Gifted word learner dogs seem capable of eavesdropping about as well as 18-month-old toddlers, the study researchers say. Reading time 4 minutes Dogs might have more tricks up their furry sleeves than ...

Most dog owners are aware that their pooch is smart enough to know a few choice phrases—“walkies,” for instance, or, perhaps more likely, “time for dinner.” Some particularly intelligent canines can ...

For years, researchers have known that young children pick up words just by being around conversation. Toddlers do not need ...

If you've ever had to spell out words like W-A-L-K or T-R-E-A-T around a dog, you know that some dogs listen in to humans' chitchat and can pick out certain key words. Well, it turns out that some ...

This is not comparable to word learning in children. By around age two, typical English-speaking children learn approximately ...

Clever canines that have a unique talent for learning a vocabulary of toy names can pick up new words by simply overhearing their handlers’ conversations, say scientists. Parents and dog owners know ...

Research suggests they learn as well as 1.5-year-old toddlers. Long recognized as a skill used by toddlers who are learning to understand language, scientists have discovered that a rare subset of ...

When it comes to cognitive ability, not all dogs are created equal. Most dogs can learn simple action cues like “sit” or “down.” But so-called “gifted word learner” (GWL) dogs exhibit a remarkable ...

"Honey, will you take Luna to the P-A-R-K?" Both parents and dog owners know that some words should not be spoken, but only spelled, to prevent small ears from eavesdropping on the conversation. At ...

Human toddlers pick up new words by a variety of mechanisms, including by eavesdropping on adults. Prior research has shown that GWL dogs can learn many different toy names just by playing with their ...