# How do animals with acute hearing adjust to loud environments? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 25, 2017, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811 "2017-06-25T05:31:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/1 "2017-06-25T05:31:43Z")
My mom’s Yorkies wake her almost every night. They hear deer outside in the yard. This is a house built in 1989 with heavily insulated walls. We can’t even hear a lawn mower out in the yard. But the Yorkies can hear deer nibbling on the shrubbery at 2AM. We often watch TV with it very loud (mom & dad are both hard of hearing). The dogs are snoring away on mom’s lap. It’s painful for me sometimes. Especially the shrill commercials. How can an animal have very sensitive hearing and not be distressed in loud environments? I can crank up Black Sabbath and the dog never reacts. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/2 "2017-06-25T06:46:49Z")
Animals don’t react to music. Dogs have really good hearing and can filter out noise, You can do it, too, just not as well. ---
**Author:** ![Crazyhorse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crazyhorse/32/31_2.png) [@Crazyhorse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazyhorse)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/3 "2017-06-25T07:28:23Z")
They cope with the blaring TV the same way you do. It is almost certainly not pleasant for them but they have no choice in the matter so try to tune it out and carry on with whatever they are doing. At some point it will damage their hearing with long term exposure to loud enough noise. As good as a dog’s hearing is their sense of smell is even better, so without more information it’s also possible they smell the deer but are already hard of hearing and the TV doesn’t bother them anymore. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/4 "2017-06-25T07:36:11Z")
Noise is a modern problem. Imagine humans wrapped in furs by a campfire. Throwing a gnawed bone to a hungry dog. We shared a quiet world. Now the poor thing is blasted by noise from all our gadgets. Even the Fridge must sound loud to their sensitive ears. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/5 "2017-06-25T10:59:10Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Animals don’t react to music. Dogs have really good hearing and can filter out noise, You can do it, too, just not as well. This. I think [THIS](https://pics.me.me/doorbell-burglary-mailman-cheese-wrapper-dog-munchies-%F0%9F%98%82-3922069.png) meme sums it up quite nicely. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/6 "2017-06-25T12:04:24Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Animals don’t react to music. Disagree. Play some hip-hop or reggae and Rocco, our African Grey, is a dancing fool. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/7 "2017-06-25T14:56:22Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > Animals don’t react to music. More information disputing this: [Behavioral effects of auditory stimulation on kenneled dogs](http://www.journalvetbehavior.com/article/S1558-7878(11)00184-5/fulltext?cc=y=) > [@](#): > > The current study investigated the impact of music (classical, heavy metal, and specifically designed/altered classical) on activity level, vocalization, and body shaking of 117 kenneled dogs. Results suggest that classical music leads to kenneled dogs spending more time sleeping (F8,354 = 12.24, P \> 0.0001) and less time vocalizing (F8,354 = 3.61, P \> 0.0005) than when exposed to other music types or no music. Heavy metal music, compared with other music types, appears to increase body shaking (F8,354 = 96.97, P \> 0.0001), a behavior suggestive of nervousness. It is suggested that playing classical music in a shelter environment may help mitigate some of the stress inherent for many kenneled dogs. [Reggae, soft rock best at relaxing stressed out dogs: study](http://globalnews.ca/news/3217288/reggae-soft-rock-best-at-relaxing-stressed-out-dogs-study/) And for cat peoiple: [Cats don’t like human music — play them this instead](http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/cats-dont-like-human-music-play-instead/) ---
**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/8 "2017-06-25T15:50:20Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Disagree. Play some hip-hop or reggae and Rocco, our African Grey, is a dancing fool. Truth! My budgies are particularly fond of Eminem and screech their little heads off and run around excitedly whenever he’s playing. But, if I’m playing piano, they all quietly line up and watch/listen. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-animals-with-acute-hearing-adjust-to-loud-environments/789811/9 "2017-06-25T17:26:24Z")
I didn’t realize birds are so attentive to music. I guess they view it as similiar to their own calls and singing.