here are 32 things your pet is trying to tell you.
