Photo: gettyIt turns out yourdog’shead tilt may be more than a cute gesture!Researchers at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, tested their theory that a dog’s adorable head tilt could be linked to their ability to process the names of objects.According to a study published in the research journalAnimal Cognition,the new research suggests that “only a few dogs can learn the name of objects (toys) even after a few exposures, while most (typical) dogs do not.“They hypothesized that “head-tilting is related to processing meaningful or relevant auditory stimuli” and that dogs who were able to associate the name of a word with an object, such as their favorite toy, would tilt their heads more frequently than dogs who weren’t able to associate a word with a thing.Forty furry friends (mostlyborder collies) participated in the study. Over three months, the canine subjects learned the names of two toys.Scientists labeled dogs who could rapidly learn object names after a few exposures as “gifted word learner” (GWL) dogs, as opposed to typical dogs.The study found that the researchers' hypothesis was accurate. After trying to teach dogs the names of two toys, researchers concluded that GWL dogs tilted their heads at a rate of 43%, as opposed to typical dogs, who tilted their heads 2% of the time during the trials.RELATED VIDEO: Owner Uses Pets' Favorite Words for ReactionNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.According to the report, the “difference in the dogs' behavior might be related to hearing meaningful words (for the GWL dogs) and could be a sign of increased attention.” It could also indicate increased memory.Though the research seems promising, scientists agree with the need to expand the study to other breeds outside of border collies.
Photo: getty
It turns out yourdog’shead tilt may be more than a cute gesture!Researchers at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, tested their theory that a dog’s adorable head tilt could be linked to their ability to process the names of objects.According to a study published in the research journalAnimal Cognition,the new research suggests that “only a few dogs can learn the name of objects (toys) even after a few exposures, while most (typical) dogs do not.“They hypothesized that “head-tilting is related to processing meaningful or relevant auditory stimuli” and that dogs who were able to associate the name of a word with an object, such as their favorite toy, would tilt their heads more frequently than dogs who weren’t able to associate a word with a thing.Forty furry friends (mostlyborder collies) participated in the study. Over three months, the canine subjects learned the names of two toys.Scientists labeled dogs who could rapidly learn object names after a few exposures as “gifted word learner” (GWL) dogs, as opposed to typical dogs.The study found that the researchers' hypothesis was accurate. After trying to teach dogs the names of two toys, researchers concluded that GWL dogs tilted their heads at a rate of 43%, as opposed to typical dogs, who tilted their heads 2% of the time during the trials.RELATED VIDEO: Owner Uses Pets' Favorite Words for ReactionNever miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.According to the report, the “difference in the dogs' behavior might be related to hearing meaningful words (for the GWL dogs) and could be a sign of increased attention.” It could also indicate increased memory.Though the research seems promising, scientists agree with the need to expand the study to other breeds outside of border collies.
It turns out yourdog’shead tilt may be more than a cute gesture!
Researchers at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, tested their theory that a dog’s adorable head tilt could be linked to their ability to process the names of objects.
According to a study published in the research journalAnimal Cognition,the new research suggests that “only a few dogs can learn the name of objects (toys) even after a few exposures, while most (typical) dogs do not.”
They hypothesized that “head-tilting is related to processing meaningful or relevant auditory stimuli” and that dogs who were able to associate the name of a word with an object, such as their favorite toy, would tilt their heads more frequently than dogs who weren’t able to associate a word with a thing.
Forty furry friends (mostlyborder collies) participated in the study. Over three months, the canine subjects learned the names of two toys.
Scientists labeled dogs who could rapidly learn object names after a few exposures as “gifted word learner” (GWL) dogs, as opposed to typical dogs.
The study found that the researchers' hypothesis was accurate. After trying to teach dogs the names of two toys, researchers concluded that GWL dogs tilted their heads at a rate of 43%, as opposed to typical dogs, who tilted their heads 2% of the time during the trials.
RELATED VIDEO: Owner Uses Pets' Favorite Words for Reaction
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free weekly newsletterto get the biggest news of the week delivered to your inbox every Friday.
According to the report, the “difference in the dogs' behavior might be related to hearing meaningful words (for the GWL dogs) and could be a sign of increased attention.” It could also indicate increased memory.
Though the research seems promising, scientists agree with the need to expand the study to other breeds outside of border collies.
source: people.com
