Dogs seem to intuitively understand human emotions, and they can be trained to understand and respond to a nearly unlimited number of words, phrases, or commands. Some experts say smarter breeds can learn hundreds of different prompts! It makes you wonder how far off they really are from being able to truly communicate with us using something resembling language.
People have been wondering and experimenting with the idea for a long time. Speech-language pathologist Christina Hunger and her dog Stella were the first to experiment with talking buttons in 2019, where Stella could press a button with her nose to activate a word sound, thereby speaking, in a sense. Since then there has been a surge of online content showing other pet parents using similar kits to communicate with their own pups.
The most fascinating aspect of this phenomenon is the question of whether or not canines are able to understand full-blown complicated sentences beyond “treat” and “outside.”
While the overall jury is still out on that, scientifically speaking, dogs like Ripley — a 2-year-old Australian Shepherd — seem to make an incredibly compelling case for believing the hype.
An Australian Shepherd like Ripley.
Photo by Ilona Frey on Unsplash
Ripley has an entire TikTok account documenting his impressive talk button journey, along with 85,000 followers. But a video posted on March 28, 2024, feels next-level.
In the clip, Ripley presses the “smell” button as his parents eat lunch. When that doesn’t get their attention, he begins to bark.
“What do you smell?” a voice finally asks. To which Ripley replies “outside,” followed by “gardens.”
Confused, someone asks, “It smells like the gardens outside?”
Ripley’s parents had apparently just started a load of laundry before making lunch, and the detergent had been spilling all over the floor from the washing machine. Ripley had been smelling the detergent, which was reminiscent of the gardens outside.
Unfortunately, they didn’t put two and two together until after they went back to the laundry room and saw the rapidly worsening mess.
Hence the moral of the story: “You should always listen to your dog.”
@letsgoripley He’s so freakin’ smart! #Talkingdog #letsgoripley #ripleytalks #fluentpet #australianshepherd #dogs
Ripley’s amazing feat prompted lots of praise from over a million viewers.
“All of the treats,” one person wrote.
Another added, “I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, he is brilliant.”
“He was so mad y’all weren’t moving,” someone joked.
“This is amazing!!! It’s a good thing it wasn’t an emergency like a fire or something dangerous!!!! You both seemed a little slow to realize that she was trying to warn you of something off/strange!!!” said another.
Others were quick to compliment the breed. And rightfully so, as Australian Shepherds are known for their remarkable intelligence, as well as their strong drive and exuberance, according to the American Kennel Club. They thrive when they have a job, and the way Ripley jumped into action is a pretty great example of this characteristic.
The whole account is pretty remarkable. In another popular video, Ripley uses the buttons to demand to see his grandma (who, no doubt, gives him lots of treats). In another, he can be seen asking for water and alerting his humans that he smells food. His owners insist that he understands what they’re saying to him and uses the buttons to communicate, not just for rewards and praise.
@letsgoripley Ripley really loves his Grandma! This happened multiple times this day. This was the first time. Stay tuned… 🐶 #australianshepherd #fluentpet #talkingdog #dogswhotalk #dogmom #dogdad #puppy #doglover #grandma #smartdog #aussiesoftiktok #puppylove
So, while we might not have definite evidence for the efficacy of talk buttons, one thing remains abundantly clear—our dogs are trying to communicate with us in whatever way they can. All we need to do is listen.
Check out even more of Ripley’s talk button shenanigans on TikTok.