New research confirms what many dog owners already suspected: dogs understand much more of the human voice than previously thought. They can recognize voices and match them to the right person.
Earlier studies showed that dogs react to specific sounds in human voices, such as distinguishing between genders or familiar and unfamiliar voices. However, the latest findings reveal that dogs can also associate voices with specific individuals.
Researchers conducted an experiment with 31 dogs and their owners. Recordings of the owners' voices were played, and the dogs had to identify the correct person without visual cues. Remarkably, 18 out of 31 dogs successfully completed the task.
This is the first time it has been scientifically proven that dogs can recognize and link human voices to specific people. Future research will explore whether other mammals share this ability.