Since we were little kids many of us have always wanted to see or find a talking animal that could communicate with humans or at least make sounds that resemble human words. In this youtube clip I have is of a husky dog talking? Or this is what the link says. Is the dog in this clip actually consciously responding to and repeating what the human is saying or is it just an innate mimicking characteristic the dog has. What would be the mechanism that makes this dog make human like sounds? Or maybe this dog isn't making any resemblance of human words at all and that in our mind we are using mental gymnastics to make it seem like the dog is talking.In the video the dog name Mishka is repeating what the owner is saying by some barks that very roughly sound like the tone at which the owner says the words but not articulating the words. Is this dog unique or just doing this because it's a natural response. You be the Judge. However subconsciously we want this dog to talk and respond and articulate words back to us in clear English. We want something unique that has never been done before. For some of us we want to prove that mankind isn't the only sentient being in the universe. That maybe some animals have traits and qualities that make them conscious of the world around them. That they are able to put in perspective their place in the universe.
posted: by Andrew Ryan
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2c8MMiytwNs
ReplyDeleteHere is the Link: sorry.
Hi Andrew,
ReplyDeleteI have seen this video before and think it is so cute. I think it is only mimicking its owner probably for a reward. But there are animals that are conscious of the world around them.
The veret monkey along with more other kinds of monkey can recognize the scream of their child when all the monkeys children are playing together and the adults monkeys all look at the mother of the screaming baby monkey. So there is social awareness in veret monkey.
Jane Goddall taught chimps how to sign and recognize numbers. Even though they do not talk they are the closest animals related to humans and it is proven that they are very conscious of the world around them.
Posted by Whitney Huynh
I agree that it is possible, likely even, that we hear what we expect to hear based on the nature of the video. If someone says they have a talking dog confirmation bias will lead you to believe the dog is speaking. Projecting human attributes to the animals around us is something we all do.
ReplyDeletePosted Michael Thomas
I definitely think that this is the result of positive reinforcement and training, and that the dog is merely mimicking its owner. However, it may be possible that some individual animals are more capable of doing this than others. Also, it is probably true that this is a form of communication for the dog: he understands that when he makes the sounds that his owner tells him to, he will get a treat!
ReplyDelete-Johanna Brophy
I have seen this video before and at first I totally thought that the video was doctored. I dog really sounds like it is talking! I think that the dog is just really good at mimicking the human sounds. Because humans shaped dogs evolution dogs tend to understand humans body language well. Huskies are also really smart so I would imagine they could learn and perfect this skill quicker than other dogs.
ReplyDeletePosted By Caroline Adams
Ah yes, talking dogs. Whether seen on youtube or America's Funniest Home Videos, people love to hear them 'talk.' Unfortunately, I must agree with my fellow classmates and atone this to simple positive reinforcement and mimicry. The dog knows that by barking in tones similar to their owner, they'll be rewarded. I suppose the owener could try using a harsh voice and say nice things in order to demonstrate that the dog responds more to tone and delivery than actual words, but that would spoil the illusion! I think you maybe should have done some background research on animals that can 'speak' to explain what's going on. Also, your entry is plagued with grammatical errors. It can make reading your entry difficult. I'd suggest re-reading your blog entries first before posting them.
ReplyDeletePosted by Austin Gray
This video has been circulating around youtube for some time and I think it is interesting you brought this up; I had never thought too much into it. I assume the dog is just mimicking back the sound they hear. It is similar to parrots. Many birds that repeat words do not understand what they are saying. They simply have "echo speech" because their brain is able to hear distinct sounds and their mouth and tongue are able to repeat them exactly.
ReplyDeletePosted by Caitlin Descovich O'Hare
I have known a dog to repeat what sounds like "I love you, Momma." It was actually my grandmother's dog. I do not believe that dogs can speak our language, but rather repeat tones.
ReplyDeleteTake howling for an example. Howling can be in different tones, notes, or keys. Both wolves and dogs can decode which ones are appropriate and how to repeat what was heard; only dogs can not speak. This is what I believe is going on. That dogs reiterate the sounds they hear to please.
Posted by: Em Arsenault
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