To what extent do you feel your pet communicates with you?

I don’t think my pets understand what I say, but I do feel that my body language and pitch/tone do a good job of communicating, and it works both ways.

I do believe that animals and people learn to “talk” to one another in this way. Neither one of us truly knows what the other wants but over time we learn to communicate.

To the extent that requires me to clean up their “communiques.”

Yes, I do. Humans are very arrogant about what constitutes intelligence. I think animals are much smarter than most conventional wisdom allows, but they are smart in different ways and have different priorities than we do.

My dog Mackie (whom I have raised from the age of 10 weeks) and whom I have spoken to as a regular person since that time understands a wide range of human vocabulary. We were at the dog park one day, and I called out to him with a complicated set of instructions that involved conditions. A woman walking nearby heard me and laughed, saying “Yeah, sure, like he is going to understand that.” Mackie then did exactly as I had asked him to and the woman was amazed. I hadn’t really given it much thought, because that is how I have always spoken to him.

My husband was surprised one day when we were in the car. Mackie was panting and I looked over my shoulder and said, “Mack, if you move to the other side of the back seat into the shade, you will be cooler.” Mackie got up and moved over.

I just wish I could understand what he was trying to tell me better. Dogs communicate mostly via images, and I, being very verbal, am not great at receiving pictures. So, our communication is more one-way than I would like. I have learned to differentiate his bark tones and to listen to him when he is reacting with his far superior scent reading.

On the other hand, when we got Kobe, our adopted ex-racing greyhound, he did not speak English at all. Now, in a little less than a year, he is much more responsive, but I suspect it will never be the same as a dog I raised from puppyhood.

Cats, by the way, can develop a human vocabulary of about 23 words (to dogs some 250). I am sure your cat is sommunicating with you. Their thought processes are even more different from ours than dogs though.

Chuckie. You should ask your pet not to swear at you. —does Astro have a Dorg named AstroJr????-

My dog thinks I’m crazy. I’ll be back when I’m done arguing with him.

just kidding

yes, I ask questions and he replies back with a bark. One for yes, two for no.

He’s a attention whore but he knows how to get what he wants, how to communicate it and always happy.

He’s part rabbit, he loves his carrots.

My house is like Dr. DooLittle’s. I talk to them, and they answer daily!!

Drake came from a shelter. He is very friendly and exceptionally well-behaved. Kids love him, because he is very patient, playful and gentle.
However, I have noted several things about him. He responds to sudden actions (such as standing up quickly, changing directions while walking, or even reaching out to pet him) by cringing, tucking tail, and running a few steps . Also, if you approached him with an object in your hand (tv remote etc.) he would flee and hide under furniture.
So, obviously that tells me he had been abused. With that in mind, I have been continually untraining him to fear. I realize that he needs a bit more of a gentle touch than other dogs, but he also needs to regain confidence. I may move a bit more deliberately around him, but I speak to him in a firm, encouraging tone, and make sure our physical contact is made in the same manner.
He is getting better…he still has a tendency to duck and cover, but he stands his ground at least. The other day he barked for the first time, at the air conditioner repairman. Very deep and powerful. I was so proud.
Anyway, I realize we still have a long way to go, but his progress makes my very happy. He is a Very Good Dog.

My cats know a few words, and they communicate and understand communication, but mostly it is not with symbolic word meaning. It’s more with body language, voice tone and volume, affect, eye contact, facial expressions, even scents.

Cats do have verbal type language though, too. It’s too bad instruction in it is not more commonly known and available.

I’ve always talked to my cats and dogs, and while they communicate by their demeanor, we generally understand each other very well.

Thank you all for your responses. Personally I think my cats understand a lot of what I say. They all know their names, and their nicknames. And my boy cat, Mushroom, is always telling me how he feels. I’ve learned to decipher his dozens of meows, trills, grunts, etc, and of course I can read his body language. The reason I know Mushroom understands some of the words that come out of my mouth is because one time I called him a shit-head because he’s a boy, and he can be a shit head and he growled and hissed at me. We have some issues in our relationship, but we love each other dearly.

A very high extent. I feel that we share a deep connection at times. But maybe I’m just crazy.

A very high extent.

I just found out that cats only use “meow” to communicate with humans. (To communicate with other cats, they only use purrs, hisses, growls, and body language.) My cat meows honestly at least 75 times a day. She’s quite vocal. So she’s saying a lot to me, that’s for sure.

My mother-in-law was on the phone, with her daughter and asked “Who is saying “Hello””. Itty Bitty started saying “Hello” at night searching for her kittens” Her daughter Brio also say “Hello” when looking for other to start the’ Tag/Hide/Chase” game.