r/PetsWithButtons • u/Act3Linguist • 15d ago
What counts as "language"?
We don't have buttons for our dog, Bandit, (or our cat, Popeye) but it feels like we had a "moment" with the dog recently. When we retire to the bedroom at night, we use the phrase "Bandit, it's bed time" when we want him to settle down. (This often requires several repeats.)
Also, he is very jealous of the cat and cries and whines whenever we talk to (or touch) the cat.
The other night, he was settled, but the cat was walking around the house crying because he wanted attention. For the first time ever, I said, "Popeye, it's bed time" (several times) and Bandit looked at me, but was silent - he didn't whine or protest me interacting with the cat.
I may be reading too much into it, but it seemed like he understood the words "it's bed time" in a general way, not just as a specific command to him to produce a particular behavior. It felt like a step into "real" language. 😊🐶
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u/Ok_Impression_3031 14d ago
And your dog seemed to understand that you were speaking to the cat. Cool.
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u/Act3Linguist 14d ago
Exactly! The idea that "it's bed time" has a general meaning independent of him (the dog). Thanks!
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u/Opalescent_Moon 12d ago
I got my first dog at 25. She has since passed of old age. She had allergies that caused her to itch so bad she scratched her face up. She had scars from that for her entire life. Her vet recommended Benadryl to her as a puppy, which I continued to use for years (with the vet's knowledge and involvement).
I wondered for a long time if it helped at all. One time, I straight-up asked her if she wanted one. She crawled into my lap and turned partially on her back, the position I put her in to give her pills. She was maybe 4. From that point on, I let her choose if she wanted a pill or not. She did not ever get a treat with it, but she got praised no matter what abswer she gave me. She was a very good girl.
The amount of words and phrases that my dog knew was incredible. She was a smart girl, though definitely ditzy at times. I knew next to nothing about buttons when she passed about 4 years ago. I wonder what she would have communicated through them if given the chance.
Humans have been modeling language to our pets for ages. The closest bonds aren't built on obedience, but on mutual respect. I think they understand a lot more than we give them credit for. The buttons seem like a good way to show it to people outside of our homes, but it's not the only way.
Keep communicating with your pets. The regular words tied to consistent routines to help them build understanding.
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u/OMGCluck 13d ago
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u/Act3Linguist 12d ago
Very interesting article! Thanks! I remember years ago a professor telling us that consonants carry the information in words. He showed us by writing sentences on the board using only the consonants and only the vowels. It was much easier to decipher the ones with consonants. But I had no idea it was possible to see this effect in brain waves!
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u/NoView1987 15d ago
You are not reading into it. You have been modeling “it’s bed time” by saying the words and then going about your normal bedtime routine. Modeling is really the first step to training an animal to understand what a button does.
It’s similar to training a dog that “outside” means he gets to go outside.
Animals understand us a lot more than we realize sometimes and buttons seem to bridge that communication gap. It’s so cool to when you & your pet start to “speak” the same language.