It is well known that dogs can understand words spoken to them and perform the required actions; however, Hungarian researchers have established that this is not the limit.
According to specialists, when dogs hear certain words, they can represent objects that correspond to them.
Scientists emphasized that dogs, when a particular object is mentioned, are capable of activating their memory of it when they hear the corresponding name. To investigate this, researchers conducted a series of tests aimed at learning more about how dogs perceive words and objects. Measurements of the animals' brain activity were conducted using electroencephalography.
During the testing, 18 dog owners announced the names of toys that were familiar to their pets, while simultaneously showing either the appropriate item or an unrelated object. The recordings of the dogs' brain activity displayed different patterns when the animals were shown the correct option. This indicates the dogs' ability to associate words with specific objects.
The researchers added that it does not matter how many object names a dog understands, as the familiar words activate a mental image in the animal's imagination regardless. This ability, according to the scientists, is characteristic of all dogs, not just exceptional individuals with a larger vocabulary of known object names.
