02 Mar Do dogs know their name?

When you first decide to take care of a dog, they have no name. When you hug them, they don’t respond to your chosen name and don’t react. But over time, they learn different things and react to your voice and their name. Choosing a true dog’s name is the first important step in their training. Some dogs learn and respond to their own name sooner than other breeds.

Do you know that dogs really know their name or only recognize your voice and react to it? If your dog recognizes his name, he will run towards you immediately. For example, your dog is in another room or another part of the house, and when you call him, he immediately runs towards you, or if your dog is in a room with you, your dog may look at you. In this case, your dog will recognize his own name. Call out different names for more accurate testing to see if they really know their name or only respond to your voice. If you call him someone else and your dog comes to you with joy and excitement, it means that he responds more to your voice and doesn’t know his name.

If they only react when they hear their name, you can also try their body language signs. Dogs are usually very excited when they hear their name and show various signs with their body; for example, they may tilt their head, raise their ears, look and hear your voice, shake their tail in excitement, raise their tail, be alert, and may even bark in response to you.

The body language to dog’s name:

If your dog knows his name, he may show the following symptoms:

• Staring
• Being alert
• Barking
• Tilting their head
• Shaking the tail
• Running
• Raising the tail
• tilting the ears
• Their ears rise when you say their names in your conversation.
• They respond immediately in their own name.
• They don’t respond only to your tone.

 How do dogs learn their name?

Dogs’ vocabulary is different. Some dogs can learn many words, while other dogs only understand a few keywords like their name. This vocabulary doesn’t mean that your dog is intelligent; this number of words indicates their ability to read the human verbal language. Some dogs can even learn hundreds of specific words, while others do not.

Dogs can learn many different words through the process of deductive reasoning and positive reinforcement. For example, imagine entering a room and saying “good morning” to your dog. Your dog thinks to himself, “Mom speaks positively to me in an optimistic tone, so something good like a walk or other exciting activity is coming soon.” Your dog doesn’t understand the meaning of your good morning. Sometimes they also use body language to decrypt your message. For example, if you say good morning and go to their bouquet or food, they will understand what you are talking about.

Dogs usually learn their name through classical conditioning. Classic conditioning means that they learn to respond when you call their name; this response doesn’t mean understanding their own name. When you call your dog’s name, and they come to you, you give them a treat. This trick allows them to learn to come to you with the sound of their name. This is very similar to training your dog to “sit” and “stay” and respond after that.

How to train dogs to learn their names:

Teaching dogs’ names is one of the easiest and most enjoyable tasks. Most dogs learn their name within the first few days to a few weeks after being brought home. All you have to do is teach them their names in short training sessions of five to ten minutes. To do this, you can place your puppy close to you on a leash so that he can’t escape. Don’t forget that you should always have a lot of food and treats for effective training to be able to reward them for a good job.

First, say the name of your dog and hold a treat in front of your nose. Ask him to make eye contact with you and look at the treat. If he looks at you by saying his name, encourage him and give him a treat. Repeat this process for the next five minutes or so.

Then add other new phrases to your dog’s name and say your dog’s name in the same tone. With this exercise, your dog will learn to respond to his real name, not just the tone of your voice. When you name them, ask them to look at you and treat them if they are successful.

After mastering this part of the training, you should increase your distance from your dog. You should continue the same training above but gradually increase the distance between you and your dog. Please keep your dog on a leash, but he should have enough space to move and distract from things around him.

When they are distracted, repeat their name, and as soon as they come to you or react, encourage them and give them a treat. After a few days to a few weeks of these training steps, your dog will learn his name and know that when you say this name, he must come to you. When your dog does a good job or a successful training, encourage him to let your dog know he did a good job. Praise and encouragement is a great way to learn that shouldn’t be ignored. In this process, you have to use his favourite foods to treat.

Today, dogs are part of a family that needs careful training and upbringing. The first step in teaching them is to learn their name, which can be done easily in the ways mentioned. Mishka’s professional team will be by your side at all stages and will help you train and groom your dog.