# My dog recognizes other dogs on TV. Weird? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 7, 2010, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810 "2010-07-07T02:26:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![oboelady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8491ac/32.png) [@oboelady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oboelady)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/1 "2010-07-07T02:26:16Z")
My Dad’s dog recognizes other dogs on the TV. She even recognizes cartoon dogs. She loves dog food commercials. It’s pretty weird, because the other dogs in the house ignore the TV, while she is up there, on her hind legs, paws on the screen, looking at whatever dog is on there and growling ever so slightly. How rare is this? Anyone else have a dog that does this? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/2 "2010-07-07T02:37:49Z")
Not reacting to dogs, but we had a terrier who would recognize horses on TV and on the screen at the drive-in movie theater. She also knew what they looked like in real life because she would see them being ridden down the street past our house - and her reaction for any of those three instances was to bark her head off. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/3 "2010-07-07T02:50:04Z")
Pets (like cats & dogs) frequently recognize similar animals on TV, especially the sounds. But they generally learn pretty quickly that these aren’t ‘real’ – they are lacking the smells of a real animal, and they don’t respond at all when your pet reacts. So they usually learn to ignore animals on TV. That your Dad’s doesn’t ignore them is unusual. Perhaps she notices that he reacts when she does this, by laughing or otherwise giving her attention? Dogs will do lots of silly things, if they think it pleases their owner. ---
**Author:** ![oboelady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8491ac/32.png) [@oboelady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oboelady)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/4 "2010-07-07T02:56:26Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Perhaps she notices that he reacts when she does this, by laughing or otherwise giving her attention? Dogs will do lots of silly things, if they think it pleases their owner. Nope. Right now she is living with me (Dad can’t take care of her right now) and there are two other dogs who ignore the sounds on TV. We will be having a conversation around whatever is going on and will notice that she is jumping up looking at the dog on the tube. But yesterday when she noticed the cartoon dog, I was pretty startled! She also understands more human speech than any dog I’ve known! ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/5 "2010-07-07T03:10:13Z")
I have seen a few dogs that did that and owned a couple. Only some dogs seem to make the connection with the TV. My MIL had a standard poodle who was very smart but quite neurotic and easily emotionally disturbed. He got visibly upset and shaken up at things he saw on TV especially action scenes involving animals. He would either flee the room and hide in his dramatic and flamboyant style or dive his big quaffed and poofy body onto you to get protection. ---
**Author:** ![pabstist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e99b99/32.png) [@pabstist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pabstist)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/6 "2010-07-07T03:13:15Z")
My dog always stares at dogs on TV. She especially loves the “Puppy Bowl”. ---
**Author:** ![Pyper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pyper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pyper)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/7 "2010-07-07T04:51:50Z")
Somewhat similar: I had two retired racing greyhounds that never paid attention to the TV, except for one day when we were watching a documentary about greyhounds on the track. Then they became very excited, running in from other rooms to stare, ears up, at the TV. It’s like they recognized the “language” of greyhounds. The sound of other breeds of dog meant nothing to them. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/8 "2010-07-07T05:16:09Z")
I’ve known some dogs to react to TV and some do not. I don’t know why. My own dog wouldn’t react to anything from a TV or tape recorder. My cat was really perseptive. I taped her meowing. She didn’t react to it, but my friend sent me a tape of her cat meowing and my cat got all disturbed by it. I tried it with a few other cats meowing and sometimes my cat would react and sometime she would not react. But she never reacted to her own meow. Also interesting was my cat seemed to know my dog’s bark. She would never flintch if it was him barking. But she could instantly tell another dog and take off. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 8:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/9 "2010-07-07T08:11:13Z")
Our Silky Terrier used to recognise dogs on TV and react to them. Not TV but amusing: I had a Kelpie who thought the mirror in my bedroom was a window into the room on the other side of the wall. It was fun to watch him race back and forth, checking through the “window” to see if the other dog was still there and then around to catch it. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/10 "2010-07-07T08:18:06Z")
I find it almost impossible to believe that a dog recognized a cartoon dog on television, unless the cartoon dog was making real dog noises. Note I said _almost_. I could be convinced if I saw it in person. Note I said _could_. Maybe. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/11 "2010-07-07T12:02:12Z")
The lakeland terrier I spent my teens with always reacted when there was a dog on TV, never other quadrupeds. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/12 "2010-07-07T12:33:38Z")
One of our two dogs, Simone, responds to dogs and other animals on TV; the other has never paid the slightest attention. Simone also growls at her own reflection sometimes. She’s also deathly afraid of Zulu war cries – I had to turn off the movie _Zulu._ ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/13 "2010-07-07T12:55:58Z")
My dog is a big fan of Dog Whisperer. He’ll leave whatever room he’s sleeping in to come and watch it when it’s on, and he actually seems to watch it. Now, it does have a lot of barking in it which twigs him that it’s on, but then he’ll sit and watch. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/14 "2010-07-07T13:27:06Z")
[Unca Cecil’s take](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/407/are-dogs-unable-to-see-2-d-images-mirrors-photos-tv) ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/15 "2010-07-07T13:50:32Z")
I had to stop watching those dog rescue shows on Animal Planet. Every time they rescue pit bull puppies – well, every time my dog hears puppies crying in distress – she gets very upset. I think it triggers her mama instincts and she wants to go protect them. She might perk up her ears at a dog barking on TV, but she realizes quickly that it’s not a real dog. Crying puppies bug her, though. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/16 "2010-07-07T14:37:47Z")
Our dog very rarely reacts to on-screen dog barks, but almost always reacts when he hears the barking dogs on “The Wire.” Almost as if certain sound effects are more realistic than otehrs. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/17 "2010-07-07T16:12:18Z")
Our new puppy loves “Littlest Hobo” reruns. He watches quite intently, whenever Hobo is on screen. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/18 "2010-07-07T17:14:08Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > Our dog very rarely reacts to on-screen dog barks, but almost always reacts when he hears the barking dogs on “The Wire.” Almost as if certain sound effects are more realistic than otehrs. When my dog hears a doorbell on TV he runs to the door and barks. :smack: I don’t have a doorbell. Otherwise he doesn’t react to the TV at all. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/19 "2010-07-07T17:15:14Z")
We had a German Shepherd and a beagle. The Shepherd got cancer and died. A week later the Westminiter Dog show came on TV. When the Shepherds came up the beagle jumped off my lap ,ran to the TV and wagged her tail and whined. My wife was crying then too. The beagle sat on my lap and watched Disneys wild world of animals every week. She preferred wolves and coyote shows, but watched all animal shows. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2010, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810/20 "2010-07-07T17:25:56Z")
Out of my seven One always reacts to other dogs, be it barking, or just showing up on the screen. Once she has reacted some of the others react as well, out of a sense of support I suppose. The One also reacts to pretty much all animals on the TV, the others not so much. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-dog-recognizes-other-dogs-on-tv-weird/545810.md?page=2)