What words do your pets know?

Very few times have I taught my dog words, yet when I thought about it, I was surprised at how many she has picked up on her own. She knows the words sit, stay, come, fast, wait, go to your spot, bed, nap, cookie, dessert, pill, belly up, ride, go, no, Max ( her boyfriend) my son and another friends names, Barks and Bubbles, ( where she is trimmed) bath ( bad word) over, under, circle, take a bow breakfast, dinner, walk and heel. What words do your pets know.

Comments

  • ChastMastrChastMastr Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    One of my cats not only knows “wa-wa” but sometimes meows with exactly that cadence (myow-myow!) when she wants it. I go to the sink and give her water from her bowl right up to her. She just likes that more than drinking from the bowl off the floor, though she does that too.
  • Our cat Plato could "say" "out" when he wanted out.
    It was more of a "mee-out" but he used that particular tone only when he was by the door and wanting out.

    Our all-black cat Agnes was a rescue. We'd had her for a few months when I used the word "beauty" in a sentence and her head whipped round. We tried using the word randomly after that and she always reacted. So it seems that must have been her previous name.

    If she had gone missing locally her previous owners could have found her if they had bothered, and we had assumed her back story was not a happy one. Once we knew she been someone's Beauty we wondered if she was one of those cats who end up in a van and become a stray far from home. This was before the days of social media and microchips so there was no way of finding out whether there was a family somewhere missing their Beauty.
  • Jane RJane R Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Let's see... she knows a few phrases as well...

    Sit, wait, stay, come, lie down, leave it, drop it, let go (the first command we taught her), fetch, can't reach (when we're playing fetch and she drops the ball too far away: she picks it up and brings it closer), breakfast, lunch, dinner, crate, treat (when we don't want her to react we call them aardvarks), chicken, cheese, tuna... Bertie's (the dog-minder's dog is called Bertie and she loves playing with him), where's your ball, do you need a wee, find it.

    This is not an exhaustive list, you understand, just the ones I can remember.
  • Not entirely tangential, but those of you who follow US politics may appreciate a cartoon (I can't provide a link) which has a Cat saying *Cats are Frendz, not Fuud...and the D-o-G is over there...*

    I have a great respect for Cats.
    😸😸
  • We got our rescue cat 9 months ago and she knows her new name is Mochi (which is not too dissimilar to her old name Marmie). She turns round when you say ‘cat’ in general conversation as if she knows you are talking about her. Other than that it is just the usual ‘dinner’ and ‘do you want to go out?’. Generally she is far more reactive to actions, such as me turning off the pc in my study when I have finished work - she jumps up and runs downstairs to the lounge.
  • Not really sure what our cats’ vocabulary is but they do definitely respond to our getting off our chairs especially around dinner time. :smile:
  • Our rescue dog (no longer with us) used to prick up her ears when she heard the word "chicken". We discovered that she responded in the same way when she heard "cricket".
  • Our last dog Max was a 'rescue dog' . We went to the kennels and almost all the dogs were making a right racket. Eventually we came to little Max who was sitting in the corner of his 'cell' looking really sad. I was allowed to pick him up and we went to the office. We had to pay a £50 fee. We were told that if we couldn't cope with him and returned him within 14 days, we would get our money back.

    He was house trained and always went to the door if he needed to go out into the garden. He never made a sound and we thought that barking might not be within his abilities.

    However, on the 14th day we found that he had suddenly discovered the ability to make a noise. We are convinced that he knew the score.
  • Well, most dogs seem to be able to say 'rough, rough' or 'roof, roof' or 'bark, bark'.
  • Ours has learned that we really hate the high pitched whining noise, but if she lowers her voice and makes a "MeeooorooofFFFFFFF!" noise, like an indignant grandfather across two octaves, we all crack up. So this is her go-to noise for getting our attention.
  • We got our rescue cat 9 months ago and she knows her new name is Mochi (which is not too dissimilar to her old name Marmie). She turns round when you say ‘cat’ in general conversation as if she knows you are talking about her. Other than that it is just the usual ‘dinner’ and ‘do you want to go out?’. Generally she is far more reactive to actions, such as me turning off the pc in my study when I have finished work - she jumps up and runs downstairs to the lounge.
    Marsupial wrote: »
    Not really sure what our cats’ vocabulary is but they do definitely respond to our getting off our chairs especially around dinner time. :smile:

