PET COLUMN: Your dog often knows what you’re thinking

Teddy is watching Ed, who is getting ready to throw the ball. CONTRIBUTED

Teddy is watching Ed, who is getting ready to throw the ball. CONTRIBUTED

I’ve often wondered if Teddy, my family’s 10-year-old Lab, knew what I was thinking. The pooch has the most intense, focused look when he watches me work on a task.

For example, he’s learned that if I open the refrigerator, he can expect to be offered a baby carrot without the usual rigmarole his dad puts him through of sitting, watching the carrot’s holder, and the like. This learning has resulted in Teddy rarely getting up and following Ed to the refrigerator, but he follows me every time.

There have been multiple studies and guides over the years devoted to understanding how a dog communicates. I’ve even written a column on the ways Teddy talks to us. The way he uses his tail, body and even his bark to express how he’s feeling.

But there isn’t much in the way of research about how Teddy evaluates what we’re doing. After some digging, I found some interesting tidbits into how Teddy watches us doing everyday tasks and learns to adjust his behavior to help us out or help himself – like getting baby carrots without working for them.

Turns out, Teddy might be able to read my mind and predict my future actions, after all.

After I finish dinner, I give Teddy and Pip, our 5-year-old cat, several treats including chicken chips, a favorite of both pets. There isn’t a set time, but it’s always after I’ve finished eating and leave the kitchen table.

Most nights, Teddy is in the living room stretched out on the carpet, either watching me eat or lightly napping until he hears me get up from the kitchen table and wrestle with the dirty dishes. He knows this is his cue to walk over to the cupboard where the treats are kept. If Pip isn’t in the kitchen, I will call for him to come and get his chicken chips. As with any cat, sometimes he comes and sometimes he doesn’t.

How does Teddy know it’s time for his after-dinner treats? By watching what I did after I finished dinner, the canine learned to head over to the treat cupboard because that was where I was going, too. By watching my behavior, Teddy learned that once I start to eat, I don’t move from the table until I’m finished. And only then do I head to the “treat cupboard” to dole out the chicken chips.

Teddy has even tested his findings. Several times he has walked up to the table and nudged my hands and/or placed his head in my lap, even though he knew he wasn’t allowed to beg for food or disturb us as we ate. He was checking if I would leave the table and give him his chicken chips early if he distracted or annoyed me enough.

I always tell the pooch “no” and gently remove his head or his paws from my lap. Teddy walks back to the living room and plops back down with a loud, dramatic huff.

Oliandalex.com explains Teddy’s ability to know when I’m about to head over to the treat cupboard this way: “Dogs are incredibly perceptive animals, and they have the ability to pick up on a wide range of cues, both verbal and non‑verbal, that humans may not even be aware of.”

Max Kosinski at dogsinsights.com writes, “Research shows that dogs have ‘theory of mind,’ meaning they can understand our mental and emotional states. They can empathize, understand our point of view, feel jealousy, trust our judgment, and understand what’s going on.

Experiments have shown that dogs can even figure out what humans can and can’t see. Dogs can’t truly read minds, but they can observe and anticipate our actions.”

With Teddy, theory of the mind comes into play when I move from the kitchen table, put my plate and silverware in the dishwasher and then head toward the snacks. The pooch knows he’s getting his treats so he acts accordingly, walking to the cupboard where they are stored.

Sherlock Holmes has nothing on Teddy.

Karin Spicer is a member of the Dog Writers Association of America and the Cat Writers Association. Reach her at spicerkarin@gmail.com.


Factors that help your dog understand you

1. Body language: Your dog is adept at reading your facial expressions, hand gestures and posture as well as interpreting simple cues to speculate on your emotions and intentions.

2. Vocal cues: He is sensitive to variations in your tone of voice, pitch and volume.

3. Olfactory abilities: Your dog has amazing olfactory senses. He can detect changes in your scent connected with stress, fear or happiness.

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