Do dogs think in "barks"?

1. 77

   ParadigmShift...posted 15 years ago

   We all know animals can be trained and learn commands. But how do they think? Do they think at all? Can they think ahead? Contemplate? And in what language?

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      Tater2totposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      I have no idea! That is an interesting question. I mean the learn commands in English but I guess everyone can learn what to do from words in a different language. I am pretty sure that the DO think but I don't know how.
      
      That reminds me, how do babies think? They don't know any language yet but somehow they do think? Right?

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      1. 77

         ParadigmShift...posted 15 years agoin reply to this

         They must! Also, I just remembered my wife's cousin has a dog with her boyfriend who is deaf. The dog is a female pit bull named "two" and she understands commands in sign language! So I wonder, when she thinks of sitting, does she think of the "sign" or the actual activity? hmmm....

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   2. 57

      oxymoronposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      Good question. I think they must think. Sometimes we don't need a language for thinking, just some feeling. Then, we shape up with words. So, I feel dogs do think

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2. 67

   Lidianposted 15 years ago

   I think that they probably do...our cats think in meows. Really, one of them 'talks' all the time and you can really understand what she is on about (she is often complaining about not getting gourmet cuisine!)

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3. 60

   knolyourselfposted 15 years ago

   I had a dog I'm pretty sure understood about a hundred words. I would say animals think in images.

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      quensdayposted 15 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. Any living thing has to be able to think.  Any organism has to constantly evaluate its environment to some degree just to survive. I would say that dogs process concepts, but it's probably not as advanced as human processing because we have a detailed system of symbols to reflect our constant understanding of the world. As far as language goes, they are possibly more sensitive to physical interaction and understand communication that way.

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4. 78

   byeeposted 15 years ago

   Think of how you think, and take a very small fraction of that.  I think dogs have very short memories, but they do remember cause-effect situations, which controls behavior.  However they do not have "symbolic capacity" like humans do--we can take a rock and realize that it can be used as a tool (chimps can do that too).  Dogs use their instincts and senses mostly.

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   knolyourselfposted 15 years ago

   Actually dogs never forget. If my dog saw a rabbit in a certain place, that dog would go to that spot for years looking for that rabbit.

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6. 59

   ureckifixposted 15 years ago

   Dogs do think
   Just sit and watch one some time.
   my question is how do they think , I know that they have a pecking order in the wild and domestic dogs still have that ingrained in them. so they think in the pack form.
   Alpha Male
   Alpha Female
   A dog can be trained with the repetitive command and praise.
   but that give no insight into how they think.
   A site I found and never bookmarked said that dogs use there minds eye.???

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7. 58

   dingdongposted 15 years ago

   Well, what if they think?

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8. 60

   knolyourselfposted 15 years ago

   If animals can think then it is more difficult to treat them
   as commodities. Can't have that.

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9. 41

   dizongroupposted 15 years ago

   They don't think in barks, and this is why I think so. I have 2 female dogs. One is a  APBT. The other one is a Staffordshire bull terrier. They know exactly when I'm going to take them for a walk, or put eye drops in their eyes, or ear drops....AND they know this without me telling them verbally...I only have to think it and they react accordingly, excited for the walk or play time, or running and hiding when I just think about eye or ear drops. LOL

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10. 70

    waynetposted 15 years ago

    Bwahahahaha!
    
    I was thinking the same thing whilst sat on the toilet...get in there dude!
    Great minds think alike!

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11. 90

    Rochelle Frankposted 15 years ago

    Animals can 'learn'. They can respond to a certain command or stimulus for a reward. They can use prior experiences and some sort of 'reasoning' to solve a problem or reach a reward. Many species obviously have a 'language' that communicates basic emotions like distress, pleasure, pain...  I "think" that some of these qualities indicate  'thought'.
    
    Chimps have been taught sign language which they have used to communicate new ideas-- not just ones that they imitate or learn.
    
    So my  answer would be:" Maybe."

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12. 57

    oxymoronposted 15 years ago

    Great views!

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13. 0

    shinujohn2008posted 15 years ago

    Dogs have Ability to think and act,this has been proved, if not they would not have found their place in Police squads

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    1. 57

       weblogposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Agreed

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14. 58

    webismineposted 15 years ago

    Nice

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15. 85

    Zsuzsy Beeposted 15 years ago

    I don't think we give our dogs enough credit as far as language is concerned. My dogs understand just about anything. They act with compassion when I'm sad, they are full of beans when they want me to play with them, and they sure let me know in every way possible if their food or water dish needs to be refilled.
    No wonder that they're called man's best friend...in my case woman's 3 best friends

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    1. 82

       shibashakeposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       I so agree with you. Dogs have a lot more empathy than people do, they can easily sense emotions, however slight, in their humans. Thus while my significant other may be oblivious to my troubles, my dog will come over and put his head on my lap.
       
       Dogs also spend much of their lives observing us; our mannerisms, routines, and quirks. They probably understand us better than we understand ourselves.
       
       Dogs communicate better. They don't say yes when they mean no and vice versa. With a dog you always know where you stand.
       
       Dogs I believe think in images. That is why they respond much better to hand signals than they do to verbal commands. They also have good long-term memory, but they can only associate cause and effect when they are right next to each other in time. That is why "punishing" a dog after the fact has no effect because the dog does not understand what you are punishing him for.

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16. 59

    TravelMonkeyposted 15 years ago

    I have two Japanese akitas who do not bark unless they are in a pack. So I'm sure they communicate more in their actions.

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       oxymoronposted 15 years agoin reply to this

       Good info

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17. 59

    Random Personposted 15 years ago

    Dog barks mean diffent things according to what they think. Understanding dog Psychology has helped me to understand what my dog needs. It is possible for dogs to learn commands in another language. My dog knows commands in German!
    
                     Sincerly,
                             Random

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18. 64

    RKHenryposted 15 years ago

    Anyone see Letterman the other night?  He had on his a show a dog that growled everytime it heard the name satan and a dog that when shown a number between 1 and 10, he'd bark the count out.  Animals are amazing.

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