    When I’ve been in front of the computer for a really long time, mine start pestering me. Not for food or play, but… it’s usually when it’s late and all, and I think they know it’s not healthy for me. (I’m working on trying to do better with a healthier schedule for eating and sleeping. Anyone who sees my Facebook posts knows I often eat breakfast and dinner well after noon and midnight, often with no lunch in between, sometimes as much as twelve hours with no food in between. And I’m diabetic… 😱 so good kitties! Pester Daddy so he takes better care of himself so he can be with you a good long time… ❤️ Maybe it’s even Cubby telling them to do what he used to do when it was late at night…)
  • Cats seem to want to interfere when anyone sits at a keyboard, whether on a piano or computer.

    When my wife played the piano ours used to jump up and walk along the keys or nudge her hands.

    She would do the same with me when I typed on my PC keyboard.

    My theory is that they don't like us 'stroking' or giving attention to anything else. My brother's cat used to bite my mother's toes when she was on the phone. He didn't like her answering the phone at all.

    All this stuff about cats being concerned about our well-being is wishful thinking. We are their servant bipeds. Nothing more.
  • ChastMastrChastMastr Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Cats seem to want to interfere when anyone sits at a keyboard, whether on a piano or computer.

    When my wife played the piano ours used to jump up and walk along the keys or nudge her hands.

    She would do the same with me when I typed on my PC keyboard.

    My theory is that they don't like us 'stroking' or giving attention to anything else. My brother's cat used to bite my mother's toes when she was on the phone. He didn't like her answering the phone at all.

    All this stuff about cats being concerned about our well-being is wishful thinking. We are their servant bipeds. Nothing more.

    I must disagree. But I don’t think this is the place to debate this, nor do I really want to.

    I knew these were the right cats for me when one of them, the “big sister” of the two despite their being from the same litter, started grooming my hair immediately when we met at the shelter, and they were only four months old at the time.

    They are my family. ❤️
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Ours has learnt that the particular meow he used when excitedly bowling through the cat flap with something recently deceased in his mouth that Shouldn't Be There got human attention more quickly than the regular meowp. So we now get the "I've brought a dead mouse in!" meow for "Food. Bowl. Now."

    As far as knowing human words - I think cats probably know lots but they're absolutely not going to let us realise that. They can certainly parse "Get off the table oh no that stupid animal's been at the cheese I just grated!"
  • I dread the day when Cats evolve opposable thumbs...
    :fearful:

    Meantime, Dogs have owners, but Cats have staff.

    I have no doubt that the higher animals have a pretty good idea as to what words - or perhaps the tone in which words are spoken - mean.
  • RockyRogerRockyRoger Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Dogs have owners, but Cats have staff ... ?
    Not so!
    dogs have care workers, ..... Cats have acolytes.
    Please note the correct capitalisation.
  • Bishops FingerBishops Finger Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Well, Cats were worshipped as gods in ancient Egypt, and have never forgotten this...
  • ChastMastr wrote: »
    Cats seem to want to interfere when anyone sits at a keyboard, whether on a piano or computer.

    When my wife played the piano ours used to jump up and walk along the keys or nudge her hands.

    She would do the same with me when I typed on my PC keyboard.

    My theory is that they don't like us 'stroking' or giving attention to anything else. My brother's cat used to bite my mother's toes when she was on the phone. He didn't like her answering the phone at all.

    All this stuff about cats being concerned about our well-being is wishful thinking. We are their servant bipeds. Nothing more.

    I must disagree. But I don’t think this is the place to debate this, nor do I really want to.

    I knew these were the right cats for me when one of them, the “big sister” of the two despite their being from the same litter, started grooming my hair immediately when we met at the shelter, and they were only four months old at the time.

    They are my family. ❤️

    I don't doubt that and don't see it as incompatible with what I wrote.

    Cats can 'love' us in their own way but it's always on their own terms.

    I like cats. I'm more of a cat person than a dog one.

    But I know what makes them tick. Food. Shelter. Comfort.

    If they show apparent affection to those who supply that then it's a means to an end, a way to ensure we continue to deliver the goods.
  • ChastMastr wrote: »
    Cats seem to want to interfere when anyone sits at a keyboard, whether on a piano or computer.

    When my wife played the piano ours used to jump up and walk along the keys or nudge her hands.

    She would do the same with me when I typed on my PC keyboard.

    My theory is that they don't like us 'stroking' or giving attention to anything else. My brother's cat used to bite my mother's toes when she was on the phone. He didn't like her answering the phone at all.

    All this stuff about cats being concerned about our well-being is wishful thinking. We are their servant bipeds. Nothing more.

    I must disagree. But I don’t think this is the place to debate this, nor do I really want to.

    I knew these were the right cats for me when one of them, the “big sister” of the two despite their being from the same litter, started grooming my hair immediately when we met at the shelter, and they were only four months old at the time.

    They are my family. ❤️

    I don't doubt that and don't see it as incompatible with what I wrote.

    Cats can 'love' us in their own way but it's always on their own terms.

    I like cats. I'm more of a cat person than a dog one.

    But I know what makes them tick. Food. Shelter. Comfort.

    If they show apparent affection to those who supply that then it's a means to an end, a way to ensure we continue to deliver the goods.

    Again we disagree. That’s not like the cats I have known.
  • Also, this being Heaven and not Purgatory, can we not get into debates about whether our furry loved ones love us back (no scare quotes around “love” please)? Not that I want to argue with you about this in the first place. This may be a metaphysical disagreement.
  • FirenzeFirenze Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    I know love when I see it. Our cat Molly would climb up and put her little furry face against my lips.
  • Re cats and thumbs: there is a novel by Andre Norton in which the people have died off or gone away and the world has been inherited by cats, dogs, rats, etc. Some of the cats have evolved thumbs.
  • HarryCH wrote: »
    Re cats and thumbs: there is a novel by Andre Norton in which the people have died off or gone away and the world has been inherited by cats, dogs, rats, etc. Some of the cats have evolved thumbs.

    This is also the world’s backstory in the animated musical Rock and Rule. Cats, rats, and dogs are all humanoid. Mind you, it only comes up maybe in the opening credits, and doesn’t really affect the plot…
  • ChastMastrChastMastr Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Firenze wrote: »
    I know love when I see it. Our cat Molly would climb up and put her little furry face against my lips.

    Amen. ❤️ I hope I wasn’t mean or aggressive, @Gamma Gamaliel, but this is a matter that is extremely important to me.
  • Sorry if I've offended you. Anthropomorphism is a natural tendency.

    I think cats can love us, for sure but we can't attribute human characteristics to that.

    That doesn't make our interaction with them any less special though.
  • ChastMastrChastMastr Shipmate
    edited September 2024
    Sorry if I've offended you. Anthropomorphism is a natural tendency.

    I think cats can love us, for sure but we can't attribute human characteristics to that.

    That doesn't make our interaction with them any less special though.

    I want to accept your apology, but why twist the knife again by undercutting it immediately? I didn't say anything about anthropomorphization at all. I'm trying to avoid arguing with you. We apparently disagree about some things, and I'm trying to be polite about it. I'd appreciate the same courtesy, especially from someone I generally like and care about, especially on the Heaven board, and with something critically important to me, as I've said before.
  • Ok. I apologise. I hadn't realised how insensitive my comments were.
  • Ok. I apologise. I hadn't realised how insensitive my comments were.

    Gratefully received, with many hugs. <3
  • Thanks for your gracious response. You are the last person I want to offend.

    (Not that I want to offend anyone of course, but you know what I mean).

    Apologies to all Shipmates on this thread for my ham-fistedness.
Sign In or Register to comment.